Watch “Commonwealth Confidential” atop this story for a recap and expert analysis of what happened today.
Jurors in the Lindsay Clancy trial spent all day deliberating Friday but didn’t come to a conclusion over whether she was responsible for her actions when she killed her three children in 2023.
Judge William Sullivan excused the jury for the weekend just before 4 p.m.
Clancy admits that she strangled her children, but her lawyer said she did it because she’d lost her grip on reality due to postpartum psychosis, a rare mental illness that can follow childbirth. The killings followed a monthslong period during which Clancy had sought treatment for her worsening mental health, including a stay in a psychiatric hospital.
Courtroom insider Sue O’Connell talks about the close look international reporters are getting at the Massachusetts legal system during the Duxbury mother’s murder trial.
Prosecutors said Clancy knew what she was doing. They say she killed the children because she was depressed and tired of living, and made a conscious choice to take her children with her before killing herself.
The jury met for a few hours Thursday without reaching a verdict. Members of the panel could find her guilty of murder or the lesser crime of manslaughter, or acquit her if they decide she wasn’t in control of herself due to her psychiatric problems.
Greg Derr / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn ImagesGreg Derr / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images
Lindsay Clancy watches jurors as they enter the courtroom to start their second day of deliberations on Friday, Aug. 28, 2026, in Plymouth Superior Court.
On Friday, court returned to session briefly, and Judge William Sullivan called the prosecution and defense to a sidebar conversation. It was not immediately clear what was said, with jurors out of the courtroom.
Clancy’s attorney, Kevin Reddington, said later that the jury had asked to see a bloody knife that Clancy used in an attempt to take her life along with bags containing empty prescription pill bottles that were found in her house.
Speaking to reporters as he first entered the courtroom Friday morning, Reddington said Clancy was “very sad, scared,” and had those feelings since the killings.
The fate of the Duxbury mother charged with murder in the deaths of her three children is now in the hands of the jury. Our analysts take a close look at the prosecution’s and the defense’s closing arguments, discuss the verdict options before jurors and talk about how long they might deliberate in the high-profile case.
Asked why, he responded: “What would you be scared of?”
He said he hoped the jury would come back with a verdict on Friday, but acknowledged deliberations could take longer.
“There are 290-something exhibits, five weeks of testimony,” he said. “It’s obviously a lot of work. They have been very attentive. I don’t know how long it will take them.”
The number of eyes on the case has grown immensely during the weekslong murder trial.
Prosecutors haven’t spoken to the large number of reporters outside court.
Clancy, 36, has pleaded not guilty by reason of lack of criminal responsibility. She did not testify during the trial, but jurors heard at length from medical professionals who had treated her, as well as from friends and relatives she’d told about her mental health problems.
Jurors also heard from medical experts called by prosecutors and the defense, who disagreed about her likely state of mind when she killed her children Cora, Dawson and Callan Clancy, ages 5, 3 and 8 months, at their Massachusetts home.
NBC10 Boston courtroom insider Sue O’Connell summarizes the closing arguments from the defense and prosecution and shares how effective she thought they were. Plus, here’s what she saw from the jurors during the crucial day in court.
The killings happened less than three weeks after Clancy was discharged from a psychiatric hospital. She cut herself and then jumped from a second-floor window after strangling the children, but survived. She remains paralyzed from the waist down.
If you or someone you know is struggling or in emotional distress, call or text 988 to reach the Suicide and Crisis Lifeline or chat live at 988lifeline.org. You can also visit SpeakingOfSuicide.com/resources for additional support.