¹ C.M. Frankie, The Death of Conrad Roy: Michelle Carter’s ‘Virtual Presence’ and ‘Failure to Act’ in Texting Case, A&E (March 28, 2022), https://www.aetv.com/real-crime/michelle-carter-conrad-roy [https://perma.cc/3TMY-RD6R]; Michelle Williams, Michelle Carter Trial: In Days Before Conrad Roy’s Death, Teens Shared Suicidal Plan, Selfies, Mass Live (June 9, 2017), https://www.masslive.com/news/2017/06/michelle_carter_trial_in_days.html [https://perma.cc/E8BG-A5WL].

² Carla Zavala, Manslaughter by Text: Is Encouraging Suicide Manslaughter?, 47 Seton Hall L. Rev. 297, 298 (2016).

³ Id. at 298.

⁴ Clay Calvert, The First Amendment and Speech Urging Suicide, 94 Tul. L. Rev. 79, 82 (2019).

⁵ Commonwealth v. Carter, 52 N.E.3d 1054, 1057 (Mass. 2016); Guyora Binder & Luis Chiesa, The Puzzle of Inciting Suicide, 56 Am. Crim. L. Rev. 65, 72 (2019).

⁶ Id. at 77; see also ABC News, Judge Announces Verdict in Texting Suicide Trial, Facebook (June 16, 2017), https://www.facebook.com/watch/live/?ref=watch_permalink&v=10155909880378812 [https://perma.cc/SX99-6959]; AJ Willingham, The 5 Reasons for the Verdict in the Michelle Carter Trial, CNN (June 16, 2017, 5:51 PM), https://www.cnn.com/2017/06/16/us/michelle-carter-guilty-involuntary-manslaughter-texting-suicide-trnd/ [https://perma.cc/W9BV-KGPC] (quoting Judge Moniz’ finding that Carter “fail[ed] to act where she had a self-created duty to Mr. Roy, since she had put him into that toxic environment”).

⁷ Kristine Phillips, Her Texts Pushed Him to Suicide, Prosecutors Say. But Does That Mean she Killed Him?, Wash. Post (June 6, 2017, 3:34 PM), https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/morning-mix/wp/2017/06/06/just-do-it-babe-woman-accused-of-pushing-her-boyfriend-to-kill-himself-is-on-trial-this-week/ [https://perma.cc/Z5R2-AV52].

⁸ See Kaitlin M. Phillips, Sticks and Stones May Break Your Bones, but Words Can Also Kill: Limiting Criminal Liability for Words, 2019 U. Ill. L. Rev. 1741, 1757 (2019).

⁹ She served eleven months out of her fifteen-month sentence. Eric Levenson, Michelle Carter, Convicted in Texting Suicide Case, Released from Prison, CNN (Jan. 23, 2020, 11:25 AM), https://www.cnn.com/2020/01/23/us/michelle-carter-text-suicide-release/index.html [https://perma.cc/G4M3-9ZTN]; Binder & Chiesa, supra note 5, at 75.

¹⁰ Chris Docker, Five Last Acts—The Exit Path (2d ed. 2015).

¹¹ E.g., Paul Wong et al., Accessing Suicide-Related Information on the Internet: A Retrospective Observational Study of Search Behavior, 15 J. Med. Internet Rsch 1, 7 (2013) (two pro-suicide websites analyzed included churchofeuthanasia.org and suicidemethods.net); see also Boudewijn Chabot, Dignified Dying: A Guide (2015); Doris Portwood, Common Sense Suicide: The Final Right (1984); Boudewijn Chabot, Stopping Eating and Drinking: A Guide (2015).

¹² Phillips, supra note 7.

¹³ Commonwealth v. Carter, 115 N.E.3d 559, 571 (New Bedford Juv. Ct. Aug. 21, 2015) (No. 15YO0001NE).

¹⁴ See generally id. Because Carter’s case was in juvenile court, some of the documents in Commonwealth v. Carter are not available online.

¹⁵ Docker, supra note 10.

¹⁶ Suicide Statistics, Am. Found. for Suicide Prevention, https://afsp.org/suicide-statistics/ [https://perma.cc/LFL7-S4S4] (last visited Jan. 27, 2022).

¹⁷ S. J Cash & J. A. Bridge, Epidemiology of Youth Suicide and Suicidal Behavior, 21 Current Op. in Pediatrics 613, 614 (2009).

¹⁸ Deborah M. Stone et al., Vital Signs, 67 Morbidity and Mortality Wkly. Rep. 617, 618 (June 8, 2018); see also Suicide Prevention, Nat’l Inst. of Mental Health, https://www.nimh.nih.gov/health/topics/suicide-prevention#part_2351 [https://perma.cc/F7JP-GNQV] (last visited Jan. 27, 2022).

