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Michelle Carter is photographed for the first time as she's released from prison

Photo credit: Steven Senne/Shutterstock - AP
Photo credit: Steven Senne/Shutterstock - AP

From Cosmopolitan

The world learned yesterday that Michelle Carter - the young woman who was convicted of involuntary manslaughter for encouraging her boyfriend, Conrad Roy III, to act on his suicidal thoughts - was being released from prison early. And now, on her first day of freedom, photographs of Carter leaving jail have been taken.

The 22-year-old can be seen in the pictures walking alongside prison officers, carrying rubbish bags filled with her belongings as she leaves the Bristol County House of Corrections in Massachusetts, US. Worlds away from the well-groomed, brightly-dressed woman presented during her trial, Carter cut her hair ahead of her sentence, and it can now be seen to have grown out as she departs the prison.

Michelle Carter was sentenced to 2.5 years in prison back in August 2017, after a judge found her guilty of involuntary manslaughter for her role in 18-year-old Conrad Roy's death. Upon investigation, police had discovered hundreds of shocking messages from Michelle, in which the then-17-year-old had urged her boyfriend on to take his own life.

"Do you think tonight really is the night you're gonna do it?" Michelle wrote in one message, just eight days before Conrad's death. She continuously quizzed him on how true his intentions were, and suggested methods by which he might kill himself.

Photo credit: Uncredited/AP/Shutterstock - Shutterstock
Photo credit: Uncredited/AP/Shutterstock - Shutterstock

Carter didn't end up going to prison until February 2019, after her lawyers requested time to appeal. The judge in the controversial case ruled that only 15 months of the overall 2.5 year sentence were deemed mandatory for her to serve in jail, but she has now been released just shy of a year due to good behaviour. Michelle Carter will now have five years on probation.

"Ms. Carter has been a model inmate here at the Bristol County House of Corrections. She has participated in a variety of programs, held a job inside the jail, has been polite to our staff and volunteers, has gotten along with the other inmates, and we've had no discipline issues with her whatsoever," said Jonathan Darling, spokesman at the Bristol County Sheriff's Office confirmed.

Photo credit: Boston Globe - Getty Images
Photo credit: Boston Globe - Getty Images

A HBO true-crime documentary released last year, I Love You, Now Die, documented the unprecedented case, revealing a teenage couple who were both dogged with mental health issues and insecurities. Carter's own background was explored, which saw her plagued by an eating disorder, and taking anti-depressants from a young age.

In September last year, Michelle Carter was denied early release by the Massachusetts Parole Board. At the time the board justified its decision by saying:

"The [Board] is troubled that Ms. Carter not only encouraged Mr. Conrad to take his own life, she actively prevented others from intervening in his suicide. Ms. Carter’s self serving statements and behaviour, leading up to and after his suicide, appear to be irrational and lacked sincerity. Ms. Carter needs to further address her causative factors that led to the governing offence. Release does not meet the legal standard."

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