Archive · 28 Aug 2026
Jury deliberates in Lindsay Clancy postpartum psychosis murder trial
Lindsay Clancy is on trial after her three children died in January 2023.
She has admitted strangling her daughter Cora and sons Dawson and Callan.
Afterward, she tried to kill herself by jumping from a second-story window.
The defense says she was suffering from bipolar disorder and postpartum psychosis.
Defense experts said a voice told her to hurt her children and then herself.
Prosecutors say she planned the opportunity to be alone with the children.
They argue that she still understood what she was doing was wrong.
The jury must decide whether she can be held legally responsible for the deaths.
Lindsay Clancy’s trial over the deaths of her three children is nearing jury deliberations.
Clancy admitted strangling Cora, Dawson and Callan at their Duxbury home in January 2023.
The defense argued bipolar disorder and postpartum psychosis left Clancy unable to control her actions.
A defense expert said a command hallucination compelled Clancy to kill the children and herself.
Prosecutors argued Clancy acted deliberately and understood the difference between right and wrong.
- Who
- Lindsay Clancy, her three children, defense experts and prosecutors.
- What
- A murder trial is approaching jury deliberations, with criminal responsibility as the central issue.
- When
- The children were killed in January 2023; the trial is now nearing its final phase.
- Where
- The events occurred at Clancy’s home in Duxbury, Massachusetts, and the case is being heard in Plymouth Superior Court.
- Why
- The jury must determine whether mental illness and postpartum psychosis prevented Clancy from being criminally responsible.
Defense
Prosecution
Mental state
Defense
Clancy’s lawyers argued that bipolar disorder and postpartum psychosis severely incapacitated her and prevented meaningful self-control.
Prosecution
Prosecutors acknowledged depression and insomnia but argued that Clancy remained capable of distinguishing right from wrong.
What led to the killings
Defense
Defense expert Dr. Phillip Resnick said a command hallucination compelled Clancy to kill her children and then herself in a dreamlike state.
Prosecution
Prosecutors argued that Clancy intentionally created an opportunity by asking her husband to leave for dinner, then acted methodically.
Criminal responsibility
Defense
The defense is seeking to show that Clancy should not be held criminally responsible because of her severe mental illness.
Prosecution
The prosecution is seeking to establish that Clancy retained control and should be held responsible for the deaths.
- Defendant
- Lindsay Clancy, 36, a former labor and delivery nurse
- Children
- Cora, 5; Dawson, 3; and Callan, 8 months
- Location
- The Clancy home in Duxbury, Massachusetts
- Defense claim
- Undiagnosed bipolar disorder and postpartum psychosis severely impaired Clancy
- Defense expert
- Dr. Phillip Resnick testified about a command hallucination
- Prosecution claim
- Clancy acted intentionally, methodically and understood right from wrong
- Prosecution expert
- Dr. Gregory Saathoff testified that Clancy retained control