2026-08-27T12:37:00-0400 / 哥伦比亚广播公司新闻
在普利茅斯高等法院经过22天的庭审作证后，林赛·克兰西的谋杀案现已交由马萨诸塞州的陪审团审理。
36岁的克兰西对三项一级谋杀指控拒不认罪，受害者是她的三名子女：5岁的科拉、3岁的道森以及8个月大的卡兰。克兰西承认自己于2023年1月24日在位于达克瑟伯里的家中杀害了子女，随后割喉并从窗户跳下，导致颈部骨折，落下终身瘫痪的后果。
辩方声称她当时服药过量，且正遭受产后精神病发作，因此不应承担刑事责任。检方则指控她策划了这起谋杀，并伪造了自杀企图。
庭审大部分证词都围绕林赛·克兰西的精神状态以及她所接受的治疗展开。以下是本次审判的核心要点。
丈夫作证称自己“察觉到不对劲”
帕特里克·克兰西的谋杀案相关证词持续了两天。在第一天的作证中，他描述了前妻当时的心理健康困境，并表示尽管存在这些问题，林赛·克兰西在谋杀发生前几小时还度过了“她最美好的一天之一”。子女遇害时，帕特里克·克兰西与林赛·克兰西仍处于婚姻关系中，但两人后来已经离婚。
在作证的第二天，帕特里克·克兰西回忆称，他出门去取林赛·克兰西订购的外卖。取餐期间，林赛发信息让他去CVS药店取药。他表示，在跑腿过程中两人曾通电话。帕特里克·克兰西作证称，回到家后他发现“房子里异常安静”，当发现卧室门被反锁时，他“察觉到不对劲”。
帕特里克·克兰西2026年7月27日在马萨诸塞州普利茅斯的法庭上。格雷格·德尔/《爱国者 Ledger报》 via 美联社 pooled pool
帕特里克·克兰西表示，他看到“到处都是血，看起来像是喷溅出来的，几乎像是用水管喷的”，还有一扇敞开的窗户。他跑了出去，发现林赛·克兰西躺在地上，“手腕有很深的割伤”，脖子上有一道红色勒痕。帕特里克·克兰西说，林赛·克兰西称自己曾试图自杀。当他问起子女在哪里时，她回答说他们在地下室。帕特里克表示，她没有透露子女身处险境或已受到伤害。
他作证称，他一直守在妻子身边直到急救人员赶到。随后他跑向地下室，称自己找到了孩子们，并试图在急救人员到达前为他们实施心肺复苏。
急救人员描述“混乱不堪”的犯罪现场
抵达克兰西家的急救人员在庭审第三天作证时描述了他们的所见所闻。他们回忆了一个令人痛苦的混乱现场，一切始于房屋后院。
警官斯蒂芬·霍尔称，他听到一名男性的声音，确认是帕特里克·克兰西的声音，从后院传来呼救。在那里，霍尔发现林赛·克兰西的手腕和脖子都有割伤。
霍尔表示，听到“屋内传来一声尖叫”后，他和同事布莱恩·约瑟芬进入住宅，发现帕特里克·克兰西在地下室里，他已经找到了三名子女的遗体。
2026年7月31日，警察路障设在林赛·克兰西位于马萨诸塞州达克瑟伯里的 former 住宅外。美联社照片/罗德里克·恩戈维
帕特里克·克兰西看到警察后，“抬头尖叫‘她杀了那该死的孩子们’”，约瑟芬作证称。
达克瑟伯里消防队长兼医护人员PJ·赫西表示，他发出了“全员出动”的呼叫，调集达克瑟伯里的救援人员，随着更多资源抵达现场，情况“很快变得非常混乱”。
林赛·克兰西在日记、笔记中提及抑郁情绪
庭审第五天，林赛·克兰西日记的节选内容被当庭宣读。在检察官香南·巴金厄姆宣读的一段节选中，克兰西写道，她一直在为小儿子卡兰的睡眠作息发愁，“每天都感觉自己快要溺死了”。
在2022年11月18日的一篇日记中，林赛·克兰西写道：“我如此迫切地想要从照顾所有人的压力中获得片刻精神解脱，以至于我的大脑试图让我的身体出现某种器质性问题。”