¹⁹ Evelina Landstedt & Susanne Persson, Bullying, Cyberbullying, and Mental Health in Young People, 42 Scandinavian J. of Pub. Health 393, 393 (2014); see also Suicide Prevention, Nat’l Inst. of Mental Health, https://www.nimh.nih.gov/health/topics/suicide-prevention#part_2351 [https://perma.cc/F7JP-GNQV] (last visited Jan. 27, 2022).

²⁰ Barbara D’Orio & Steven J. Garlow, Suicide Prevention: A Vital National Public Health Issue, 27 J. of Health and Hum. Serv. Admin. 123, 125 (2004).

²¹ Peter S. Bearman & James Moody, Suicide and Friendships Among American Adolescents, 94 Am J. Pub. Health 89, 94 (2004).

²² Id.

²³ Michael Handwerk et al., The Relationship Between Lethality of Attempted Suicide and Prior Suicidal Communications in a Sample of Residential Youth, 21 J. of Adolescence 407, 407-414 (1998).

²⁴ Monica Swahn & Lloyd Potter, Factors Associated with the Medical Severity of Suicide Attempts in Youths and Young Adults, 32 Suicide and Life-Threatening Behav. 21, 27-28 (2002).

²⁵ Handwerk et al., supra note 23.

²⁶ Ronnie Cohen, Parent and Peer Disproval can Lead to Teen Suicide, Reuters (Oct. 20, 2014, 5:32 PM), https://www.reuters.com/article/us-teen-suicide-risks/parent-and-peer-disapproval-can-lead-to-teen-suicide-idUKKCN0I92B320141020 [https://perma.cc/ZV8V-4DHX].

²⁷ D’Orio, supra note 20, at 125.

²⁸ LIVE LIFE: Preventing Suicide, World Health Org. (Sept. 3, 2018).

²⁹ Arlin Cuncic, The Psychology of Cyberbullying, Very Well Mind (Feb. 19, 2022), https://www.verywellmind.com/the-psychology-of-cyberbullying-5086615 [https://perma.cc/35BZ-7NBG]; see generally Kathryn L. Modecki et al., Bullying Prevalence Across Contexts: A Meta-Analysis Measuring Cyber and Traditional Bullying, 55 J. Adolescent Health 602, 611 (2014) (estimating that 15% of teens suffer from cyberbullying).

³⁰ Brett Reichert, Moral Disengagement and Support for Military Force: A Review, 12 Bus. & Pub. Admin. Studs. 37, 38 (Feb. 19, 2019).

³¹ Chris Cole, Mary Dobbing & Amy Hailwood, Convenient Killing: Armed Drones and the ‘Playstation’ Mentality, The Fellowship of Reconciliation (Sept. 20, 2010), https://dronewarsuk.files.wordpress.com/2010/10/conv-killing-final.pdf [https://perma.cc/83SS-ZV8M].

³² This is known as the “online disinhibition effect.” John Suler, The Online Disinhibition Effect, in 7 Cyberpsychology & Behav. 321 (2004).

³³ Brian L. Mishara, Suicide: A Public Health Concern?, 84 Canadian J. of Pub. Health 222, 223 (1993).

³⁴ See, e.g., State v. Eaton, 143 Wash. App. 155, 160 (2008).

³⁵ Id.

³⁶ See Criminal Intent, Black’s Law Dictionary (11th ed. 2019).

³⁷ See, e.g., State v. Guthrie, 461 S.E.2d 163, 181 (W. Va. 1995).

³⁸ See, e.g., People v. Williams, 688 N.E.2d 320, 323 (Ill. App. Ct. 1997).

³⁹ Commonwealth v. Gonzalez, 443 Mass. 799, 808, 824 N.E.2d 843 (2005), quoting Commonwealth v. Godin, 374 Mass. 120, 126, 371 N.E.2d 438 (1977); see also Calvert, supra note 4, at 85-86.

⁴⁰ Zavala, supra note 2, at 305.

⁴¹ David S. Markson, The Punishment of Suicide – A Need for Change, 14 Vill. L. Rev. 463, 465 (1969).

⁴² Id. at 473.

⁴³ Id.

⁴⁴ Donald M. Wright, Criminal Aspects of Suicide in the United States, 7 N.C. Cent. L. Rev. 156, 161 (1975).

⁴⁵ Alex B. Long, Abolishing the Suicide Rule, 113 Nw. U. L. Rev. 767, 776 (2019).

