Trial enters final stretch as psychiatrists battle over Clancy's mental state
The trial of Lindsay Clancy, accused of killing her three children in January 2023, is now in its fifth and potentially final week, with closing arguments expected as soon as Tuesday or Wednesday, according to Judge William Sullivan. Currently, 18 jurors are seated and will be randomly narrowed to 12 for deliberations.
Clancy has admitted to killing her children — Cora, 5, Dawson, 3, and Callan, eight months — on January 24, 2023. That night, she had asked her now-ex husband Patrick Clancy to pick up medicine at CVS for Cora and takeout from a nearby restaurant. When Patrick returned, he found his wife sprawled on the ground, paralyzed from a two-story fall from their bedroom window, and the children dead in the basement.
Clancy has pleaded not guilty by reason of insanity, arguing she was suffering from postpartum psychosis at the time and cannot be held criminally responsible. Her attorney, Kevin Reddington, has called experts who diagnosed her with the condition, saying Clancy heard a voice on the night of the killings that told her to kill the children and then herself. Postpartum psychosis is estimated to impact one out of every 500 women after birth.
Defense expert compares case to Andrea Yates
On Friday, jurors heard from the defense's final witness, Dr. Phillip Resnik, a psychiatrist who testified for Andrea Yates' successful insanity defense after Yates killed her three children in 2001. Resnik said of Clancy, "She was clearly psychotic on that day," and told the jury that auditory hallucinations convinced her what she was doing was morally right.
"In her mind," Resnik said, "she believed that she would be doing her children a favor by having them go to heaven with her, rather than remain on earth without her doing the mothering."
Prosecution rebuttal: Major depressive disorder, not psychosis
The prosecution's first rebuttal witness, Dr. Avram Mack, disagreed. Mack testified that Clancy instead had major depressive disorder and showed she could act lawfully and rationally in the hours leading up to the killings. He pointed to evidence including Clancy driving Cora to a doctor's appointment, building a snowman with the children, and researching children's medicine. Mack also cited Clancy's phrase "Go to God" as evidence she knew her children were innocent and that what she was doing was wrong.
During cross-examination, Reddington highlighted that Resnik had examined Clancy about four months after the killings, while Mack saw her only a few months ago, and questioned Mack's credentials. After Mack finishes his testimony, the prosecution is expected to call more expert witnesses.
Life at Tewksbury State Hospital
Separately, new details have emerged about Clancy's life since the killings. She has remained at Tewksbury State Hospital and now uses a wheelchair after surviving her suicide attempt. Her parents, Mike and Paula Musgrove, moved from Connecticut and spent years living near the hospital to visit her. A childhood friend, Amy Bevins, visited her once for about 30 minutes, and the two played board games without discussing the incident.
The most regular visitor has been Father Bob Deehan, pastor of Holy Family Parish in Duxbury, who has seen Clancy weekly for about three-and-a-half years. Father Bob said Clancy remains "very devastated" and thinks about her children almost every hour of the day. He described her as "fairly stable" and "no longer in a state of psychological crisis," though he stressed he is "no medical professional."
Father Bob also said Clancy believes her children are in heaven and feels connected to them through prayer. "She understands that her little children are now with the Lord in heaven, and so she is able to pray with them, pray for them, and continue to have a spiritual relationship with them that way," he said.
During graphic testimony about the children's injuries, Clancy cried out, "I can't do it," and Father Bob was brought in to comfort her during a break.
The trial will determine whether Clancy is criminally responsible for the deaths. If convicted, she faces life in prison; if found not guilty by reason of insanity, she would be committed to psychiatric care without a fixed release date.