Michelle Carter who pushed depressed boyfriend to kill himself via text messages and phone calls denied early release
MASSACHUSETTS: Michelle Carter, the Massachusetts woman convicted of urging her boyfriend to kill himself via text messages, was denied early release by the Massachusetts Parole Board on Friday.
The 22-year-old was found guilty of involuntary manslaughter as she did nothing to stop her suicidal boyfriend, Conrad Roy, from taking his own life in 2014. Instead, she encouraged him — via text messages and phone calls — to kill himself.
Carter was convicted of involuntary manslaughter in 2017 and given a 15-month jail sentence. But she remained free while her lawyers appealed her conviction to the state’s highest court. In February 2019, she started serving her sentence in the Bristol County House of Correction.
After serving just seven months of her sentence, Carter appeared before the Parole Board on Thursday to seek an early release. However, the board on Friday said it had denied Carter's request.
“The [board] is troubled that Ms. Carter not only encouraged [Conrad Roy III] to take his own life, she actively prevented others from intervening in his suicide,” the board wrote in its decision. “Ms. Carter’s self-serving statements and behavior, leading up to and after his suicide, appear to be irrational and lacked sincerity.”
The board also added that Carter needs to address the “causative effects” that led to the offense. “Release does not meet the legal standard.”
The judge who had found Carter guilty had cited her confession to a friend saying she had encouraged Roy to go through with his suicide.
He was trying to take his own life by poisoning himself in his car with carbon monoxide. When he had second thoughts he backed out and even stepped out of the car. But Carter texted him urging him to “get back in” the carbon monoxide-filled vehicle. Roy eventually died after inhaling poisonous fumes.
The judge said Carter had a duty to call the police or Roy's family, but instead listened on the phone as he died.
Both Carter and Roy had struggled with depression and Roy had previously attempted to take his own life as well. Carter's attorneys had tried to defend her by saying that the prosecutors had "cherry-picked" selective messages which served their case against her and had left out the texts where she had encouraged Roy to seek help for his condition.
Bristol County Juvenile Court Judge Lawrence Moniz shared, "She did nothing. She did not call the police or Mr. Roy's family. Finally, she did not issue a simple additional instruction: 'Get out of the truck'."