A judge declared a mistrial on Friday, September 4, in the high-profile case of an American woman who k!lled her three children, but put his decision on hold to allow the defense to appeal the decision. ChildCare
Judge William Sullivan said he was freezing his mistrial ruling in the trial of Lindsay Clancy for one hour to allow her lawyer to file an appeal with a higher court.
Clancy, 36, does not deny strangling Cora, five, Dawson, three, and Callan, eight months, but claims she was suffering from postpartum psychosis – excusing her from criminal responsibility.
The dramatic developments came after the jury sent a note to the judge Friday morning saying that it was with a “heavy heart” that they were unable to reach a verdict in the case.
The jury has been deadlocked 11-1, with the majority apparently leaning towards finding Clancy not guilty by reason of insanity. To reach a verdict, all 12 jurors must be in agreement. If they cannot agree, the judge declares a mistrial, and prosecutors must decide whether to try the case again with a new jury.
Kevin Reddington, Clancy’s lawyer, previously demanded the replacement of the holdout juror, but Judge William Sullivan declined to do so, and, earlier, ordered the jury to resume deliberations on Friday morning.
Clancy has pleaded not guilty by reason of insanity, saying she heard a voice ordering her to kill her children. Her lawyers say this was caused by postpartum psychosis, a condition that experts say affects about one to two women in every 1,000 births.
Prosecutors have rejected that argument, saying Clancy had carefully planned the murders of her children and was able to understand the consequences of her actions. ChildCare
Psychiatrists and people close to Clancy, as well as her estranged husband, were among the witnesses who testified about her fragile mental health during the trial.
During closing arguments, Reddington, Clancy’s lawyer, said she had made numerous pleas for help before the killings but had received “lousy medical care” from the doctors she consulted.
After the murders at the family home in Duxbury, Massachusetts, in January 2023, Clancy jumped from a second-story window in an apparent suicide attempt that left her paralyzed from the waist down.
Clancy, a former nurse, faces life in prison without the possibility of parole if found guilty of first-degree murder.