Michelle Carter, a 20 year old woman from Massachusetts has been sentenced to 2 and a half years in prison for urging her boyfriend to kill himself. Carter was convicted in June for the involuntary manslaughter of Conrad Roy, who committed suicide in July 2014.
According to a BBC report, Carter took part in Roy’s death by sending him text messages and calling him while he was in the process of killing himself through carbon monoxide poisoning.
Michelle Carter: First Conviction Of Its Kind
Carter will not serve her sentence until she exhausts all her appeals. She is currently free while waiting for results of her appeal. She originally was facing a 20 year sentence which is the maximum sentence, but her legal team cited that she suffered from mental illness.
The judge who ruled on the conviction said that he did not see that Carter’s “age or level of maturity or even her mental illness have any significant impact on her actions.” The prosecutor also argued that she “ended his life to better her own” and that she has shown remorse or accepted responsibility for her actions.
The BBC report notes that it is first conviction of its kind and will likely set a precedent. There is currently no law that says it is a crime to urge another person to commit suicide.
Rehabilitation And Punishment
According to BuzzFeed News, the judge set a lighter sentence than expected. He cited that Carter’s young age “offers a greater chance of rehabilitation.” At the same time, he also set other terms for the probation, which includes absolutely no contact with Roy’s family or Carter’s high school friends who served as prosecution witnesses.
She is also prohibited from taking any actions that will bring her profit and attention from the case such as book deals, or TV and movie deals.