在辩护律师凯文·雷丁顿宣读的另一篇日记中，林赛·克兰西描述了“严重的失眠和焦虑，由此引发抑郁”，以及“令人抓狂的脑雾”和“没有食欲”。她还表示自己对婚姻状况感到“极度愧疚”，称自己与孩子“完全失去了情感联结”，“每天只是机械地过日子”。
2026年8月13日，林赛·克兰西在马萨诸塞州普利茅斯的谋杀审判庭审现场。美联社照片/乔希·雷诺兹， pooled pool
“我不知道自己怎么了，”雷丁顿援引克兰西的话写道，“我想要帮助。我想要康复。”
在2022年10月25日手机笔记应用的一篇记录中，林赛·克兰西描述了自己难以与幼子建立情感联结的状态。
“我想要感受到与所有孩子之间的爱和联结。我可能也有些内心矛盾，因为我一生都想要很多孩子。我仍然不希望卡尔是我们的最后一个孩子，但在再生一个之前，我还有很多事情需要理清，”林赛·克兰西写道，负责对其手机进行法医分析的马萨诸塞州州警察局重案组指挥官蒂莫西·基亚皮尼如是转述。
在这篇记录中，林赛·克兰西提到自己对是否开始服用新药“犹豫不决”，并表示她希望“能够放松下来，照顾好我的孩子们”。
“卡尔是经过精心计划和期盼到来的。我想要能够给他应得的全部的爱，”林赛·克兰西补充道，基亚皮尼说道。
精神病医生称谋杀前一天未发现“任何精神病迹象”
庭审大部分焦点都集中在克兰西在谋杀发生前一段时间的行为表现。帕特里克·克兰西在作证时称，他的前妻“极度睡眠不足，且高度焦虑”。她的辩护律师描述了她曾多次坐在沙发上，把头埋在枕头里来回摇晃的状态。
案发时负责治疗林赛·克兰西的詹妮弗·塔夫茨医生在庭审第十天作证称，谋杀发生的前一天，林赛·克兰西“完全否认有任何自杀或杀人意念”。
精神病医生詹妮弗·塔夫茨在2026年8月10日普利茅斯高等法院的林赛·克兰西审判庭审现场作证。格雷格·德尔/《爱国者 Ledger报》 pooled pool
“没有任何精神病或躁狂的迹象。因此没有任何严重迹象表明她或其他人的安全处于危险之中，”她作证称。塔夫茨表示，她没有建议将林赛·克兰西收治入院。
当辩方律师询问塔夫茨是否曾增加药量，导致林赛·克兰西“情绪崩溃”时，塔夫茨予以否认，但她补充称，她的病历记录显示林赛·克兰西一直在受药物副作用的困扰。
帕特里克·克兰西对妻子的药物表示担忧
2022年曾为林赛·克兰西提供治疗的精神科护士丽贝卡·约洛塔在庭审第十一天作证称，帕特里克·克兰西曾表达对妻子服用精神类药物后的反应的担忧。约洛塔表示，帕特里克·克兰西曾陪同妻子参加一次诊疗，两人还通过电话沟通过两次。
“我认为他担心她的症状，而且他认为症状是在她开始服药后出现的，”约洛塔作证称。她补充称，应帕特里克·克兰西的担忧，她与克兰西夫妇“共同协商”，让林赛·克兰伊“停用了部分药物”。
丽贝卡·约洛塔2026年8月11日在普利茅斯高等法院的林赛·克兰西审判庭审现场作证。CBS波士顿
林赛·克兰西在整个庭审过程中情绪激动
林赛·克兰西在庭审期间多次情绪失控。当听到前夫拨打给警方的911通话录音时，她伏在辩护席上。在911音频播放完毕后，法庭宣布休庭，她被人用轮椅推离法庭，一路上大声哭泣。
医生、前保姆和其他证人的证词也让她潸然泪下。在庭审第八天，当尸检照片被展示时，她放声大哭。
雷丁顿声称，他听到检方人员在林赛·克兰西哭泣时通过公开麦克风说“让她闭嘴”，但地区检察官办公室表示，是一名不知名的法庭工作人员说“关掉它”，指的是尸检画面的投影屏幕。
辩护律师凯文·雷丁顿在听取直白证词时，其当事人林赛·克兰西在2026年8月12日的谋杀审判庭审现场哭泣。马克·斯托克韦尔/路透社 pooled pool
在庭审第十二天，当一名法医描述其子女身上的伤情时，林赛·克兰西可以听到她在说“我做不到”。陪审团曾两次被带离法庭。
