An American mother facing a murder conviction for killing her three young children may have to go on trial again after 11 out of the 12 jurors reportedly sided with her on insanity grounds.
Lindsay Clancy, 36, will appear before a Massachusetts court on Monday, November 2, as her lawyers try to get the charges dismissed, after one holdout juror kept the trial from reaching a unanimous verdict in September.
Clancy is charged with killing her children, Cora, 5; Dawson, 3; and 8-month-old Callan in their Duxbury home in January 2023.
Her defense argued that Clancy was suffering from postpartum psychosis, having hallucinations and was not in her right state of mind when she strangled her children with exercise bands.
Prosecutors, however, argued that Clancy knew what she was doing and meant to kill the kids.
A 12-member jury deliberated on the case for six weeks, held several votes over the course of six weeks but couldn’t reach a unanimous conclusion and it was declared a mistrial on September 4, 2026.
One holdout juror disagreed with 11 others who decided to acquit Clancy on grounds of insanity.
Her lawyers now argue that Judge William Sullivan should have investigated whether the holdout juror was following the court’s instructions before declaring a mistrial.
They contend that putting Clancy on trial again would violate constitutional protections against double jeopardy.
Prosecutors have rejected that argument, insisting the judge acted appropriately and that they should be allowed to pursue another trial.
