Michelle Carter, recently convicted of manslaughter for the 2014 death of her then 18-year-old boyfriend Conrad Roy, is currently out on bond and enjoying local tanning salons before her scheduled sentence on August 3. Carter, who was 17 at the time of the assisted suicide and is now 20-years-old, is oftentimes referred to as The Teen Text Killer. She is allowed to remain free on bond as the judge does not consider her a flight risk.
It’s a story that has been ongoing for almost three years now. This disturbing case began in 2014, as she and Roy were dating. Having suicidal thoughts as seen through the text messages presented in the court case, Conrad was unsure about taking his own life, and would reach out to Michelle for support and to talk. In the beginning, she appeared as if she was sympathetic and wanted to help him through this dark and difficult time. But things quickly turned troubling as she went from supportive to urging him to kill himself.
Unfortunately, that’s exactly what he did. Seated in his truck in a K-Mart parking lot on July 13, 2014, Roy died from carbon monoxide poisoning emitted by a portable generator he had placed on the passenger seat. In the final hours of his life, Carter and Roy kept exchanging text messages, where she urged him to stay in his truck and carry out his plan that he had been talking about for so long.
What would cause a person to do such a thing? According to friends and family, Carter needed the title of a grieving girlfriend and all of the attention that came along with it. Having no remorse for Roy’s family, she even told the suicidal teen that his friends and family would quickly get over his death and move on as if nothing had happened. Roy’s mother made sure to let Michelle know that she will never, ever forget her son.
Michelle’s defense attorney tried to use the argument that she didn’t directly kill Conrad Roy, and thus should not be held accountable or tried for manslaughter. Instead, he argued that Roy took his own life due to a troublesome and violent relationship with his father. Things did not go as planned for Carter though, as she was indeed found guilty of manslaughter and now faces a possible sentence of up to 20 years in prison.
With just over a month until the sentencing begins on August 3, Michelle Carter is enjoying perhaps her last taste of freedom for a very long time.