⁴⁶ Suzanne M. Alford, Is Self-Abortion a Fundamental Right?, 52 Duke L. J. 1011, 1027 (2003).

⁴⁷ Id.

⁴⁸ Id.; see also Thomas J. Marzen, et al., Suicide: A Constitutional Right?, 24 Duq. L. Rev. 1, 68 (1985).

⁴⁹ Wright, supra note 44, at 157.

⁵⁰ Zavala, supra note 2, at 18.

⁵¹ Zavala, supra note 2, at 13.

⁵² Jens David Ohlin, Criminal Law: Doctrine, Application, and Practice 535 (2d ed. 2018).

⁵³ Id.

⁵⁴ Id. at 536.

⁵⁵ Id. at 535.

⁵⁶ Id. at 536-37.

⁵⁷ Model Penal Code § 2.06(3)(a) (Am. L. Inst., 1962); Ohlin, supra note 50, at 537.

⁵⁸ Ohlin, supra note 52, at 119.

⁵⁹ People v. Campbell, 335 N.W.2d 27, 30 (Mich. Ct. App. 1983); see generally William E. Mikell, Is Suicide Murder?, 3 Colum. L. Rev. 379, 383-94 (1903).

⁶⁰ Zavala, supra note 2, at 310.

⁶¹ Ohlin, supra note 52, at 279-80.

⁶² Phillips, supra note 8, at 1742-43.

⁶³ Amy Sokolow, Legislators Refile ‘Conrad’s Law’ to Prevent Suicide Coercion, Boston Herald (June 17, 2021, 7:13 PM), https://www.bostonherald.com/2021/06/17/legislators-re-file-conrads-law-to-prevent-suicide-coercion/ [https://perma.cc/KA4D-7B79].

⁶⁴ Model Penal Code § 210.5(1) (Am. L. Inst. 2007).

⁶⁵ Id. § 210.5(2).

⁶⁶ Eric Levenson, Massachusetts Lawmakers to Debate ‘Conrad’s Law’ to Make Coerced Suicide a Crime, CNN (Nov. 12, 2019, 8:09PM), https://www.cnn.com/2019/11/12/us/conrads-law-suicide-michelle-carter/index.html [https://perma.cc/T82T-FXUK]; see also S. 2382, 191st Gen. Ct. (Mass. 2019).

⁶⁷ Id.

⁶⁸ Id.

⁶⁹ E.g., Ariz. Rev. Stat. Ann. § 13-1103(A)(3); Okla. Stat. tit. 63, § 3141.3(1); S.C. Code Ann. § 16-3-1090(B)(2)(a); Idaho Code § 18-4017(1)(a).

⁷⁰ E.g., 18 Pa. Stat. and Cons. Stat. Ann. § 2505(b); N.Y. Penal Law § 120.30; Tex. Penal Code Ann. § 22.08(a); Wis. Stat. Ann. § 940.12.

⁷¹ E.g., Kan. Stat. Ann. § 21-5407(a)(1); Md. Code Ann., Crim. Law § 3-102 (1).

⁷² E.g., Ark. Code Ann. § 5-10-107(c); S.D. Codified Laws § 22-16-37.

⁷³ Commonwealth v. Carter, 52 N.E.3d 1054, 1056 (Mass. 2016) (“The principal question we consider in this case is whether the evidence was sufficient to warrant the return of an indictment for involuntary manslaughter where the defendant’s conduct did not extend beyond words. We conclude that, on the evidence presented to the grand jury, the verbal conduct at issue was sufficient …”).

⁷⁴ State v. Melchert-Dinkel, 844 N.W.2d 13, 20 (Minn. 2014) (“Accordingly, we reject the State’s argument that the ‘speech integral to criminal conduct’ exception to the First Amendment applies here.”)(to be discussed later)

⁷⁵ N.M. Stat. Ann. § 30-2-4(A) (West 2021) (assisting suicide is a fourth-degree felony; the law provides an exception for those acting in accordance with the End-of-Life Options Act).

⁷⁶ S.D. Codified Laws § 22-16-37 (2023).

⁷⁷ Ark. Code Ann. § 5-10-107 (West 2019) (an attempt must result in “serious physical injury”).

⁷⁸ 720 Ill. Comp. Stat. Ann. 5/12-34.5(a) (West 2011).

⁷⁹ Kan. Stat. Ann. 21-5407 (West 2023). The statute enumerates only duress or physical assistance, leaving little room for communications through channels like instant messaging.

⁸⁰ State Statuses, Death with Dignity, https://deathwithdignity.org/states/ [https://perma.cc/M5BH-BASS] (last visited Sept. 20, 2023).

