A Massachusetts mother accused of strangling her three young children will remain held at a state psychiatric hospital after jurors deadlocked, according to court records.
Lindsay Clancy is a former labor and delivery nurse who lived with her family in Duxbury, Massachusetts.
The judge presiding over her nearly six-week murder trial officially declared a mistrial on Friday, September 4, court records show.
The decision came after jurors were unable to reach a unanimous verdict, court records show.
The panel remained deadlocked 11-1, according to court proceedings.
Clancy’s attorney petitioned a higher court to put the judge’s mistrial declaration on hold, according to court records.
The defense sought to force the judge to require the jury to continue deliberating in an effort to avoid a mistrial, court records show. The higher court ultimately rejected the defense request.
A court hearing has since been scheduled for September 29, officials said.
Plymouth County District Attorney Timothy Cruz said prosecutors will decide whether to retry the case before that date arrives.
Clancy will remain in custody at Tewksbury Hospital as she awaits the future of her case, prosecutors said.
The defendant has been held at the state-run public psychiatric facility throughout her pretrial detention and her trial, records show.
The hospital became her long-term residence following the events of January 24, 2023, court documents state.
On that evening, Clancy allegedly strangled her three young children inside the family home, prosecutors said.
The victims were 5-year-old Cora, 3-year-old Dawson, and 8-month-old Callan, according to prosecutors.
The mother allegedly used exercise bands to strangle all three children, court documents state.
That same night, Clancy jumped from a second-story window of the Duxbury residence, according to authorities.
She survived the fall from the window, officials said. The plunge caused catastrophic injuries that left her permanently paralyzed from the waist down.
Clancy has used a wheelchair at each court hearing and throughout her trial, court records show.
Her physical condition has factored into logistical decisions surrounding the case, according to officials.
Those accommodations have included specialized transport to and from court proceedings, court records show.
Her mobility requirements have also governed the seating arrangements inside the courtroom, according to court records.
Immediately after the fall, Clancy was taken to South Shore Hospital for emergency care, according to medical testimony.
Her injuries were quickly deemed too severe for that hospital to manage, medical personnel testified.
Dr. Kelly McDonough treated Clancy in the immediate aftermath of the fall, according to trial testimony.
McDonough testified during the trial that medical scans showed the defendant had sustained a thoracic spine injury.
The scans showed no apparent head injury, McDonough told jurors.
“The decision was made by the team that her injuries were too severe to stay at South Shore Hospital, and the decision was made to transfer her to a tertiary care center,” McDonough testified, per Boston.com.
Clancy was subsequently transferred to Tewksbury Hospital, court records state.
The state facility was chosen so her medical needs and psychiatric evaluation could be managed in one setting, records show.
The former nurse remained at Tewksbury Hospital leading up to her trial, which began on July 27, 2026, according to court records.
Physicians have indicated that her paralysis is permanent, court records show.
Clancy remained largely silent in court through the initial stages of the trial, records show.
She spoke publicly for the first time on August 4, 2026, during the sixth day of proceedings, according to court records.
Massachusetts Superior Court Judge William Sullivan addressed the defendant directly to question her about stipulations, according to trial footage.
“Yes, your honor,” Clancy said, according to a livestream by the Associated Press.
Her response came when the judge asked whether she could stipulate to specific facts, according to the livestream.
Defense attorney Kevin Reddington said the stipulation involved facts related to the chain of custody of DNA evidence.
By agreeing to the stipulation, Clancy acknowledged she would not be able to contest those facts moving forward, her lawyer said.
The concession meant prosecutors no longer needed to call certain witnesses to the stand, according to court records.
Clancy has pleaded not guilty to three counts of first-degree murder, according to court records.
The defendant has not denied killing the three children, court records show.
Her defense strategy has centered entirely on an insanity plea, according to court proceedings.
Reddington argued before the court that Clancy was suffering from postpartum psychosis when the killings occurred.
The defense attorney also argued to jurors that his client was heavily overmedicated at the time, according to court records.
Reddington told the court that Clancy had struggled with severe depression for a prolonged period, records show.
The mother voluntarily committed herself to a local psychiatric hospital less than a month before the children died, Reddington said.
Her doctors repeatedly switched her medications to treat her depression, the defense said. Reddington argued that those continual prescription changes only worsened her psychiatric symptoms.
The defense stated that Clancy was prescribed 15 different medications in the months leading up to the deaths.
Reddington argued that jurors needed to understand why Clancy and her then-husband consulted medical professionals, court records show.
The attorney told the court they sought help because of depression and “because of the life that she was living, which was one of horrific misery because of medications.”
Psychiatric nurse practitioner Rebecca Jollotta testified about treating Clancy in late 2022, according to court records.
Jollotta took the witness stand on August 11, 2026, trial records show.
The nurse practitioner works in the perinatal behavioral health program at South Shore Hospital, according to her testimony.
Jollotta testified that she created a medical plan to treat Clancy for anxiety, depression, and insomnia, records show.
That treatment plan began in late November 2022 and concluded the following month, Jollotta told the court.
Clancy repeatedly asked for changes to her medications during that period, according to Jollotta’s testimony.
The patient reported that the drugs caused intrusive thoughts, insomnia, and physical numbness, Jollotta testified.
Clancy also told medical staff that she feared becoming dependent on the benzodiazepine Ativan, according to records presented at trial.
“It’s just a very scary stressful time for me, and starting new meds with side effects is very scary to me,” Clancy previously wrote in a note.
Jollotta testified that she told Clancy the medication would require several weeks to become effective, according to court records.
The clinician also informed Clancy that her symptoms appeared consistent with postpartum depression rather than drug side effects, according to trial testimony.
“All of this sounds like postpartum depression,” Jollotta wrote in a medical note during that treatment window.
Jollotta recalled a specific appointment with Clancy on December 6, 2022, according to court records.
Clancy reported during that visit that her insomnia began when she took Zoloft, Jollotta testified.
The patient stated that she had been unable to sleep for 48 consecutive hours after taking the drug, according to testimony.
Jollotta testified that remaining awake for 48 hours was an unusual reaction to Zoloft, court records show.
The clinician testified that such a reaction could suggest Clancy had an underlying bipolar disorder.
Jollotta last treated Clancy on December 21, 2022, according to trial testimony. That final consultation took place approximately one month before the children were killed.
Prosecutors argued during the trial that Clancy carefully planned the killings in advance, court records show.
The state alleged that Clancy staged the moments before the deaths by sending her husband out of the house, court records state.
Prosecutors argued the errand was designed to ensure Clancy was left completely alone with the three children, according to court records.
The defense countered that the mother’s actions were the tragic consequence of untreated postpartum illness, records show.
In April 2026, Reddington filed a pretrial motion regarding how the case should be tried, according to WCVB.
The motion revealed Clancy “is offering to admit that she killed the children” if granted a bifurcated trial, per WCVB.
Judge Sullivan rejected the defense request and ordered the matter tried in a single proceeding, court records show.
A conviction for first-degree murder carries a mandatory sentence of life in prison without parole in Massachusetts, according to state law.
If Clancy is ultimately found not guilty by reason of insanity, she would be committed to a psychiatric facility rather than sentenced to state prison, records show.
Free, confidential support is available 24/7 through the National Maternal Mental Health Hotline by calling or texting 1-833-852-6262 in English and Spanish.
A court hearing is scheduled for September 29, 2026, when prosecutors must state whether they will retry Clancy for murder.
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