同事回忆起关于产后心理健康的对话
玛格丽特·汉普曾与林赛·克兰西在麻省总医院共事至2022年，她表示，在一名孕妇患者计划伤害自己后，两人曾就产后心理健康问题进行过一次对话。汉普说，林赛·克兰西对该患者的案例感到震惊。汉普是在庭审第十四天由辩方传唤出庭作证的。
汉普表示，她问克兰西是否听说过安德里亚·耶茨的案件——这名得克萨斯州母亲在2001年溺死了自己的五个孩子，在重审中因患有产后精神病而被判无罪。汉普说，林赛·克兰西表示自己对该案并不知情。
“我们聊了聊心理健康、怀孕和产后的话题。我问她是否听说过安德里亚·耶茨的案子。她没有。我给她解释了一下，她哭了，然后说，‘一个母亲怎么会伤害自己的孩子？’”汉普说道。
家属曾对林赛·克兰西表示担忧
苏珊·克兰西表示，她的前儿媳是一位“了不起的母亲”，“深爱自己的孩子”，在受失眠和焦虑等症状困扰时“一直在乞求帮助”。身为护士的苏珊·克兰西表示，她曾联系过同事开办的一个帮助产后母亲的项目。
林赛·克兰西的母亲宝拉·马斯格罗夫表示，女儿曾发信息让她留下来过夜，并表达了对自己正在服用的药物的担忧。
林赛·克兰西的母亲宝拉·马斯格罗夫2026年8月17日在女儿的谋杀审判庭审现场作证。格雷格·德尔/《爱国者 Ledger报》 via 美联社 pooled pool
马斯格罗夫还回忆起与帕特里克和林赛·克兰西的一次对话，当时女儿表达了自己害怕伤害孩子们的想法。马斯格罗夫表示，她当时并没有在意这句话，因为自己当时就在场。短信记录显示，在谋杀发生前的几周里，马斯格罗夫一直在探望女儿。
林赛·克兰西的姐姐艾莉森·奥兹加描述了谋杀发生前的几次互动。2022年11月，林赛·克兰西“看起来状态不太好，精神不高”，奥兹加说道。一个月后的2022年12月，林赛·克兰西告诉奥兹加自己“处境非常艰难”。奥兹加问林赛·克兰西是否安全，她回答说是的。奥兹加还作证称，她在谋杀发生前两周见过林赛·克兰西，当时并没有担心孩子们的安全问题。
林赛·克兰西称听到过声音，心理学家作证
临床及法医心理学家保罗·蔡泽尔博士在谋杀发生后林赛·克兰西住院期间曾对其进行过会面，他在周二作证称，林赛告诉当时的丈夫自己“听到一个男性声音命令她”杀害自己的子女。
蔡泽尔表示，他不认为林赛·克兰西是在假装症状。
“她告诉帕特里克她非常爱他。她能够表达很多情绪，表达了对他的爱。她说她听到一个男性声音命令她，告诉她别无选择，只能杀死自己的孩子，然后自杀，”蔡泽尔说道。
心理学家保罗·蔡泽尔2026年8月18日在普利茅斯高等法院作证。约翰·特卢马基/《波士顿环球报》 via 美联社 pooled pool
帕特里克·克兰西也在证词中提及了这次对话。他说，林赛·克兰西“没有谈论我们的孩子们”，但描述了“她所经历的一切”。
“她说她听到一个男人的声音告诉她，如果现在不这么做，她就会失去机会，或者类似的话，”帕特里克·克兰西作证称。
精神病医生称林赛·克兰西事后详述了谋杀过程
检方在庭审第十八天传唤的首位反驳证人、法医精神病学家阿夫拉姆·马克博士表示，在谋杀发生后与林赛·克兰西交谈时，她也描述过听到过一名男性声音。
“那个声音大致是这么说的，‘你应该杀掉孩子们，这是你最后一次机会，这样你就可以自杀了，’”马克说道。
马克还表示，她详细描述了谋杀过程。
“她说，在那期间，她一直在大声说‘去见上帝吧’，”马克说道。
精神病专家就林赛·克兰西的精神状态存在分歧
马克表示，他认为林赛·克兰西在谋杀发生时能够分辨是非，并且“具备为这些行为承担刑事责任所需的能力”。
