Michelle Carter: The Deadly Weight of Words
- Kenshin Y
- Jan 7
- 9 min read
On July 12, 2014, 18-year-old Conrad Roy III died by suicide in an isolated parking lot in Fairhaven, Massachusetts. However, no one could predict that what began as a simple teenage tragedy became a landmark legal case.
This was not because of a gun or a weapon, but a revelation that persistent text messages and phone calls from his then-girlfriend, Michelle Carter, was found to have influence his death. This case soon became known as the “texting suicide case.”
Carter was indicted and ultimately charged with involuntary manslaughter, a conviction that sparked national debates about free speech, psychological influence, and legal responsibility.
But what exactly did Michelle Carter say that led to her Roy's demise and without it, would he have still been alive today?
Background: Conrad Roy III and Michelle Carter
Conrad Roy III was a young man from Massachusetts, born on 12 September 1995.
In June 2014, he graduated on the Honour Roll with a 3.88 GPA from Old Rochester Regional High School in Mattapoisett. Roy was a high school athlete who played baseball, was on the rowing team, and ran track.
Michelle Carter was born on August 11, 1996, in Massachusetts to Gail and David Carter. She went to King Philip Regional High School, in Wrentham.
In 2014, Carter was prescribed citalopram, to treat anxiety and depression.
Carter and Roy met in 2012 while each had been visiting relatives. After this initial encounter, they saw each other in person again only a handful of times over the course of two years, but they developed a long-distance romantic relationship through text messages, emails, and phone calls.
However, Roy did not always live a happy life. He had allegedly been physically hit by his father and verbally abused by his grandfather and Roy actually attempted suicide in October 2012, after the divorce of his parents.
Roy struggled with social anxiety and depression for which he had seen several therapists and counsellors, including a cognitive behavioural therapist in the weeks prior to his death. Roy had also been hospitalised for an acetaminophen overdose at age 17.
Like Carter, Roy had also been taking the antidepressant citalopram. In the United States, citalopram carries a boxed warning stating it may increase suicidal thinking and behaviour in those under age 24.
After learning that he was planning to kill himself, Carter repeatedly discouraged Roy in 2012 to 2014, and encouraged him to "get professional help."
However, her attitude slowly shifted over time, and she started thinking that it would be a good thing "to help him die."Eventually, this lead to repeated encouragements toward ending his life and even suggestions about method and timing.
The Tragedy: July 12, 2014
On July 12, Roy drove his pickup truck to a quiet Kmart parking lot in Fairhaven. Inside the truck, he set up a generator that emitted carbon monoxide, a lethal gas.
By the following day, Roy was found dead in the vehicle, the scene suggesting the cause of death being suicide by asphyxiation.
In the intense period leading up to his death, Roy and Carter exchanged hundreds of messages about his mental struggles and suicide plan. These texts showed a disturbing display of pressure and encouragement from Carter.
Here are some text messages between Roy and Carter days before the attempt, with Roy sharing his worries over how his parents would manage his death:
Roy: “I’m just to sensitive. I want my family to know there was nothing they could do. I am entrapped in my own thoughts”
Roy: “like no I would be happy if they had no guilt about it. because I have a bad feeling tht this is going to create a lot of depression between my parents/sisters”
Roy: “i’m overthinking everything. . f**k. I gotta stop and just do it”
Carter: “I think your parents know you’re in a really bad place. Im not saying they want you to do it, but I honestly feel like they can accept it. They know there’s nothing they can do, they’ve tried helping, everyone’s tried. But there’s a point that comes where there isn’t anything anyone can do to save you, not even yourself, and you’ve hit that point and I think your parents know you’ve hit that point. You said you’re mom saw a suicide thing on your computer and she didn’t say anything. I think she knows it’s on your mind and she’s prepared for it”
Carter: Everyone will be sad for a while, but they will get over it and move on. They won’t be in depression I won’t let that happen. They know how sad you are and they know that you’re doing this to be happy, and I think they will understand and accept it. They’ll always carry u in their hearts”
Roy: “i don’t want anyone hurt in the process though”
Roy: “I meant when they open the door, all the carbon monoxide is gonna come out they can’t see it or smell it. whoever opens the door”
Carter: “They will see the generator and know that you died of CO… .”
Roy: “hey can you do me a favor”
Carter: “Yes of course”
Roy: “just be there for my family :)”
Carter: “Conrad, of course I will be there for your family. I will help them as much as I can to get thru this, ill tell them about how amazing their son/brother truly was”
Roy: “Idk I’m freaking out again”
Roy: I’m overthinking”
Carter: “I thought you wanted to do this. The time is right and you’re ready, you just need to do it! You can’t keep living this way. You just need to do it like you did last time and not think about it and just do it babe. You can’t keep doing this every day”
Roy: “I do want to. but like I’m freaking for my family. I guess”
Roy: “idkkk”
Carter: “Conrad. I told you I’ll take care of them. Everyone will take care of them to make sure they won’t be alone and people will help them get thru it. We talked about this, they will be okay and accept it. People who commit suicide don’t think this much and they just do it”
This next exchange occured on the day of the suicide. Roy expresses more doubt about his plan:
Carter: “So I guess you aren’t gonna do it then, all that for nothing”
Carter: “I’m just confused like you were so ready and determined”
Roy: “I am gonna eventually”
Roy: “I really don’t know what I’m waiting for. . but I have everything lined up”
Carter: “No, you’re not, Conrad. Last night was it. You keep pushing it off and you say you’ll do it but u never do. Its always gonna be that way if u don’t take action”
Carter: “You’re just making it harder on yourself by pushing it off, you just have to do it”
Carter: “Do u wanna do it now?”
