MINNEAPOLIS — The Minnesota Supreme Court reversed the convictions of a former nurse accused of trolling the Internet for suicidal people and encouraging two to kill themselves, ruling Wednesday that part of a law banning someone from “encouraging” suicide is unconstitutional.

William Melchert-Dinkel was convicted in 2011 of two counts of aiding suicide, after a judge found he “intentionally advised and encouraged” an English man and a Canadian woman to take their own lives.

But the state’s highest court found that language in Minnesota’s law that makes it illegal to “advise” or “encourage” suicide is too broad and encompasses speech that expresses a viewpoint and is protected under the First Amendment.

However, the justices upheld part of the law that makes it a crime to “assist” in someone’s suicide — and said speech could be considered assisting. Since the lower court judge did not issue a ruling on “assisting” suicide, Melchert-Dinkel’s case was sent back to that judge for further consideration.

“It’s a legal system; it’s not a justice system. The two are completely different,” said Deborah Chevalier, the mother of the Canadian woman who took her life after communicating online with Melchert-Dinkel. “At the very least, the world knows what he’s done. His friends, his family know what he’s done. He can’t run away from that.”