马克表示，尽管他认为林赛·克兰西曾经历重度抑郁发作和焦虑症状，但没有证据表明她处于双相情感障碍的躁狂状态。他还表示，他不认为她的用药方案导致她在谋杀发生时出现精神病症状。
菲利普·雷斯尼克医生2012年5月2日星期三在俄亥俄州查尔顿出庭作证。美联社照片/艾米·桑塞塔
但曾作为安德里亚·耶茨审判关键证人的法医精神病学家菲利普·雷斯尼克博士表示，他的评估让他相信，林赛·克兰西在谋杀发生时正处于精神病状态，并且她在谋杀前曾遭受严重抑郁、轻度躁狂和双相情感障碍的折磨。
“那天她显然是精神病发作了，”雷斯尼克说道，并补充称她当时正受到“命令性幻听”的影响。
“她不仅听到了命令，还感觉自己的身体被一股外部力量控制，仿佛处于梦境状态，无法控制自己的身体，”雷斯尼克说道。“这几乎就像她是一个木偶，有人在背后操纵她的线。”
林赛·克兰西的律师要求宣布审判无效
雷丁顿在周一要求宣布审判无效，此前一名证人开始谈论天主教。法医心理学家柯克·赫尔布伦博士表示，他在4月与林赛·克兰西交谈时，她表达了“她和她的孩子们将在天堂与上帝团聚”的信念。
“她是在天主教家庭长大的。据我对天主教教义的理解，这不一定会发生。但当我问她这个问题时，我说，‘自杀难道不是一种死罪吗？’”赫尔布伦说道，随后辩方提出反对，沙利文法官召集律师进行庭间磋商。陪审团被带离法庭进行短暂休庭。
休庭期间，雷丁顿要求宣布审判无效，指出这是庭审中第二次讨论宗教话题，他担心这类证词“太过火了”。
沙利文表示，他不会宣布审判无效，但斥责了检方。陪审团返回法庭后，沙利文告诉陪审员，关于宗教的言论“无关紧要、与本案无关，应不予理会”，并提前结束了当日的庭审。
2026年8月26日星期三，在普利茅斯高等法院的林赛·克兰西谋杀审判庭审现场，检察官詹妮弗·斯普拉格结束举证，辩护律师凯文·雷丁顿向反驳证人格雷戈里·萨索夫医生进行最后一轮提问。格雷格·德尔/《爱国者 Ledger报》 via 美联社 pooled pool
双方律师进行结案陈词
雷丁顿和检察官詹妮弗·斯普拉格于8月27日向陪审团进行了结案陈词，概述了各自的立场。结案陈词标志着为期22天的庭审落下帷幕。双方各有一小时的陈述时间。
雷丁顿首先发言，向陪审团陈述了52分钟。他辩称，检方操纵客观证据，将克兰西描绘成有罪之人，或以负面方式描述她的行为。他还声称，医疗从业者未能为克兰西提供帮助，她在谋杀发生时服药过量。
“我的天，她到底要怎么做？她一直在寻求帮助，却没有得到，”雷丁顿说道。至少有两名陪审员被拍到在他发言时哭泣，其他陪审员也面露动容。
斯普拉格在雷丁顿结束发言后立即开始了结案陈词。她说，没有人对克兰西在谋杀发生时患有精神疾病提出异议，但陪审团的职责是判定她在谋杀发生时是否能够分辨是非。
斯普拉格强调了林赛·克兰西在谋杀前的行为，包括查询让帕特里克·克兰西完成她要求的跑腿差事需要多长时间，以此作为她策划谋杀、能够理性行事的证据。随着斯普拉格描述谋杀过程，林赛·克兰西在现场哭泣。
斯普拉格的结案陈词持续了54分钟。结束后，沙利文法官向陪审团作出了最终指示。
Key moments from Lindsay Clancy trial: What to know as jury weighs case of mom who killed 3 kids
2026-08-27T12:37:00-0400 / CBS News
Lindsay Clancy’s murder case is now in the hands of a Massachusetts jury after 22 days of testimony in Plymouth Superior Court.
