The Massachusetts judge in the texting suicide trial of Michelle Carter will deliver his verdict Friday at 11 a.m. ET, according to the court.
Michelle Carter (seated right) is on trial for allegedly encouraging her boyfriend to commit suicide.
The case has been closely watched in the legal community and widely shared on social media, in part, because of the dozens of text messages Carter sent Roy in the days before he was found dead.
Prosecutors say the then-17-year-old Carter relentlessly badgered Roy through texts to act on his suicidal thoughts.
This story has been corrected to show the first name of the suicide victim is Conrad, not Carter.
Carter, now 20, is charged in the death of Roy, 18, who killed himself on July 12, 2014, in Fairhaven.
Kamala Harris, a prosecutor and a senator
And certainly these Senate committee hearings have stressed to me how important it is that we continue to make our voices heard. But twice now, Harris has been interrupted and chastised by male senators for her style of questioning during the hearings.
Judge Lawrence Moniz heard closing arguments Tuesday afternoon from defense attorney Joseph Cataldo and prosecuting attorney Katie Rayburn.
The dark, freaky messages she sent to Roy apparently encouraging him to kill himself drew national attention.
Carter's lawyers say Roy had made up his mind to take his own life and Carter did not cause his death.
The trial could set a legal precedent on whether it is a crime to tell someone to commit suicide.
Martin Healy, chief legal counsel of the Massachusetts Bar Association, said the case also presents some novel issues of law on the use of cellphones and text messages. There is no MA law against encouraging someone to kill themselves.
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