Judge Declares Mistrial in Clancy Case

The murder trial against Lindsay Clancy has ended in a mistrial.

Judge William Sullivan declared the mistrial Friday after jurors said they were unable to reach a unanimous verdict after a week of deliberating at the Plymouth Superior Court in Plymouth, Massachusetts.

Clancy was charged with first-degree murder in the killings of her three children in January 2023. All the children had been strangled with exercise bands.

The mistrial followed an alleged 11-1 divide in the jury. Clancy’s defense argued the holdout juror had acknowledged doubt but was refusing to properly apply the court’s instructions on reasonable doubt.

The alleged holdout is believed to be one of the three male jurors on the 12-person panel. Defense attorney Kevin Reddington referred to the unnamed juror as a male inside and outside court.

"[The other jurors] know that they were robbed — by one man — for whatever his agenda was, who stole seven weeks of the life of these other jurors that were so attentive, so beautiful, so wonderful and listened to this evidence," he told reporters after leaving the courthouse.

"And you could see how defeated they were sitting there. And I got a funny feeling they could go one for another week if they had to. So, I hope that guy can sleep well at night,” he added.

Plymouth County District Attorney Tim Cruz acknowledged the victims in this case — 5-year-old Cora, 3-year-old Dawson and 8-month-old Callan.

"It is our job to make sure the victims are not invisible," Cruz said of the Clancy children. "I am a father and a grandfather, and I cannot imagine the hell this entire family has lived through."

Clancy’s attorneys made an emergency appeal to the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court in an attempt to stay the mistrial and force further inquiry into the juror. Justice Dalila Argaez Wendlandt denied the request Friday afternoon, which allowed Sullivan to formally declare the mistrial.

The trial centered around the question of whether she was legally responsible for her actions.

Her attorneys argued that severe mental illness left her unable to appreciate the wrongfulness of what she was doing.

Prosecutors, on the other hand, said Clancy was criminally responsible and pointed to evidence they said showed planning, purposeful behavior and an awareness of what she was doing before, during and after the murders.

The mistrial means the case ended without a verdict — Clancy was neither convicted nor acquitted.

Prosecutors can seek to retry her but have not yet announced a decision.

Sullivan said he wants the case to be retried "sooner rather than later," adding a new trial could potentially take place later this fall. Clancy is due back in court Sept. 29 for a status hearing, trial assignment and a defense Rule 25 motion.

On Jan. 24, 2023, authorities responded to the Clancy family's Duxbury home after Patrick Clancy returned and found his now ex-wife seriously injured outside the house.

The couple's three children were found inside.

Cora and Dawson died that night; Callan died several days later.

Lindsay Clancy survived after jumping from a second-story window. She is paralyzed in a wheelchair.