Clancy, 36, has pleaded not guilty to first-degree murder in the deaths of her three children, Cora, 5, Dawson, 3, and Callan, 8 months. Clancy admits to killing the children in their Duxbury home on Jan. 24, 2023. She then slit her throat and jumped from a window, breaking her neck. The fall left her paralyzed.
Her defense claims that she was overmedicated and suffering from postpartum psychosis, and so should not be held criminally responsible. Prosecutors allege that she planned the killings and faked her suicide attempt.
Most of the testimony has revolved around Lindsay Clancy’s mental state and the treatment she received. Here are the biggest takeaways from the trial.
Husband testifies he “knew something was wrong”
Patrick Clancy’s testimony about the murders spanned two days. During the first day, he described his then-wife’s mental health struggles and said that, despite those issues, Lindsay Clancy had had”one of her best days”in the hours before the killings. Patrick Clancy was married to Lindsay Clancy at the time of their children’s deaths but they have since divorced.
On the second day of his testimony, Patrick Clancy described leaving the house to pick up takeout food that Lindsay Clancy had ordered. While picking up the food, she texted him asking him to pick up medicine at CVS. The two spoke on the phone while he ran the errand, he said. Patrick Clancy testified that when he returned home, he noticed “the house was really quiet.” He “knew something was wrong” when he found his bedroom door locked, he said.
Patrick Clancy in court in Plymouth, Mass., on July 27, 2026. Greg Derr/The Patriot Ledger via AP, Pool
Patrick Clancy said he saw “blood everywhere” that “looked like it was sprayed, almost like with a hose” and an open window. He ran outside, he said, and found Lindsay Clancy on the ground with “deep cuts on her wrists” and a red line across her neck. Lindsay Clancy said she had tried to die by suicide, Patrick Clancy said. When he asked where their children were, she said they were in the basement. She did not indicate they were in danger or that they had been harmed, Patrick Clancy said.
He testified that he stayed with his wife until first responders arrived. Then, he ran to the basement, he said. He described finding his children and trying to give them CPR before first responders arrived.
First responders described “chaotic” crime scene
First responders who arrived at the Clancy home testified about what they witnessed on the third day of the trial. They recounted a distressing, chaotic scene that began in the backyard of the house.
Officer Stephen Hall said he heard a male voice, identified as Patrick Clancy’s, calling for help from the backyard. There, Hall found Lindsay Clancy with cuts to both wrists and her neck.
After hearing “a loud scream from inside,” Hall and fellow officer Brian Josephine entered the home and found Patrick Clancy in the basement, where he had discovered the bodies of his three children, Hall said.
A police barricade stands outside the former home of Lindsay Clancy in Duxbury, Mass., on July 31, 2026. AP Photo/Rodrique Ngowi
When Patrick Clancy saw the officers, he “looked up and screamed ‘She killed the f—–g kids,’” Josephine testified.
Duxbury fire captain and paramedic PJ Hussey said that he put out an “all call” for Duxbury personnel and that things “turned very chaotic very quickly” as more resources arrived on scene.