⁸¹ Or. Stat. Ann. §127.800; D.C. Code Ann. § 7-661.01.

⁸² See Pub. Health Div., Or. Health Auth., Death with Dignity Act Requirements, https://www.oregon.gov/oha/ph/providerpartnerresources/evaluationresearch/deathwithdignityact/Documents/requirements.pdf [https://perma.cc/7ZU9-FPN4] (last visited Sept. 20, 2023); Introduction to California’s End of Life Option Act, UCLA Health, https://www.uclahealth.org/patient-resources/support-information/advance-directive/introduction-california-end-life-option-act-eoloa [https://perma.cc/98P8-XY96] (last visited Sept. 20, 2023); Vt. Agency of Hum. Servs., Dep’t of Health, Report Concerning Patient Choice at the End of Life 2 (2022).

⁸³ Gilbert v. State, 487 So. 2d 1185, 1185-86 (Fla. Dist. Ct. App. 1986).

⁸⁴ Id. at 1187-88. Defendant stated that he shot his wife from behind so that she would not see the gun. He shot her once, but when he still felt her pulse, he went to the garage to re-load the gun and returned to shoot her again.

⁸⁵ Id.

⁸⁶ State v. Sexson, 869 P.2d 301, 301 (N.M. Ct. App. 1994).

⁸⁷ Id. at 305.

⁸⁸ Id. at 301.

⁸⁹ Id. at 305.

⁹⁰ Id. at 304-05.

⁹¹ See State v. Marti, 290 N.W.2d 570, 583 (Iowa 1980) (holding that “preparing and providing a weapon for one who is unable to do so and is known to be intoxicated and probably suicidal” constitute actions that support the defendant’s conviction of involuntary manslaughter); State v. Bier, 591 P.2d 1115, 1120 (Mont. 1979) (affirming a judgment of negligent homicide for a defendant’s wife’s suicide, where the defendant “threw [a] cocked, loaded firearm within reach of his intoxicated wife, challenged her to use it, and allowed her to take the gun off the bed.”)

⁹² Persampieri v. Commonwealth, 175 N.E.2d 387, 389 (Mass. 1961).

⁹³ People v. Kevorkian No. 1, 517 N.W.2d 293, 295 (Mich. Ct. App. 1994) (describing the events in People v. Roberts, 178 N.W. 690 (Mich. 1920)); see also Susan Stefan, Rational Suicide, Irrational Laws: Examining Current Approaches to Suicide in Policy and Law 344 (2016).

⁹⁴ Id.

⁹⁵ People v. Roberts, 178 N.W. 690, 692 (Mich. 1920)

⁹⁶ People v. Roberts, 178 N.W. 690, 692 (Mich. 1920) (argued on appeal).

⁹⁷ Id. at 693.

⁹⁸ Id.

⁹⁹ FEN is not to be confused with Exit, a different not-for-profit, right-to-die organization.

¹⁰⁰ Assisted Suicide Group’s Members Indicted, NBC News (Mar. 9, 2010 11:50 AM), https://www.nbcnews.com/health/health-news/assisted-suicide-groups-members-indicted-flna1c9443524 [https://perma.cc/RPB4-6AWH]; see also Stefan, supra note 95, at 351.

¹⁰¹ Id. at 472.

¹⁰² See, e.g., id.; State v. Final Exit Network, Inc., 889 N.W.2d 296, 300 (Minn. Ct. App. 2016).

¹⁰³ Final Exit Network, 889 N.W.2d at 302; see also Right-To-Die Group Fined $30K in Minnesota Woman’s Suicide, CBS Minnesota (Aug. 24, 2015, 12:10 PM), https://www.cbsnews.com/minnesota/news/right-to-die-group-heads-for-sentencing-in-womans-suicide/ [https://perma.cc/N7N6-AUPS]. FEN was fined $30,000 and was required to pay Dunn’s family $3,000 in restitution for funeral expenses. In the other cases, some members of FEN pled guilty to manslaughter or endangerment, others were acquitted, and others had their charges dismissed. See Stefan, supra note 95, at 475-76.

¹⁰⁴ State v. Final Exit Network, Inc., Nos. A13-0563, A13-0564, A13-0565, slip. op. at 17 (Minn. Ct. App. Sept. 30, 2013).

¹⁰⁵ Jessie Van Berkel, Final Exit Network Fined $30,000 for Assisting Apple Valley Woman’s Suicide, Star Tribune (Aug. 24, 2015, 10:54 PM), https://www.startribune.com/final-exit-network-fined-30-000-for-assisting-apple-valley-woman-s-suicide/322700141/ [https://perma.cc/TP8Z-CAWH].

