Judge expresses intentions of declaring Lindsay Clancy trial as a mistrial
Warning: This article contains discussion of baby loss and suicide which some readers may find distressing.
A judge wants to declare a mistrial in the case of Lindsay Clancy, the former labour and delivery nurse accused of killing her three children, after jurors told the court they were unable to reach a unanimous verdict.
Judge William Sullivan discharged the jury after days of deadlocked deliberations in Plymouth, Massachusetts, with the panel reporting it could not agree on whether Clancy, 36, was criminally responsible when she strangled her children Cora, Dawson and Callan at the family's home in 2023.
The Massachusetts judge expressed his intentions to declare a mistrial today (September 4). Addressing the court, Judge Sullivan said he 'does not feel he has any choice but to declare a mistrial', BBC News reports.
Advert
The jury said that it was with 'a heavy heart' that it could not reach a unanimous decision after several days of deliberation. They also agreed that it should be declared a mistrial.
A note to the judge read, per CNN: "It is with a heavy heart that we report we are unable to come to a unanimous decision and will not be able to."
Clancy's lawyer, Kevin Reddington, wants to appeal the decision. He's been given an hour to do so to the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court.
A mistrial would not clear Clancy. She would remained charged with murder and will stay held at a psychiatric hospital while prosecutors decide how to proceed, with a retrial, a plea deal, or, less likely, a decision to drop the case all now on the table.
What happens now the Lindsay Clancy jury couldn't reach a verdict?
If the case is effectively reset to where it stood before the trial began, prosecutors will have to decide whether to select an entirely new jury and start again from scratch.
Speaking to the Associated Press, Boston defence attorney and former prosecutor Brad Bailey who is not involved in the case, said the renewed threat of a retrial often reopens the door to negotiation.
He explained that whenever the possibility of a fresh trial on a murder charge resurfaces, defence teams will 'at the very least, explore whether or not there's any interest in a resolution'.
Bailey said he expects Clancy's legal team to push hard against a second trial altogether, arguing to prosecutors that she has already suffered enough given the paralysis she sustained after an attempted suicide attempt following the killings, and the loss of her children.
Will Lindsay Clancy be tried again if a mistrial's declared?
That decision would rest entirely with the prosecutors.
A retrial would mean empanelling a new jury and effectively restarting the legal process, while a plea deal could resolve the case without a second trial.
Decisions not to hold a retrial depend on legal tests, public interest, costs and practical limits after an inconclusive outcome like a hung jury. If it's likely to end up with the same result again, it's very unlikely that there will be another trial.
Clancy does not dispute that she strangled her children, but her defence argued throughout the trial that postpartum psychosis was to blame for her actions, while prosectors maintained she knew what she was doing at the time.
The case has drawn comparisons to that of Karen Read, whose 2024 Massachusetts trial over the death of her boyfriend also ended in a deadlocked jury and a mistrial, before a second jury acquitted her the following year.
A conviction in any retrial could carry a life sentence, whereas an acquittal on the grounds of lack of criminal responsibility could see Clancy committed to a mental health facility instead.
Timeline of Lindsay Clancy case
May 2022
Lindsay gives birth to her third child, Callan.
She’s open about her postpartum struggles with her other two kids on social media. Six weeks after Callan’s birth, she posts that she’s feeling ‘dialed in’ while focusing on exercise, nutrition, and mindset, and ‘it has made all the difference’.
September 2022
As the end of her maternity leave nears, Lindsay, who works as a labor and delivery nurse at Massachusetts General Hospital, starts to experience anxiety about returning to work.
She visits two different psychiatrists and receives a diagnosis of generalized anxiety disorder.
Lindsay is prescribed several different psychiatric medications.
October 2022
According to court docs, she writes in a note on her phone: “I think I sort of resent my other children because they prevent me from treating Cal like my first baby. And I know that’s not fair to them. I know that. I was feeling so depressed last evening when Cora and Dawson came home from school, I know it runs off on them, so we had a pretty rough evening, I want to feel love and connection with all my kids.”
December 2022
Lindsay undergoes an evaluation at the Women and Infants Hospital Center for Women’s Behavioral Health. She is not diagnosed with postpartum depression, prosecutors say.
Lindsay’s husband Patrick tells police she is having suicidal thoughts and thoughts of harming their children, according to his testimony in court.
1-5 January, 2023
Lindsay admits herself to McLean Hospital for psychiatric treatment. She is discharged after five days as clinicians do not believe she poses an imminent danger to herself or others, prosecutors say.
