Discussion Massachusetts lawmakers to debate 'Conrad's Law' to make coerced suicide a crime

[Ironweed]

Massachusetts lawmakers to debate 'Conrad's Law' to make coerced suicide a crime (link is to CNN)

I personally think what she did was not excusable, but I'm not sure I see where the "coercion" was. At any point he could've simply said "Fuck off, you manipulative bitch," and there's nothing she could have done about it.

 

[socrates]

She bullied him, shamed him and even guilt-ed him for not committing suicide. Conrad was in a vulnerable position and she used it for her own personal gain. He was also only 19. I think Conrad believed that the only person he could talk about his problems was her, and if he told her to get lost, he would be isolated, and studies show that being isolated has the same effects on the brain as torture. But I do agree, I don't think this meets the definition of coercion. What ever you want to call it, it was messed up and Michelle Carter is a monster.

 

[MeltingHeart]

Ye

She bullied him, shamed him and even guilt-ed him for not committing suicide. Conrad was in a vulnerable position and she used it for her own personal gain. He was also only 19. I think Conrad believed that the only person he could talk about his problems was her, and if he told her to get lost, he would be isolated, and studies show that being isolated has the same effects on the brain as torture. But I do agree, I don't think this meets the definition of coercion. What ever you want to call it, it was messed up and Michelle Carter is a monster.

Yeah some people are simple more vunerable/ damaged in some way and much more easily manipulated / coerced than others. Not everyone is strong enough to say f**k off.

 

[BlueWidow]

‘Kill yourself,’ she texted, and he killed himself. Does that make her a killer? - The Boston Globe

It is not the American way to imprison people for bad words. There is a price to be paid for adhering to that principle, but there’s a heavier price to be paid for abandoning it.

www.bostonglobe.com

Here is another story about one person coercing another to commit suicide. What's going on? There seem to have been a few stories like this in recent years.

 

[maka]

Correct me if I am wrong, but is coercion the same as abetting a suicide? Bc i thought that was already illegal, or at least a criminal offense of some sort.

 

[socrates]

Correct me if I am wrong, but is coercion the same as abetting a suicide? Bc i thought that was already illegal, or at least a criminal offense of some sort.

It depends on the state your in. In the common wealth of Massachusetts, there was no law criminalizing speech that leads to suicide. That's why they had to stretch the involuntary manslaughter statute to comical levels so they could charge her with something.
I don't think there were laws criminalizing abetting suicide eather. If there were they probably could of charged her with that.

 

[Shakespear's Brother]

Really what is most concerning in this case, and should be of enormous interest to those who are potentially subject to US legal jurisdiction, is that Michelle Carter was found guilty, in part, because she did not call for help and the judge said she had a legal obligation to do so.

In this case, it was the judge saying Michelle's actions caused Conrad to get back into the truck and then she had the legal obligation to call for help.

However, it's not hard to see how crazy prosecutors will one day claim a person is liable simply because they did not call for help. Witnessing someone ctb, like as a supportive friend or spouse or whatever, will become a crime, if the person does not call for help.

It's really fucking shitty.

(holy shit I said "call for help" like a million times)

 

[TheLastSacrifice]

Carter was a total bitch who should be shamed for her actions and held socially accountable but there is no excuse to invoke manslaughter charges on the girl. Ridiculous.