¹⁰⁶ Okla. Stat. tit. 63, § 3141.3 (2023).

¹⁰⁷ Id.

¹⁰⁸ Catherine D. Shaffer, Note, Criminal Liability for Assisting Suicide, 86 Colum. L. Rev. 348, 348 (1986).

¹⁰⁹ Zavala, supra note 2, at 313.

¹¹⁰ Willingham, supra note 6.

¹¹¹ Id.

¹¹² Phillips, supra note 8, at 1768.

¹¹³ Paul LeBlanc, The Text Messages that led up to Teen’s Suicide, CNN (June 16, 2017, 1:29 PM), https://www.cnn.com/2017/06/08/us/text-message-suicide-michelle-carter-conrad-roy/index.html [https://perma.cc/UM4U-WJN9].

¹¹⁴ Calvert, supra note 4, at 80.

¹¹⁵ See LeBlanc, supra note 115.

¹¹⁶ State v. Melchert-Dinkel, 844 N.W.2d 13, 16 (Minn. 2014).

¹¹⁷ Id.

¹¹⁸ Id. at 16-17.

¹¹⁹ Id.

¹²⁰ Id.

¹²¹ The defendant was convicted under a portion of the Minnesota statute that was later found to be unconstitutional. Thus, his conviction was reversed and remanded to determine whether he “assisted” as required by the remaining language of the statute. State v. Melchert-Dinkel, No. A15-0073, 2015 WL 9437531, at *1, *6 (Minn. Ct. App. Dec. 28, 2015).

¹²² Id. at *1.

¹²³ State v. Melchert-Dinkel, 844 N.W.2d 13, 16 (Minn. 2014).

¹²⁴ State v. Melchert-Dinkel, No. A15-0073, 2015 WL 9437531, at *1, *6 (Minn. Ct. App. Dec. 28, 2015).

¹²⁵ Id. at *10-11.

¹²⁶ Id. at *11.

¹²⁷ Id. at *9-10.

¹²⁸ Id. at *9.

¹²⁹ Id.

¹³⁰ Christine Chung, Former Boston College Student Gets Suspended Sentence in Boyfriend’s Suicide, N.Y. Times (Dec. 23, 2021), https://www.nytimes.com/2021/12/23/us/inyoung-you-boston-college-suicide-guilty-plea.html [https://perma.cc/6WSG-WZRN].

¹³¹ Nate Raymond, Former Boston College Student Charged over Boyfriend’s Suicide Pleads Guilty, Reuters (Dec. 23, 2021, 2:32 PM), https://www.reuters.com/world/us/former-boston-college-student-charged-over-boyfriends-suicide-pleads-guilty-2021-12-23/ [https://perma.cc/H7GB-KKLG].

¹³² Brian Vitagliano, Former Boston College Student Pleads Guilty to Manslaughter in Boyfriend’s Suicide, Sentenced to 10 Years’ Probation, CNN (Dec. 23, 2021, 10:21 PM), https://www.cnn.com/2021/12/23/us/ex-boston-college-student-pleads-guilty/index.html [https://perma.cc/ADT9-RPTG].

¹³³ Jack Miller & Abby Hunt, Update: BC Student Facing Involuntary Manslaughter Charge Following Boyfriend’s Suicide, The Heights (July 21, 2020, 9:21 PM), https://www.bcheights.com/2019/10/28/former-bc-student-facing-involuntary-manslaughter-charge-following-boyfriends-suicide/ [https://perma.cc/SLY4-YZZD].

¹³⁴ Id.

¹³⁵ Eric Shannon, Former BC Student Inyoung You Pleads Guilty to Involuntary Manslaughter, The Heights (Dec. 23, 2021, 10:31 PM), https://www.bcheights.com/2021/12/23/former-bc-student-inyoung-you-pleads-guilty-to-involuntary-manslaughter/ [https://perma.cc/W6MB-3CX3].

¹³⁶ Megan Kelly, Inyoung You’s Case to Proceed to Trial, The Heights (Jan. 17, 2021, 8:08 PM), https://www.bcheights.com/2021/01/17/inyoung-you-trial-will-proceed-to-trial/ [https://perma.cc/7GGQ-LE3L].

¹³⁷ Shannon, supra note 138; State v. Melchert-Dinkel, No. A15-0073, 2015 WL 9437531, at *1, *6 (Minn. Ct. App. Dec. 28, 2015).

¹³⁸ Binder & Chiesa, supra note 5, at 115.

¹³⁹ 18 Pa. Stat. and Const. Stat. Ann. § 2505 (West 2021).

