Why Michelle Carter, Who Encouraged Boyfriend to Take His Life, Got Out of Prison Early

(Getty Images)

Michelle Carter, who was imprisoned after encouraging her boyfriend to take his own life, has been released.

Recommended Videos



Carter, 23, only served 11 months of her 15-month prison sentence at the Women’s Center at the Bristol County House of Corrections in Massachusetts before being released Thursday. 

She was convicted of involuntary manslaughter in 2017 in connection with the death of her then-boyfriend Conrad Roy, who died from carbon monoxide poisoning after locking himself in a pickup truck.

Carter was released early because of the “good time” she earned, Bristol County Sheriff’s Office said in a statement.

“Ms. Carter has been a model inmate in Bristol County,” said Bristol County spokesperson Jonathan Darling. “She has attended programs, had a job inside the jail, has been polite to our staff and volunteers, has gotten along with other inmates, and we’ve had no discipline issues with her whatsoever.”

Inmates can accrue 10 days off their sentence per month based on their behavior and participation in prison programs. Carter will now have to serve five years of probation.

Last week, her appeal to have a hearing with the U.S. Supreme Court was denied. She had hoped to have her conviction overturned.

Roy died in 2014, and it emerged after his death that Carter, then 17, had texted him several messages about when he was going to take his life. The night of his death, she encouraged him to get back inside the truck when he apparently had second thoughts.

“You're ready and prepared. All you have to do is turn the generator on and you will be free and happy,” she texted him. “No more pushing it off. No more waiting."

She later said in messages to other friends that she took no action to stop him, even though she knew where he was located when he was getting ready to take his life.

Four of Carter's friends took the stand at her trial, reading chilling text messages she sent them after Roy’s death.

“His death is my fault, like, honestly," one of the messages read. "I could have stopped him, I was on the phone and he got out of the car because it was working and he got scared and I f***ing told him to get back in.”

Carter was charged as a youthful offender, meaning that although she was a minor at the time of the incident, she was charged as an adult.

RELATED STORIES

'I Love You, Now Die' Examines Michelle Carter 'Texting Suicide Case' in New Depths

Conrad Roy's Mom Speaks Out After Michelle Carter Conviction: 'She Knew Exactly What She Was Doing'

What Shanann Watts' Family Had to Say About Lifetime Movie Coming About Her and Daughters' Murders