After seven days of intense deliberations, a Massachusetts judge on Sept. 4 declared a mistrial in the case of Lindsay Clancy, leaving her with an uncertain future.
The high-profile case against a mother who strangled her three children to death in 2023 has drawn national attention as her defense argued she's not criminally responsible because she was suffering from postpartum psychosis at the time. Prosecutors argued that Clancy deliberately planned to strangle her children, sending her husband out of the family home for food and medicine.
One thing that is certain: An update in the case is expected in late September. The judge scheduled a status and trial assignment hearing for Sept. 29.
Will Lindsay Clancy be retried?
Plymouth County District Attorney Timothy Cruz will decide
whether to retry the case against Clancy, who faced first-degree murder charges.
"We proceed accordingly and consistent with the evidence and the law," Cruz said after the mistrial was declared. He said he will "never be swayed" by public sentiment.
He said he would be making a decision about a new trial in the near future.
If there is a new trial, a new jury selection process will take place and a future trial will be scheduled.
Prosecutors could also lower the charges against Clancy and seek a plea agreement. Clancy's lawyer, Kevin Reddington, has previously said he anticipates the prosecution will try the case before a new jury.
What happened in the case?
Clancy, 36, strangled her three children – Cora, 5; Dawson, 3, and Callan, 8 months – at the family's home in January 2023. She then slashed her wrists and neck and jumped out of a second-floor window, leaving her paralyzed.
The 12-person jury began deliberating on Aug. 27 after hearing nearly six weeks of testimony from more than 80 witnesses. The jurors remained deadlocked for seven days, as they weighed whether Clancy is criminally responsible for her children's deaths.
Why was there a mistrial in the Lindsay Clancy case?
On Friday, Sept. 4, Judge William Sullivan said he would declare a mistrial after the jury for a third time said it could not reach a verdict. In an unusual and rare move, Clancy's attorney, Kevin Reddington, requested a single-justice appeal to the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court over the issue of a single juror allegedly holding up the verdict.
Sullivan gave him one hour, and the emergency stay was ultimately rejected by the higher court.
The case has fascinated the public, dominated national headlines and sparked a debate around postpartum healthcare. Dozens of spectators have gathered at the courthouse in the coastal town of Plymouth during the weekslong trial, many of them supporters of Clancy.
Clancy has remained inside Tewksbury Hospital, a psychiatric hospital in Tewksbury, Massachusetts, since she received court-ordered mental health treatment in May 2023.
Contributing: Melina Khan and N'dea Yancey-Bragg
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Mistrial declared in Lindsay Clancy triple-murder case. What's next?