¹⁴⁰ E.g., Ark. Code Ann. § 5-10-107 (2023) (“Encouraging the suicide of another person is a class D felony.”); § 5-4-401 (“For a Class D felony, the sentence shall not exceed six (6) years.”); § 5-10-102 (“Murder in the first degree is a Class Y felony.”); § 5-4-401 (“For a Class Y felony, the sentence shall be not less than ten (10) years and not more than forty (40) years, or life.”).

¹⁴¹ See Luis Gomez, Michelle Carter: Does a 15-Month Sentence Fit Her Horrific Crime?, San Diego Union-Tribune (Aug. 3, 2017, 6:40PM), https://www.sandiegouniontribune.com/opinion/the-conversation/sd-michelle-carter-15-month-sentence-fit-crime-20170803-htmlstory.html [https://perma.cc/3LQM-4U94].

¹⁴² Docker, supra note 10; Voluntary Euthanasia Society of Scotland, Welcome to Exit (the Scottish Voluntary Euthanasia Society), http://www.euthanasia.cc/vess.html [https://perma.cc/T3GF-W4LM] (last visited Sept. 16, 2023).

¹⁴³ See, e.g., Docker, supra note 10, at 159. For suicide by helium or other inert gas, the author says, “at the time of writing, most items mentioned can be obtained online from Amazon … try searching for the following items.” Id.

¹⁴⁴ Id. at 81. “Reading alone is not sufficient. ‘Dress rehearsals’ will make you confident … practice ahead of time, so that [weak points] can be safely corrected.” Id.

¹⁴⁵ Id. at 38.

¹⁴⁶ Lucy Biddle et al., Suicide and the Internet: Changes in the Accessibility of Suicide-Related Information Between 2007 and 2014, 190 J. of Affective Disorders 370, 370 (2016).

¹⁴⁷ Id. at 373.

¹⁴⁸ Id.

¹⁴⁹ Cho-Yin Huang et al., Changes in Accessibility of Suicide-Related Information on Websites in Taiwan During 2016 and 2019, 121 J. Formosan Med. Ass’n 335, 339 (2021).

¹⁵⁰ Megan Twohey & Gabriel J.X. Dance, Where the Despairing Log on, and Learn Ways to Die, N.Y. Times (Dec. 9, 2021), https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2021/12/09/us/where-the-despairing-log-on.html [https://perma.cc/FJM8-8KH9].

¹⁵¹ Id.

¹⁵² Id.

¹⁵³ Id.

¹⁵⁴ Id.

¹⁵⁵ Some will argue that the author’s intention for publishing the book is to have people use it to commit suicide. However, the author could argue that primary purpose is to disseminate knowledge or awareness.

¹⁵⁶ Ohlin, supra note 66, at 163.

¹⁵⁷ E.g., Ariz. Rev. Stat. Ann. § 13-1103(A)(3); Okla. Stat. tit. 63, § 3141.3(1); S.C. Code Ann. § 16-3-1090(B)(2)(a); Idaho Code § 18-4017(1)(a); 18 Pa. Stat. and Cons. Stat. Ann. § 2505(b); N.Y. Penal Law § 120.30; Tex. Penal Code Ann. § 22.08(a); Wis. Stat. Ann. § 940.12.; Kan. Stat. Ann. § 21-5407(a)(1); Md. Code Ann., Crim. Law § 3-102 (1).

Model Penal Code § 210.5(1) (Am. L. Inst. 2007).

¹⁵⁸ 16 Am. Jur. 2d Conspiracy § 11 (2023).

¹⁵⁹ Backun v. United States, 112 F.2d 635, 637 (4th Cir. 1940).

¹⁶⁰ Id.

¹⁶¹ United States v. Peoni, 100 F.2d 401, 403 (2d Cir. 1938).

¹⁶² Docker, supra note 10, at 31.

¹⁶³ Id. at 31-32.

¹⁶⁴ See Model Penal Code § 210.5(1) (Am. L. Inst. 2007).

¹⁶⁵ See Phillips, supra note 8, at 1764.

¹⁶⁶ Id.

¹⁶⁷ LiveNOW from FOX, Must Watch: Judge Finds Michelle Carter Guilty in Texting Suicide Case in Massachusetts, YouTube (Jun. 16, 2017), https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1wkyxXeOC0k [https://perma.cc/7QSH-26LF].

¹⁶⁸ Nik DeCosta-Klipa, Read the Text Messages at the Heart of the Michelle Carter Trial, Boston.com (June 5, 2017), https://www.boston.com/news/local-news/2017/06/05/read-the-messages-at-the-heart-of-the-michelle-carter-suicide-by-text-manslaughter-trial/ [https://perma.cc/A6R7-5QRY].

