The jury deliberating on murder charges against Lindsay Clancy, who is accused of strangling her three children, has not been able to reach a unanimous verdict, raising the possibility of a mistrial in one of the most closely watched criminal cases in recent Massachusetts history.
Clancy, 36, a former labour and delivery nurse from Duxbury, is charged with three counts of murder in the January 2023 strangulation deaths of her three children: 5-year-old Cora, 3-year-old Dawson, and 8-month-old Callan.
She has pleaded not guilty by reason of lack of criminal responsibility. After the killings, Clancy attempted to take her own life by jumping from a second-floor window, an act that left her paralysed from the waist down.
Judge William Sullivan, presiding over the trial at Plymouth Superior Court, informed those in the courtroom that the 12-person jury had sent a note indicating it was unable to agree after many hours of deliberation. Rather than declare a mistrial immediately, Sullivan sent the jury back to resume deliberations, reminding them of the length and complexity of the case.
“I know that this was a long trial. I know there were over 80 witnesses, over 300 exhibits,” Sullivan told jurors, according to reporting from the courtroom, before asking them to continue deliberating with his earlier instructions in mind.
Jurors began deliberating last Thursday after closing arguments and have now spent roughly 18 hours over four days without reaching a decision.
Defence attorney Kevin Reddington, addressing reporters outside the courthouse Tuesday morning, said he had confidence in the jury’s diligence and would represent Clancy again if the case were to be retried. He described the toll the long wait has taken on his client, saying the experience has been difficult for her.
Under Massachusetts law, a jury’s report of deadlock does not end a trial. A judge can send jurors back to deliberate further, and in cases of continued impasse may read what is known as the Tuey-Rodriguez instruction, a charge urging jurors to reconsider their positions while not surrendering honest convictions, before deciding whether to declare a mistrial.
If Clancy’s jury ultimately cannot reach a unanimous verdict, the Judge can declare a mistrial, and prosecutors would then decide whether to retry the case. As of Tuesday, deliberations were ongoing, with no clear timeline for a verdict.