A Massachusetts mother accused of killing her three young children saw her case end without a verdict after a judge declared a mistrial, court proceedings showed.
Lindsay Clancy was on trial facing triple-murder charges in the deaths of her children.
A deadlocked jury voted 11-1 on Friday, September 4, failing to reach the unanimous decision required to decide the case.
Following the mistrial declaration, defense attorney Kevin Reddington addressed reporters regarding online conspiracy theories that have targeted the defendant’s ex-husband, Patrick Clancy.
“I think Patrick, you heard the 911 call, I think you can judge his credibility by that 911 call,” Reddington said.
“I don’t know what is in Patrick’s mind. He testified, and the jury was able to evaluate it,” the defense attorney told reporters.
A reporter asked about online conspiracy theorists who have labeled the father a murderer, prompting a swift response from the lawyer. “Not by me,” Reddington said.
The mother was tried on allegations that she murdered 5-year-old Cora Clancy, 3-year-old Dawson Clancy, and 8-month-old Callan Clancy.
Clancy has not denied strangling the three children to death at the family home.
She then jumped out of a second-story window in an apparent suicide attempt, according to court documents.
Her defense team argued during the trial that the mother is not criminally liable for the killings because of documented mental health conditions. Those medical issues included postpartum depression, postpartum psychosis and bipolar disorder leading up to and at the time of the deaths, her lawyers argued.
Prosecutors argued Clancy was legally sane and capable of differentiating right from wrong when she strangled the three youngsters. The state claimed the killings were premeditated and cruel.
Multiple conspiracy theories spread across social media during the weeks-long trial, alleging Patrick Clancy was responsible for the children’s deaths. Those theories claimed the father framed his mentally fragile wife, according to court reports.
Online observers also pointed to alleged inconsistencies when the father took the witness stand to testify on his ex-wife’s behalf.
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Patrick Clancy has filed a separate wrongful death lawsuit against members of his wife’s medical care team. That complaint alleges providers overmedicated the mother and failed to properly treat her psychiatric conditions, resulting in the children’s deaths.
“That’s his testimony,” Reddington said when asked about the father’s time in the courtroom.
“People get nervous when they testify. They say things and they get confused. It’s not easy to be on that witness stand,” Reddington said.
The defense attorney addressed Patrick Clancy’s credibility again when questioned outside court. “He testified. Jurors weighed his testimony and uh, you know, I mean — most of you didn’t hear the 911 tape,” Reddington reiterated.
He also commented on the public claims circulating across social media platforms throughout the trial. “I mean people on the internet, they’re going to say — regarding the people on the internet, I certainly don’t dismiss them,” Reddington said.
“It’s amazing what people on TikTok and Instagram — I do know those things — it’s amazing how they’re able to [find out] facts and they do investigations and it’s truly amazing, this whole concept of the internet,” he continued.
Patrick Clancy spoke out through his legal counsel shortly after the judge concluded the proceedings with a mistrial.
“Patrick Clancy is grateful to the Court and to the jurors for their hard work, their commitment and their perseverance,” David Meier, the father’s attorney, said in a statement to CBS News on Friday.
“The loss of Patrick’s children is something from which he will never recover and from which there will never be closure,” Meier said.
The accused mother remains in custody following the trial.
She is being held under psychiatric care at Tewksbury State Hospital in Tewksbury, Massachusetts.
A GoFundMe campaign was organized to provide financial assistance to Clancy’s parents, Michael Musgrave and Paula Musgrave, as they remain by their daughter’s side. The online fundraiser increased its fundraising goal to $3 million following the mistrial.
Prosecutors are currently weighing whether to bring the defendant to trial a second time.
A status update hearing is scheduled for Tuesday, September 28, as the prosecution weighs the possibility of a retrial.
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