Jury selection started Monday for the trial of Lindsay Clancy, a Massachusetts mother accused of strangling her three children while she was receiving psychiatric treatment. This trial might take several weeks and will focus on the complex condition of postpartum psychosis. This rare condition impacts a small number of women, causing delusions and at times hallucinations after childbirth.
Clancy’s defense team, along with her husband, argues she should not be held accountable for her actions due to her mental condition. Defense attorney Kevin Reddington acknowledges she killed her children but plans to present an insanity defense. According to him, “This whole case is an extreme tragedy.” In contrast, prosecutors claim the murders were premeditated, not the result of someone out of control.
Clancy, formerly a labor and delivery nurse at Massachusetts General Hospital, has entered a plea of not guilty to charges of murdering her children: Cora, 5, Dawson, 3, and Callan, 8 months, who were killed on January 24, 2023.
EDITOR’S NOTE: This story includes discussion of suicide. If you or someone you know needs help, the national suicide and crisis lifeline in the U.S. is available by calling or texting 988.
On the day of the tragic incident, Clancy, now 36, reportedly asked her husband, Patrick Clancy, to leave their home to pick up takeout and a pharmacy item. She then allegedly strangled the children with exercise bands and made several attempts to take her own life. Following a fall from the home’s second-story window, she was paralyzed and is currently in a state hospital.
Patrick Clancy, listed as a potential witness by both the defense and prosecution, has publicly expressed forgiveness toward his wife. He has participated in interviews, sharing his feelings and perspective on the case.
The trial is held in Plymouth, near the family’s home in Duxbury. The jury selection process aims to choose 18 jurors, including six alternates, over several days. Duxbury is a well-to-do coastal suburb located about 30 miles south of Boston.
Earlier this year, both Lindsay and Patrick Clancy filed lawsuits against her medical providers. They claim there was a failure to accurately diagnose and treat a severe postpartum psychiatric condition. Before the tragic day, Clancy reportedly spent several days in a psychiatric hospital and expressed her ongoing struggles with depression, insomnia, and harmful voices.
The lawsuit revealed Clancy’s efforts to seek help: recognizing her condition, seeking medical treatment, contacting emergency resources, admitting herself to hospitals, and following prescribed medication. Despite these efforts, her symptoms reportedly worsened.
On the day of the incident, voices allegedly told her, “This is your last chance. Kill the children so you can kill yourself.” According to the lawsuit filed by Patrick Clancy, medical records indicated a voice said her children would suffer if she died.
Patrick Clancy posted on GoFundMe a few days after the incident, describing the “shock and pain as excruciating and relentless.” He urged the public to remember Lindsay Clancy for who she was before the incident — loving and caring towards her family, friends, and patients. He expressed hope for her to find peace in the future.