Lindsay Clancy's 'chicken scratch' handwriting in journals offers key insight into her mental state, lawyer claims
A lawyer in Lindsay Clancy's ongoing trial has said that her handwriting in her journal may have been an indicator of her deteriorating mental state.
Clancy has pleaded not guilty to the murders of her three children Cora, five, Dawson, three, and Callan, eight months, at the family home in January 2023. Although Clancy does not dispute that she killed her children her defence team is arguing that she had been suffering from severe bipolar disorder and postpartum psychosis at the time, meaning she cannot be held criminally responsible for their deaths.
Meanwhile prosecutors are arguing that Clancy is liable for the deaths, and that there is evidence of premeditation.
The trial has heard evidence detailing the day in which Clancy attacked her children. Her husband at the time had gone out to pick up medications for their daughter as well as collect a takeout for dinner that evening, but returned to find the horrific aftermath, with the children fatally injured and Clancy having attempted suicide.
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Now, the jury has been shown Clancy's journals as evidence in the trial, with Clancy's lawyer pointing to the journals as an indication of Clancy's mental state declining.
These included detailed schedules of the children's nap times, bed times, and meal times.
Meanwhile, another journal included an account of Clancy's mental state, the BBC reports.
This included account of how she had been feeling, with Clancy writing repeatedly about having 'no motivation' and 'horrible, intrusive thoughts'.
As the journal continued, the court heard how her handwriting had become a 'chicken scratch' with her lawyer arguing that this was a result of her declining mental health.
The first witness to take to the stand in the court case was Clancy's ex husband Patrick Clancy, who told the court about how she had struggled following the birth of Callan, their third child.
He described how Clancy had been having thoughts about suicide and hurting their children in the months leading up to January 2023, and that 'her big spiral started' in December 2022.
“She started to lose a lot of weight, and she became very depressed, and she was having a really hard time," said Patrick.
Clancy had subsequently spent time on a facility with a locked ward, which Patrick said made him feel 'hopeful' as 'she seemed much better' afterwards.
On the day of the killings, Patrick said that Clancy ‘was having one of her best days’ and had ‘seemed in a good mood’.
Patrick had left the house to run errands, returning to the aftermath of what had happened, saying that he ‘saw blood everywhere’.
Clancy was left wheelchair-bound as a result of injuries sustained during a suicide attempt.
Approximately a week later Patrick recalled that Clancy had called him from hospital.
“She didn’t talk about our kids, she talked about what she went through,” he told the court. “She said she heard a man’s voice telling her that if she didn’t do it now, she would lose her chance - or something like that.”
The jury are expected to hear closing arguments in the case on August 27.
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.
Topics: Lindsay Clancy, Court, US News
Kit Roberts