Lindsay Clancy described depression in diary, notes
On the fifth day of the trial, excerpts from Lindsay Clancy’s diary were read aloud. In an excerpt read by prosecutor Shannan Buckingham, Clancy wrote that she was struggling with her youngest child Callan’s sleep schedule and “felt like I’m drowning every day.”
In an entry dated Nov. 18, 2022, Lindsay Clancy wrote, “It’s like I’m so desperate to get a mental break from taking care of everyone that my mind is trying to make something physically wrong with me.”
In an entry read aloud by defense attorney Kevin Reddington, Lindsay Clancy described “horrible insomnia and anxiety which is causing depression,” as well as “crazy brain fog” and “no appetite.” She also described feeling “horribly guilty” about the state of her marriage, wrote that she felt “completely disconnected with” her baby, and “like I’m going through the motions every day.”
Lindsay Clancy during her murder trial on Aug. 13, 2026, in Plymouth, Mass. AP Photo/Josh Reynolds, Pool
“I don’t know what’s wrong with me,” Lindsay Clancy wrote, according to Reddington. “I want help. I want to be well.”
In an entry in her phone’s notes app on Oct. 25, 2022, Lindsay Clancy described struggling to connect with her youngest child.
“I want to feel love and connection with all my kids. I’m also probably having a bit of an internal conflict because my whole life I’ve wanted to have a lot of kids. I still don’t want Cal to be our last, but I have a lot of figuring out to do before I have another,” Lindsay Clancy wrote, according to Timothy Chiappini, a unit commander for the Massachusetts State Police critical investigations team who was asked to do a forensic analysis on the phone.
In the entry, Lindsay Clancy mentioned being “on the fence” about starting a new medication, and said she wanted “to be able to relax and take care of my kids.”
“Cal was so very planned and desired. I want to be able to give him all the love he deserves,” Lindsay Clancy added, according to Chiappini.
Psychiatrist saw “no signs of psychosis” day before killings
Much of the trial focused on Clancy’s behavior in the time leading up to the killings. During his testimony, Patrick Clancy said his ex-wife was “extremely sleep deprived and highly anxious.” Her defense attorneydescribed times where she would be on the couch, rocking back and forth with her head under a pillow.
Dr. Jennifer Tufts, who was treating Lindsay Clancy at the time of the killings, testified on the10th day of the trial that Lindsay Clancy was “completely denying any suicidal ideation or homicidal ideation” the day before the murders.
Psychiatrist Dr. Jennifer Tufts testifies in the Lindsay Clancy trial in Plymouth Superior Court on Aug. 10, 2026. Greg Derr/The Patriot Ledger/Pool
“There were no signs of psychosis or mania. So there were no serious signs that her safety or anyone else’s safety was at risk,” she testified. Tufts said she did not recommend a hospitalization for Lindsay Clancy.
When asked by the defense if a medication increase that Tufts had ordered had pushed Lindsay Clancy “over the edge,” Tufts disagreed, though she said that her notes indicated Lindsay Clancy was struggling with medication side effects.
Patrick Clancy was concerned about his wife’s medications
Psychiatric nurse practitioner Rebecca Jollotta, who treated Lindsay Clancy in 2022, said on the 11th day of the trial that Patrick Clancy expressed concern about his wife’s reaction to psychiatric medications. Jollotta said Patrick Clancy attended one of his wife’s appointments, and that they spoke on the phone twice.
“I believe he was concerned about her symptoms and he thought they started when she started being medicated,” Jollotta testified. She added that she “collaborated with” the Clancys to take Lindsay Clancy “off certain medications” in response to Patrick Clancy’s concerns.
Rebecca Jollotta testifies at Lindsay Clancy’s trial on Aug. 11, 2026 at Plymouth Superior Court. CBS Boston
Lindsay Clancy became emotional throughout trial
Lindsay Clancy had multiple emotional outbursts during the trial. When she heard the 911 call from her ex-husband to police, she was hunched over the defense table. After the 911 audio concluded, a recess was called and she was wheeled from the room sobbing loudly.