22 January, 2023
Lindsay, Patrick, Cora and Dawson have dinner at family friend Kyle Carney’s home. Kyle later tells police that Lindsay ‘seemed fairly normal’.
23 January, 2023
According to prosecutors, Lindsay pens a note on her phone which says she has ‘a touch of postpartum anxiety’ about going back to work.
24 January, 2023
Prosecutors allege the following took place this day:
Morning: Lindsay takes Cora to a scheduled pediatrician appointment. After returning home, they play in the snow with Dawson. She sends photos of the kids to Patrick and her mom.
4:02pm: Lindsay searches for ‘kids Miralax’ (a laxative) on her phone, and 11 minutes later looks up ‘take out 3v’, referring to restaurant ThreeV in Plymouth. She uses Apple Maps to calculate how long it would take to drive from the family’s home to ThreeV.
4:47pm: Lindsay rings a CVS in Kingston to ask if they have any Miralax in stock. A manager tells her they don’t, but they do have similar medications.
The manager later tells authorities that she did not slur her words or sound impaired during the call.
4:35pm: Lindsay texts Patrick, who is working from home: “Any chance you want to do takeout from 3V … I didn’t cook anything … It’s been a long day.”
Patrick says yes, and Lindsay asks him to ‘check the menu when you can’.
5:10pm: Lindsay calls ThreeV to place the order.
5:15pm: Lindsay allegedly texts Patrick: “Pedialax liquid stool softener.” He then leaves to pick up the medication.
5:33pm: When Patrick arrives at CVS, he rings Lindsay, but she doesn’t pick up. She rings back one minute later and confirms the medication.
5:54pm: Patrick gets to ThreeV, pays for the food and leaves.
6:09pm: Patrick returns home. “The first thing he noticed was the silence,” prosecutors say. “He did not see or hear the defendant or the children.”
Patrick calls for his wife but gets no response. He discovers their second-floor bedroom is locked. Patrick eventually manages to get in the room but sees blood on the floor. He runs outside and finds Lindsay lying on the ground, according to prosecutors.
6:11pm: Prosecutors say that Patrick rings 911 and Lindsay is saying: “I tried to kill myself.”
He is then said to ask Lindsay: “Where are the kids?” She responds: “In the basement.”
While on the call, Patrick goes down to the basement and is heard ‘screaming in agony’,
Cora and Callan are discovered on the floor of the den. Dawson is found in his dad’s home office.
When officers arrive at the scene, Patrick alleges: “She killed the kids.”
Lindsay is taken to hospital, where she is treated for injuries that leave her paralysed below the waist. The three children are also rushed to hospital.
7:28pm: Cora and Dawson are pronounced dead. Callan is medically flown to another children’s hospital.
25 January, 2023
Police issue Lindsay an arrest warrant, charging her with two counts of murder, three counts of strangulation or suffocation, and three counts of assault and battery with a dangerous weapon.
27 January, 2023
Callan is pronounced dead at 11.18am.
According to Assistant District Attorney Jennifer Sprague, Lindsay later wakes up and uses a whiteboard to ask: “Do I need an attorney?”
6 February, 2023
While in the presence of a psychologist hired by her lawyer, Lindsay calls Patrick and tells him she had a ‘moment of psychosis’ and heard ‘a man’s voice telling her to kill the kids and kill herself’ after he left on January 24.
7 February, 2023
On the day of her arraignment, Lindsay’s attorney says that she’s still suicidal. She pleads not guilty to three counts of murder.
October 2024
Patrick asks the public to forgive Lindsay, telling The New Yorker: “I wasn’t married to a monster - I was married to someone who got sick.”
January 2026
Lindsay and Patrick file a civil lawsuit, accusing medical providers of not properly diagnosing, treating and monitoring her for a ‘severe postpartum psychiatric condition’.
9 July, 2026
The Plymouth County District Attorney's Office says the three counts of strangulation would be subsumed into the murder charges.
27 July, 2026
Lindsay’s murder trial begins.
4 September 2026
Judge expresses intentions of declaring a mistrial after the jury fails to reach a verdict.
If you or someone you know is struggling or in crisis, help is available through Mental Health America. Call or text 988 to reach a 24-hour crisis center or you can webchat at 988lifeline.org. You can also reach the Crisis Text Line by texting MHA to 741741.
Topics: Lindsay Clancy, True crime, US News
Thomas Bamford