Jury in Lindsay Clancy trial deadlocked for third time as defense calls for juror to be removed

The jury in the high-profile murder trial of Lindsay Clancy has been dismissed for the day after failing to reach a unanimous verdict for the third consecutive time.

Deliberations inside the Plymouth County courtroom were adjourned on Thursday afternoon, with the judge ordering the panel of jurors to return tomorrow morning to continue discussions for what will mark the seventh day of deliberations.

The latest impasse underscores the profound complexity and emotional weight of the case, which has gripped the nation since January 2023.

Clancy, 36, a former labor and delivery nurse at Massachusetts General Hospital, is charged with first-degree murder, strangulation, and assault and battery in connection with the tragic deaths of her three children: Cora, 5, Dawson, 3, and seven-month-old Callan.

The tragedy unfolded at the family's suburban home in Duxbury, Massachusetts, while her husband, Patrick Clancy, had briefly stepped out to run errands and pick up dinner.

Upon returning, he discovered that Lindsay had jumped from a second-story window in an apparent suicide attempt that left her permanently paralyzed from the waist down, before making the devastating discovery of their children in the basement.

The protracted deliberations have been accompanied by mounting courtroom drama.

Jurors once again failed to reach a unanimous verdict (CourtTV/Youtube)

Earlier in the day, the defense team, led by attorney Kevin Reddington, formally moved to have a member of the jury dismissed after it is understood that they were reportedly ‘not listening to the law’.

While the specific legal arguments were heard in a sidebar, the motion signaled growing friction within the jury room as panel members struggle to reach consensus on the severe charges.

“There’s one juror who refuses to listen to the law that you’ve given him or her on reasonable doubt,” said Reddington.

“And I suggest respectfully that the soft instruction that you gave them at the sidebar saying ‘can you listen to the law as I instruct you’ does not focus on the issue.

“The question was not sufficient enough. If we come back here in a half an hour with a mistrial because of a juror that has just spurned the instructions of the court it's a shame.

“It’s a real shame.”

Prosecuting attorney Jennifer Sprague disagreed with Reddington and said she believed the judge’s instructions were sufficient.

"There's no way to determine what the deliberations are, who's correct, who's incorrect, nor should we attempt to," she said.

Defense attorney Kevin Reddington called for the removal of one juror, however this request was denied (David L. Ryan/The Boston Globe via Getty Images)

The judge ultimately permitted deliberations to proceed without immediately granting the removal.

Throughout the lengthy trial, the defense has argued that Clancy was legally insane and suffering from a severe case of postpartum psychosis fueled by an aggressive combination of prescription psychiatric medications.

Reddington presented extensive testimony documenting Clancy's desperate search for medical help in the months leading up to the tragedy, arguing she was suffering from involuntary intoxication and unable to comprehend the wrongfulness of her actions.

Prosecutors, however, have pushed for a first-degree murder conviction, maintaining that Clancy acted with premeditation and deliberate malice.

The state pointed to internet searches Clancy made shortly before the killings, as well as the deliberate timing of sending her husband out of the home, arguing she knew the difference between right and wrong.

With the jury now entering its seventh day of deliberations, the courtroom remains on edge as legal teams await whether the panel can find common ground or if the proceedings will edge closer to a formal mistrial.