Testimony from doctors, herformer nanny and other witnesses also brought her to tears. She cried loudly asautopsy photos were shown on the eighth day of the trial.
Reddington claimed he heard prosecutors say “shut her up” on a hot mic as Lindsay Clancy cried, but the district attorney’s office said an unknown court employee had said “shut it off,” referring to the projected image of the autopsy screenings.
Defense attorney Kevin Reddington listens to graphic testimony as his client, Lindsay Clancy, sobs during her murder trial on Aug. 12, 2026. Mark Stockwell/Pool via Reuters
On the12th day of the trial, Lindsay Clancy could be heard saying “I can’t do it” as a medical examiner described the injuries on her children’s bodies. Jurors were sent out of the room twice.
Coworker recalled conversation about postpartum mental health
Margaret Hamp, who worked with Lindsay Clancy at Mass General Hospital until 2022, said the two had a conversation about postpartum mental health after a patient arrived at the hospital with plans to harm herself while pregnant. Lindsay Clancy was shocked by the patient’s case, Hamp said. Hamp was called by the defense on the 14th day of the trial.
Hamp said she asked Clancy if she was familiar with the case of Andrea Yates, a Texas mother who drowned her five children in 2001 and was found not guilty on a retrial because she was suffering from postpartum psychosis. Lindsay Clancy said she was unfamiliar with the case, Hamp said.
“We had a conversation about mental health and pregnancy and postpartum. I asked her if she had ever heard of the Andrea Yates case. She hadn’t. I explained that to her and she cried and she said, ‘How could a mother hurt her children?’” Hamp said.
Family members were worried about Lindsay Clancy
Susan Clancy said that her ex-daughter-in-law was a “wonderful mother” who “loved her children” and was “begging for help” as she struggled with symptoms including insomnia and anxiety. Susan Clancy, a nurse, said she reached out to colleagues who were running a program to help postpartum mothers.
Lindsay Clancy’s mother, Paula Musgrove, said that her daughter sent texts asking her to stay the night and expressing concern about the medications she was taking.
Lindsay Clancy’s mother, Paula Musgrove, testifies during her daughter’s murder trial on Aug. 17, 2026. Greg Derr/The Patriot Ledger via AP, Pool
Musgrove also recalled a conversation with Patrick and Lindsay Clancy where her daughter expressed a fear of hurting the children. Musgrove said she wasn’t concerned by the statement because she was present at the time. Texts showed Musgrove checking in on her daughter in the weeks before the killings.
Allison Ozga, Lindsay Clancy’s sister, described several interactions before the killings. In November 2022, Lindsay Clancy “did not look good, her energy wasn’t high,” Ozga said. A month later, in December 2022, Lindsay Clancy told Ozga she was in “a really tough spot.” Ozga said she asked Lindsay Clancy if she was safe, and she said yes. Ozga also testified that she saw Lindsay Clancy two weeks before the killings and had no concerns about the safety of the children.
Lindsay Clancy described hearing voice, psychologist testifies
Dr. Paul Zeizel, a clinical and forensic psychologist who met with Lindsay Clancy when she was hospitalized after the murders, testified on Tuesday that she told her then-husband she “heard a male voice ordering her” to kill her children.
Zeizel said he did not believe Lindsay Clancy was faking her symptoms.
“She told Patrick that she loved him very much. She was able to express a lot of emotion, but expressed love for him. She said she heard a male voice ordering her, telling her that she didn’t have any choice but she had to kill her children and then kill herself,” Zeizel said.
Psychologist Paul Zeizel testifies in Plymouth Superior Court on Aug. 18, 2026. John Tlumacki/Boston Globe via AP, Pool
Patrick Clancy also testified about the conversation. He said that Lindsay Clancy “didn’t talk about our kids” during the call, but described “what she went through.”
“She said she heard a man’s voice telling her if she didn’t do it now, she would lose her chance, or something like that,” Patrick Clancy testified.
