Skip to main content

Girlfriend charged in college student’s death after telling him ‘hundreds of times’ to kill himself, prosecutors say

Image
By

BOSTON — The girlfriend of a Boston College student who died by suicide in May repeatedly texted him to do so during their relationship, Massachusetts prosecutors said in announcing involuntary manslaughter charges against her.

Inyoung You, 21, tracked Alexander Urtula’s location on May 20 and was present when he jumped from a parking garage only hours before graduation, Suffolk County District Attorney Rachael Rollins told reporters.

Authorities said You, also a student at Boston College, was “physically, verbally and psychologically abusive” toward her boyfriend during their 18-month-long relationship.

Investigators looked through a trove of text messages the two exchanged in which You allegedly tells Urtula, 22, to “go kill himself” or to “go die” and that she, his family and the world would be better off without him, prosecutors said.

The district attorney said You is in her native South Korea and her office is “cautiously optimistic” that You will return to the US voluntarily. “If she does not, we will utilize the power we have to get her back,” Rollins said.

In a press release, the DA’s office says it’s working with You’s counsel to coordinate an arraignment. A grand jury returned an indictment on October 18.

CNN has not been able to reach You or her counsel for comment.

Prosecutors have described a pattern of abuse and manipulation throughout the relationship, in which You allegedly “made demands and threats” and exercised “total control” of Urtula, both mentally and emotionally. She was aware of her boyfriend’s depression, they contend.

You instructed Urtula to kill himself “hundreds of times” through the more than 47,000 text messages she sent him in the two months before his death, Rollins said.

Rollins said a bill is currently in front of a legislative committee that would make encouragement or assistance of suicide a crime a punishable of up to five years in prison.

You was scheduled to graduate in May 2020 but withdrew from classes in August, according to the school’s spokesperson.

The case raised comparisons to the Michelle Carter suicide texting case, in which Carter was convicted of involuntary manslaughter after a judge determined that her texts to her boyfriend Conrad Roy III persuaded him to kill himself in 2014.

Rollins addressed those comparisons, saying the two cases are similar in some ways.

“But where I would distinguish, and I think the facts will show in Carter there was very limited physical contact prior and some very egregious language in the instance or moments leading up to the death. We have quite frankly, I would say the opposite of that. We have a barrage of a complete and utter attack on this man’s very will and conscience and psyche by an individual to the tune of 47,000 text messages in the two months leading up,” Rollins said.

Urtula was a biology major and You studied economics.

“Alexander was a gifted student at Boston College, who was involved in many activities, including the Philippine Society of Boston College. We continue to offer our condolences and prayers to Alex’s family,” college spokesperson Jack Dunn said in a statement.

If you or someone you know needs help, call the National Suicide Prevention Hotline at 1-800-273-8255 or visit their website. 

from fox5sandiego.com
Source: https://ift.tt/2PupiaV

Labels

Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Virginia family gets keys to Habitat for Humanity’s first 3D-printed home in the US

By
(CNN) — One Virginia family received the keys to their new  3D-printed home  in time for Christmas. The home is Habitat for Humanity’s first 3D-printed home in the nation,  according to a Habitat news release. Janet V. Green, CEO of Habitat for Humanity Peninsula and Greater Williamsburg, told CNN it partnered with Alquist, a 3D printing company, earlier this year to begin the process. The 1,200-square-foot home has three bedrooms, two full baths and was built from concrete. The technology allowed the home to be built in just 12 hours, which saves about four weeks of construction time for a typical home. April Stringfield purchased the home through the  Habitat Homebuyer Program . She will move in with her 13-year-old son just in time for the holidays. “My son and I are so thankful,” Stringfield said in a  live feed streamed on Habitat’s Facebook  page. “I always wanted to be a homeowner. It’s like a dream come true.” To purchase the home, Stringfiel...
Post a Comment
Recent News

Lawsuit: High school football player says coaches forced him to eat pizza as punishment, violating religious beliefs

By
CANTON, Ohio (AP) — An Ohio high school football player who says coaches forced him to eat a pizza covered with pepperoni grease in violation of his religious beliefs is suing his former district and the ousted coaches. The former Canton McKinley High School athlete and his parents filed a federal civil rights suit this week seeking millions of dollars in damages and alleging violations of his religious freedom and constitutional rights. The athlete says in the lawsuit that coaches were notified he doesn’t eat pork or pork residue as a member of the Hebrew Israelite religious faith, but that they ordered him to eat the pizza as punishment for missing an offseason workout — and indicated his spot on the team was at risk if he didn’t. The coaches say the player chose to remove pepperoni and eat the pizza rather than an alternative food. They weren’t aware it violated his religious beliefs, according to a  defamation case they filed  previously against the teen’s father, his a...
Post a Comment
Recent News

After court victories, Michael Jackson estate eyes revival

By
BEVERLY HILLS, Calif. (AP) — Michael Jackson’s musical legacy never left, but a kind of comeback is coming. With a series of court victories that bring the end to serious legal crises, with a Broadway show beginning and a Cirque du Soleil show returning after a long pandemic pause, the Jackson business is on the upswing 12 years after the pop superstar’s death. Very recently, things looked grim. The 2019 HBO documentary “  Leaving Neverland  ” raised child molestation allegations anew. The once-dead lawsuits brought by the two men featured in it had been  revived  by changes in the law. And a decision in the estate’s appeal of a $700 million tax bill was taking years to arrive. “I was always optimistic,” John Branca, the entertainment attorney who worked with Jackson through many of his biggest triumphs and now serves as co-executor of his estate, told The Associated Press in an interview at his Beverly Hills home. “Michael inspired the planet and his music still ...
Post a Comment
Recent News