A mistrial was declared in the Lindsay Clancy murder trial on Friday after jurors failed to reach a verdict on whether she was criminally responsible for killing her three young children at her Massachusetts home. Judge William Sullivan declared the mistrial on the seventh day of deliberations after jurors sent a note saying: “It is with a heavy heart that we report we are unable to come to a unanimous decision and will not be able to.” The emotionally charged case has sharply divided many Americans and generated intense interest for over a month as it's drawn attention to issues around maternal mental health after childbirth. Clancy, 36, never disputed that she killed her children.
But her attorney said she had a rare condition called postpartum psychosis when she strangled her kids, the youngest just 8 months old, then tried to take her own life in 2023. Prosecutors said Clancy knew what she was doing. Here are some key moments from the trial: 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. Her former husband made an anguished 911 call Clancy’s former husband, Patrick Clancy, was first to take the stand. In emotional testimony, he described the day he found his wife after she tried to kill herself.
Lindsay Clancy had sent him out to get takeout food and medication for their daughter, which prosecutors argue was an excuse to get him out of the house. He came home to find the house unusually silent, before finding blood throughout the main bedroom and a window open. Jurors listened to the 911 call he made after finding his wife outside in the snow.
She had jumped from a second-story window. Clancy can be heard speaking with his wife, then telling the dispatcher he’s going to check on the children. Moments later, he howls and cries after finding his children in the basement.
The confused dispatcher repeatedly asks what happened. Clancy’s mother, mother-in-law, sister, friends and co-workers testified that Clancy struggled with her mental health after giving birth to Callan, the youngest of her three children. Clancy’s mother-in-law, Susan Clancy, said she and her former daughter-in-law were close.
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