Lindsay Clancy’s staunch supporters have made their presence known amid the mother’s high-profile trial for the murder of her three children.
“She knows that there are people out there that have not judged her and know that she is a wonderful, wonderful person,” Clancy’s attorney, Kevin Reddington, told reporters on Monday, August 31, revealing that his client has received enough letters from supporters to fill three boxes, according to NBC.
Clancy, 36, is charged with murder in the deaths of her children Cora, 5, Dawson, 3, and Callan, 8 months, in January 2023. Clancy has not denied that she killed her children. Instead, her defense team is arguing that she should not be held criminally responsible for the killings due to her mental state and documented postpartum mental health struggles.
During his Thursday, August 27, closing arguments, Reddington cited forensic psychiatrist Phillip Resnick’s expert opinion while addressing the jury, doubling down on his claims that Clancy shouldn’t be held criminally responsible for her children’s deaths.
Reddington said that Resnick examined Clancy prior to the trial, and he testified that she was “frankly psychotic” and not in control of her actions at the time of the killings.
“He indicates clearly in his opinion that she was in a state of psychosis at the time of this death, times three,” Reddington said. “Has any of the government doctors rebutted that?”
He added, “She’s not criminally responsible. The burden is on them.”
Prosecutor Jennifer Sprague argued that Clancy should be held criminally responsible despite her mental illnesses, claiming the mother knew right from wrong and intentionally killed her children in an effort to somehow free herself from her postpartum torment.
“That’s not the issue in this trial,” Sprague told jurors while discussing Clancy’s postpartum health. “The issue is whether, at the time she killed Cora, Dawson and Callan, she knew the difference between right and wrong, and whether she could conform her behavior to the requirements of the law.”
While addressing the defense’s claims that Clancy had been overmedicated and received inadequate medical care in the months leading up to the killings, she insisted it “wasn’t the fault of the providers that she was struggling with this or that she wasn’t getting better.”
“They were doing the best they could with the information she provided them, and that wasn’t always accurate information,” she added of the healthcare providers. “That wasn’t always the full picture.”
Sprague also shared the prosecution’s theory on why Clancy killed her children.
“She was depressed. She was exhausted. She was done. She didn’t want to try anymore. She felt damaged,” Sprague said. “But those kids, those kids were her protective factor. Those kids were keeping her from ending her misery. So she had to remove the protective factor.”
Sprague then acknowledged that Clancy may not have been “happy” about killing her children, though she likely did it “to end her misery.” (After Clancy killed her children, she attempted to die by suicide.)
Deliberations began after the defense and prosecution gave their closing arguments. On Monday, September 1, the jury told Judge William Stevens that they were unable to come to a unanimous verdict. The judge responded by ordering the jury to return to deliberations.
If you or someone you know is pregnant or just had a baby and is in crisis, help is available. Call or text the National Maternal Mental Health Hotline for free, confidential support 24/7 in English and Spanish at 1-833-TLC-MAMA (1-833-852-6262).