Lindsay Clancy detailed killings afterward, psychiatrist says
Dr. Avram Mack, a forensic psychiatrist and the first rebuttal witness called by the prosecution on the 18th day of trial, said that when he spoke to Lindsay Clancy after the killings, she also described hearing a male voice.
“The voice said, to the effect of, ‘You should kill the kids, this is your last chance so that you can kill yourself,’” Mack said.
Mack also said she described the murders.
“She described that while that was happening, she was saying out loud, ‘Go to God,’” Mack said.
Psychiatrists dispute Lindsay Clancy’s state of mind
Mack said that he believed she knew the difference between right and wrong at the time of the killings, and that she had “retained the capcaity required for having criminal responsibility for these actions.”
Mack said that while he believed Lindsay Clancy suffered from a major depressive episode and anxiety, he saw no evidence that she was bipolar in a manic state. He also said he did not believe her medication regimen had led to her being psychotic at the time of the killings.
Dr. Phillip Resnick testifies in Chardon, Ohio, on Wednesday, May 2, 2012. AP Photo/Amy Sancetta
But Dr. Phillip Resnick, a forensic psychiatrist who was a key witness in the trial of Andrea Yates, said his assessment led him to believe she was psychotic at the time of the murders and that he believed she was suffering from severe depression, mild mania and bipolar disorder before the killings.
“She was clearly psychotic on that day,” Resnick said, adding that she was under the influence of a “command hallucination.”
“Not only did she hear a command, but she felt that her body was taken over by an external force where she was in a dream state and did not have control of her own body,” Resnick said. “It was almost like she was a puppet and someone else was pulling the strings.”
Lindsay Clancy’s attorney calls for a mistrial
Reddington called for a mistrial Monday after a witness began speaking about Catholicism. Forensic psychologist Dr. Kirk Heilbrun said when he spoke to Lindsay Clancy in April, she expressed a belief that “she and her children would be together in heaven with God.”
“She was raised as a Catholic. As I understand Catholic considerations, that’s not necessarily what happens. But when I asked her about that, when I said, ‘Isn’t suicide a mortal sin?’,” Heilbrun said, before the defense objected and Sullivan called a sidebar with attorneys. Jurors were sent out of the room during a brief recess.
During the recess, Reddington called for a mistrial, noting that this was the second time religion had been discussed in the trial and his concerns that such testimony “is just over the top.”
Sullivan said he would not declare a mistrial, but reprimanded the prosecution. When the jury returned, Sullivan told jurors that the remarks about religion were “immaterial, irrelevant and to be disregarded,” and ended court early for the day.
Prosecutor Jennifer Sprague rests her case as defense attorney Kevin Reddington gets in one last question to rebuttal witness Dr. Gregory Saathoff during the Lindsay Clancy murder trial at Plymouth Superior Court in Plymouth, Mass. on Wednesday, Aug. 26, 2026. Greg Derr/The Patriot Ledger via AP, Pool
Attorneys present closing arguments
Reddington and prosecutor Jennifer Sprague both outlined the case in their closing arguments to the jury on Aug. 27. The closing arguments came on the 22nd day of trial. Each side had one hour to present their case.
Reddington spoke first, addressing the jury for 52 minutes. He argued that prosecutors had manipulated objective evidence to make Clancy look guilty or paint her behavior in a negative light. He also claimed that medical practitioners failed Clancy and that she was overmedicated at the time of the killings.
“My God, what does she have to do? She was reaching out for help and she was not getting it,” Reddington said. At least two jurors were seen weeping, and others appeared emotional as he spoke.
Sprague began her closing argument immediately after Reddington ended his. She said that there is no dispute that Clancy was mentally ill at the time of the killings, but that the jury’s responsibility is to decide if she was capable from distinguishing right from wrong at the time of the murders.
Sprague highlighted Lindsay Clancy’s behavior before the murders, including looking up how long it would take Patrick Clancy to run the errands she had asked him to complete, as indicators that she had planned the killings and was capable of acting rationally. As Sprague described the killings, Lindsay Clancy could be seen crying.
Sprague’s closing arguments lasted 54 minutes. After she was finished, Sullivan gave final instructions to the jury.