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Topics: Mental Health, US News, Crime
Callum Jones
Topics: Mental Health, US News, Crime
Warning: This article contains discussion of child abuse and suicide which some readers may find distressing.
The husband of a woman who killed their three children has shared the horrific decision he had to make after finding them.
Back on January 24, 2023, Patrick Clancy was out of his family home for less than an hour before returning to find his wife, Lindsay, lying in their backyard.
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It was shortly discovered the mom had jumped out of the window of her Duxbury, Massachusetts, home after strangling their three children.
Cora, five, Dawson, three, and Callan, who was eight months old, all lost their lives.
Cora and Dawson were pronounced dead the same day, and Callan died a few days later in hospital.
Lindsay attempted to take her own life following the horrific incident, though she did survive it.
She was left paralyzed from the waist down, and has since been charged with two counts of murder, three counts of strangulation, and three counts of assault and battery with a dangerous weapon.
It was Patrick who tragically found his three children deceased, and he has shared in a recent interview the horrific decision he had to make after finding them.
The New Yorker reports the dad 'removed the bands and begged each child to breathe'.
He ultimately attempted to resuscitate Cora, who was said to be lying by her side.
"What do you do when you have three kids like that?" Patrick told the outlet. "How do you pick?"
Officials learnt Lindsay had been suffering with mental health problems prior to the incident.
When pregnant with Callan, Lindsay saw huge spikes in anxiety and insomnia symptoms, and was later seen by postpartum specialists.
However, she never received a severe diagnosis of generalised anxiety disorder.
After Lindsay had been taken into custody, her husband quizzed her over the incident.
The dad recalled: “I think one of the first things I asked was, ‘Did you plan this? Is that why you sent me out?’"
Lindsay claimed in her response the deaths of her children were not planned.
“She said, ‘No, it just was, like, a snap of the fingers'," Patrick revealed.
The case surrounding Lindsay remains ongoing, but Patrick has reiterated 'it wasn’t her making those decisions', adding that he 'wasn't married to a monster'.
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.
If you’ve been affected by any of these issues or want to speak to someone in confidence regarding the welfare of a child, the Childhelp USA National Child Abuse Hotline (1-800-4-A-CHILD (1-800-422-4453) operates 24 hours a day, seven days a week, and receives calls from throughout the United States, Canada, US Virgin Islands, Guam and Puerto Rico.