¹⁶⁹ Docker, supra note 10, at 421.

¹⁷⁰ Id.

¹⁷¹ Id. (Carbon monoxide poisoning is not one of the five “selected” methods of suicide, so the instructions are far less detailed than other methods.)

¹⁷² See Phillips, supra note 8, at 1744-1745; see also Docker, supra note 10, at 421.

¹⁷³ See Persampieri v. Commonwealth, 175 N.E.2d 387, 389 (Mass. 1961).

¹⁷⁴ See Joe Hernandez, A Parents’ Lawsuit Accuses Amazon of Selling Suicide Kits to Teenagers, NPR (Oct. 9, 2022, 4:44 PM), https://www.npr.org/2022/10/09/1127686507/amazon-suicide-teenagers-poison [https://perma.cc/T25G-94HM].

¹⁷⁵ See id.

¹⁷⁶ Complaint for Civil Penalties and Demand for a Jury Trial at 4, McCarthy et al. v. Amazon.com, Inc. et al, No. 22CV018942 (Cal. App. Dep’t Super. Ct. Sept. 29, 2022), 2022 WL 5185156.

¹⁷⁷ Megan Twohey & Gabriel J.X. Dance, Lawmakers Press Amazon on Sales of Chemical Used in Suicides, N.Y. Times (Feb. 4, 2022), https://www.nytimes.com/2022/02/04/technology/amazon-suicide-poison-preservative.html [https://perma.cc/WPG7-AS4P].

¹⁷⁸ Hernandez, supra note 177.

¹⁷⁹ Twohey & Dance, supra note 180.

¹⁸⁰ Complaint for Civil Penalties and Demand for a Jury Trial, supra note 179, at ¶ 80.

¹⁸¹ Id. at ¶¶ 85-86.

¹⁸² Id. at ¶ 210.

¹⁸³ LiveNOW from FOX, supra note 170.

¹⁸⁴ Katharine Seelye & Jess Bidgood, Guilty Verdict for Young Woman Who Urged Friend to Kill Himself, N.Y. Times (June 16, 2017), https://www.nytimes.com/2017/06/16/us/suicide-texting-trial-michelle-carter-conrad-roy.html.

¹⁸⁵ Id.

¹⁸⁶ U.S. Const. amend. I.

¹⁸⁷ Brandenburg v. Ohio, 395 U.S. 444, 447 (1969).

¹⁸⁸ Docker, supra note 10, at 619.

¹⁸⁹ Melanie Eversley, Girlfriend Suicide Texting Case Sets Wrong Precedent, Legal Experts Say, USA Today (Aug. 4, 2017, 8:43 AM), https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/2017/08/03/michelle-carter-texting-suicide-case-sets-bad-precedent-experts-say/538794001/ [https://perma.cc/Z8A4-FDAN].

¹⁹⁰ See generally Case Comment, Minnesota Supreme Court Determines that False Claims Used to Advise or Encourage Suicide Do Not Fall Within the Alvarez Fraud Exception: State v. Melchert-Dinkel, 128 Harv. L. Rev. 1280 (2015).

¹⁹¹ See Anthony W. Joyce, Prosecuting Fatal Speech: What Minnesota’s State v. Final Exit Network Means for Assisted-Suicide Laws Across the Country, 71 Okla. L. Rev. 1229, 1234 (2019); Sean Sweeney, Deadly Speech: Encouraging Suicide and Problematic Prosecutions, 67 Case W. Rsrv. L. Rev. 941, 959 (2017).

¹⁹² See Joyce, supra note 1947, at 1234-35.

¹⁹³ See id. at 1236.

¹⁹⁴ State v. Final Exit Network, Inc., 889 N.W.2d 296, 303-05, 307 (Minn. Ct. App. 2016).

¹⁹⁵ Ga. Code Ann. § 16-5-5 (1994).

¹⁹⁶ Final Exit Network, Inc. v. State, 722 S.E.2d 722, 725 (Ga. 2012).

¹⁹⁷ Id. at 723.

¹⁹⁸ Id. at 724 (citing Brown v. Ent. Merchs. Ass’n, 564 U.S. 786 (2011)).

¹⁹⁹ Giboney v. Empire Storage & Ice Co., 336 U.S. 490, 502 (1949).

²⁰⁰ Case Comment, supra note 193, at 1282.

²⁰¹ Bearman & Moody, supra note 21.

