Jury Selection Starts Next Week In Trial Of Plainville Woman Accused Of Encouraging Boyfriend's Suicide

Originally published May 30, 2017

PLAINVILLE, MA — Jury selection in the case of a Plainville woman accused of encouraging her high school boyfriend to kill himself is slated to start next week.

Michelle Carter, 20, faces a manslaughter charge in the death of 18-year-old Conrad Roy III of Mattapoisett. Over 80 people are expected to appear in Bristol Juvenile Court Monday, with 16 to be selected for the jury, according to the Sun Chronicle.

Authorities allege that in 2015, Carter, a then 17-year-old student at King Philip Regional High School, pressured her boyfriend to take his own life for about a week before he committed the act. In texts to Roy, Carter said "You can’t think about it. You just have to do it. You said you were gonna do it. Like I don’t get why you aren’t.”

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After Roy’s death, Carter reportedly attempted to organize a softball tournament in memory of Roy and posted on social media about how she missed Roy with several messages about suicide prevention.

Her lawyer, Joseph Cataldo of Franklin, has said that Roy has stated to family members and other that he had wanted to kill himself for years and Carter is not responsible for his death.

Carter has pleaded not guilty to the charges.

The trial is expected to take about a month.

Image Credit: George Rizer/The Boston Globe via AP, Pool