Roy: “Is it too late?”
Roy: “Idkk it’s already light outside”
Roy: I’m gonna go back to sleep, love you I’ll text you tomorrow”
Carter: “No? Its probably the best time now because everyone’s sleeping. Just go somewhere in your truck. And no one’s really out right now because it’s an awkward time”
Carter: “If u don’t do it now you’re never gonna do it”
Carter: “And u can say you’ll do it tomorrow but you probably won’t”
Carter: “You just need to do it Conrad or I’m gonna get you help”
Carter: “You can’t keep doing this everyday”
Roy: “Okay I’m gonna do it today”
Carter: “Do you promise”
Roy: “I promise babe”
Roy: “I have to now”
Carter: “Like right now?”
Roy: “where do I go? :(“
Carter: “And u can’t break a promise. And just go in a quiet parking lot or something.”
One of the most compelling and legally decisive points were messages indicating that Roy reached a point of hesitation during his attempt, and he actually exited the truck due to fear, and that Carter then told him to re-enter it.
Though this crucial exchange occurred during a phone call, Carter later admitted in a text to a friend that she told Roy to go back into the truck when he was scared.
Here, Carter admits to her friend:
Carter: “I could have stopped him. I was on the phone with him and he got out of the car because it was working and he got scared and I f****** told him to get back in.”
Influence & Vulnerability
In this case, it is evident that social influence played a huge part leading towards Roy's death. Roy’s long history of depression made him highly vulnerable, and Carter’s consistent presence in his emotional life meant her words could exert extreme influence beyond others in his circle.
Experts in suicide prevention highlight that repeated encouragement, especially from someone emotionally close, can reinforce feelings of inevitability about suicide and reduce psychological obstacles and healthy decision-making that could have steered him away from self-harm.
Unlike in-person conversations, texts lack immediate emotions, such as voice tone or body language. This can make harsh messages feel easier to send and harder for the sender to empathise with. In Carter’s case, the constant contact with Roy through online communication only enabled the encouragement to escalate.
Legal Proceedings
In February 2015, a grand jury indicted Michelle Carter on a charge of involuntary manslaughter, based on text messages and phone calls she exchanged with Roy that prosecutors argued constituted "reckless conduct.”
Carter’s defence attempted to dismiss the indictment, claiming that her texts were protected speech, and that words alone, without physical action, should not meet the threshold for criminal liability. The Juvenile Court rejected this motion, and the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court later confirmed that verbal conduct could constitute reckless behaviour under the right circumstances.
During Carter’s bench trial, whereby the judge decided the case, the prosecution presented a series of text messages, phone records, and testimonies.
According to trial evidence:
Carter repeatedly helped to calm Roy’s doubts about suicide and scolded him when he hesitated.
They shared multiple long phone calls around the time of his suicide attempt.
Carter admitted in texts to friends later that she told Roy to “get back in” the truck when he was scared.
Carter’s messages indicated she listened on the phone as Roy died.
Carter first denied knowing Roy would kill himself but later acknowledged she “helped ease him into it” and said “his death is my fault.”
In June 2017, Judge Lawrence Moniz found Carter guilty of involuntary manslaughter. He explained that while Carter’s general encouragement did not, on its own, meet the causation requirement, the specific act of telling Roy to get back in the truck when he was scared did contribute to his death.
By urging him back in and failing to alert anyone else, Carter had effectively breached a duty to act.
Carter appealed her conviction afterwards, arguing that criminalising her speech violated the First Amendment. In February 2019, the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court upheld the conviction, highlighting that her verbal conduct in context, given her intimate relationship with Roy and his known mental vulnerabilities, served as basis for manslaughter liability. The U.S. Supreme Court later declined to hear the case, leaving the conviction in place.
Carter was originally sentenced to up to 2.5 years in prison, later reduced to 15 months. However, she only served 11 months and 12 days before release in January 2020.
Media & Aftermath
Major media companies covered the case extensively, often using phrases like “death by text” to describe how Carter’s messages played a huge part in the case. Widespread debates about the psychological impact of digital communication were also brought up.
Movies and TV shows were created, depicting the case and the fatal impact of words. Some include the shows, "The Girl from Plainville" and "I Love You, Now Die", and the movie, "Michelle Carter: Love, Texts & Death."
The case has also inspired legislative efforts, such as the proposed “Conrad’s Law” in Massachusetts. The bill would set a maximum sentence of five years in prison for anyone who “intentionally coerces or encourages” another individual to die by suicide or attempt to die by suicide by using physical acts or mental coercion that manipulate a person’s “fears, affections or sympathies."
Timeline of Events
2012
Carter and Roy meet and begin a long-distance relationship, using digital communication.
July 12, 2014
Conrad Roy III dies by suicide from carbon monoxide poisoning.
February 2015
Carter is indicted for involuntary manslaughter.
June 2017
Carter is formally convicted
February 2019
Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court upholds conviction and U.S. Supreme Court declines appeal later.
January 2020
Carter is released after serving 11.5 months in prison.
Bibliography
https://harvardlawreview.org/print/vol-131/commonwealth-v-carter/
https://www.cbsnews.com/news/death-by-text-the-case-against-michelle-carter/
https://abcnews.go.com/2020/michelle-carters-texting-suicide-trial-revisited/story?id=83835354
https://edition.cnn.com/2017/06/08/us/text-message-suicide-michelle-carter-conrad-roy
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