²⁰² Huileng Tan, Judge Dismisses Lawsuit Against Netflix Brought by Parent of a Teenager Who Died by Suicide After Watching ‘13 Reasons Why,’ Bus. Insider (Jan. 12, 2022, 1:14 AM), https://www.businessinsider.com/judge-dismisses-lawsuit-against-netflix-13-reasons-why-suicide-2022-1 [https://perma.cc/R4GN-TU83].

²⁰³ Wrongful-Death Action, Black’s Law Dictionary (11th ed. 2019).

²⁰⁴ Tan, supra note 205.8

²⁰⁵ See id.

²⁰⁶ Id. (quoting Amended Complaint at 8, Estate of B.H. v. Netflix, Inc., No. 4:21-cv-06561-YGR (N.D. Cal. Sept. 22, 2021)).

²⁰⁷ See Order Granting Special Motion to Strike Pursuant to California Anti-SLAAP Statute, Cal. Code of Civ. Proc. § 425.16, or, in the Alternative Motion to Dismiss Pursuant to Fed. R. Civ. P. 12(b)(6) at 1-3, Estate of B.H., No. 4:21-cv-06561-YGR (N.D. Cal. Jan. 12, 2022).

²⁰⁸ Yixuan Zhang, Note, If Words Can Kill, How Should Criminal Law Intervene?, 56 Am. Crim. L. Rev. Online 59, 63 (2019), https://www.law.georgetown.edu/american-criminal-law-review/wp-content/uploads/sites/15/2019/06/If-Words-Can-Kill-How-Should-Criminal-Law-Intervene.pdf [https://perma.cc/K7R7-6RN5].

²⁰⁹ Reed v. Town of Gilbert, 576 U.S. 155, 171 (2015) (quoting Ariz. Free Enter. Club’s Freedom Club PAC v. Bennett, 564 U.S. 721, 734 (2011)).

²¹⁰ See Zhang, supra note 211, at 60.

²¹¹ Schenck v. United States, 249 U.S. 47, 52 (1919).

²¹² Ashcroft v. Free Speech Coal., 535 U.S. 234, 253 (2002).

²¹³ Brandenburg v. Ohio, 395 U.S. 444, 449 (1969); Calvert, supra note 4, at 83.

²¹⁴ Brandenburg, 395 U.S. at 447-48.

²¹⁵ Robby Soave, Michelle Carter Didn’t Kill with a Text, N.Y. Times (June 16, 2017), https://www.nytimes.com/2017/06/16/opinion/michelle-carter-didnt-kill-with-a-text.html [https://perma.cc/8NNL-XLL6].

²¹⁶ Ninety-four percent of survey respondents viewed the First Amendment as “vital” to democracy. Jan Neuharth, First Amendment Day is an Important Reminder of the Rights we Enjoy – and Must Protect, USA Today (Sept. 23, 2021, 10:00 AM), https://www.usatoday.com/story/opinion/2021/09/23/first-amendment-rights-must-protect/8377984002/ [https://perma.cc/W9KZ-PYY2].

²¹⁷ Bd. of Educ. v. Pico, 457 U.S. 853, 855-56 (1982).

²¹⁸ Id. at 866-67.

²¹⁹ Levenson, supra note 9.

²²⁰ See Commonwealth v. Carter, 52 N.E.3d 1054, 1063 (2016).

²²¹ Chung, supra note 126.

²²² State v. Melchert-Dinkel, No. A15-0073, 2015 WL 9437531, at *9.

²²³ See Intellectual Freedom and Censorship Q&A, Am. Libr. Assoc. (May 29, 2007), https://www.ala.org/advocacy/intfreedom/censorship/faq#ifpoint9 [https://perma.cc/LUU2-U6G7] (defining censorship as “limiting … access to words, images, or ideas”).

²²⁴ LiveNOW from FOX, supra note 163.

²²⁵ Biddle et al., supra note 149, at 373.

²²⁶ Daniel Jones & Susan Benesch, Combating Hate Speech Through Counterspeech, Berkman Klein Ctr. (Aug. 9, 2019), https://cyber.harvard.edu/story/2019-08/combating-hate-speech-through-counterspeech [https://perma.cc/33U6-5BGM ].

²²⁷ See Nat’l Inst. of Just., Five Things About Deterrence (June 5, 2016), https://nij.ojp.gov/topics/articles/five-things-about-deterrence [https://perma.cc/PG3D-VR6E].

²²⁸ Biddle et al., supra note 149, at 370-73.

²²⁹ Shaffer, supra note 110, at 348 (“Some acts of suicide assistance deserve stiffer penalties than are now imposed, while many other forms of assistance do not warrant any criminal penalty at all.”).