The Lindsay Clancy Case: A Family Tragedy on Trial | Case by Case | Forensic Files

She planned these murders, gave herself the time and privacy needed to commit the murders, and then she strangled each
child in the place where they should have felt the safest, at home with their mom.
>> This is not a situation, your honor, that was planned by any means. This is a
situation that clearly was a product of mental illness. >> That is the prosecution and the defense
at the 2023 arraignment of Lindsay Clancy. She's the former labor and delivery nurse who is accused of
murdering her three young children at their home in Dubberry, Massachusetts. That's a coastal suburb of Boston.
Lindsay attended the hearing remotely via video conference from her hospital bed where she was recovering from
injuries she sustained on the night of January 24th, 2023. I'm 48 hours correspondent Natalie
Morales and this is case by case. Now, neither the prosecution nor the defense here dispute what happened that night
that Lindseay Clancy killed her three children, 5-year-old Ka, three-year-old Dawson, and 8-month-old Ken. Now, the
question at the center of it all is why? Were Lindsay's actions premeditated? Or
was she overmedicated and suffering from postpartum mental health issues that led
to this tragedy? And joining me today is Christina Rex, reporter and anchor for Boston CBS station WBZ. She's been
reporting on this case since the very beginning, and she'll be covering Lindsay's trial, which is set to start
next week. Thank you for joining us, Christina. >> Thanks so much for having me. And and
when I say that you've been covering this case from the very beginning, I mean literally you were there. You
reported from the crime scene on the very night of the killings. Take me back to that moment.
>> Yeah, this case is so unique for me in my career because I followed it from its
inception. So I was covering the night shift at the time it happened. So I reported from outside of the Clancy home
in Dubbury that very night and I remember personally seeing police officers actually crying, which is
something that I had never seen at a crime scene before. It was also an unusual case because Ducksbury is a very
quiet, wealthy town where things like this don't usually happen. So, since then, I followed the case closely,
attending most of the pre-trial hearings in person. So, Christina, before we get
further into our discussion, can you give our audience who may not be familiar with this case an overview?
What happened on the night of January 24th, 2023? >> Of course. So prosecutors laid out a
timeline of that night at Lindsay Clancy's arraignment, which as a reminder, she attended remotely because
she was in a hospital bed due to her injuries from what had happened. So prosecutors said that Lindsay asked her
husband, Patrick, to leave their house to pick up medication and takeout food for dinner. Prosecutors alleged that she
researched online how long that trip would take. And when Patrick returned home less than an hour later, he went
upstairs, he found the couple's bedroom door locked. and he said that he was able to unlock it and inside the bedroom
he noticed blood on the floor and an open window. So Patrick then ran to the backyard where he found his wife Lindsay
lying on the ground and Lindsay had what appeared to be cuts on her neck and her
wrists, but she was still conscious. And at that point Patrick called 911. >> Now according to the prosecution on that
911 call, you can hear Patrick talking to his wife, right? >> Yeah. And just as a note, we've never
actually heard the 911 call, but it's been described in court motions, and we know that jurors are going to hear it as
part of evidence at trial. So, prosecutors have said that on the call, Patrick asked his wife what she had
done, and that she allegedly replied, "I tried to kill myself and jumped out the
window." Now, prosecutors said he can be heard on the 911 call asking, "Where are
the kids?" And he later told police that Lindsay replied to him in the basement.
So after EMS and first responders arrived and were tending to Lindsay, Patrick went to the basement and
prosecutors said he can be heard still on the 911 call screaming. They described it as in agony and in shock as
he discovered his children. So their 5-year-old daughter Kora, their three-year-old son, Dawson, they were
declared dead that night. And then their eight-month-old son Ken, he was medflighted to a Boston hospital, but he
died several days later. I mean, just a horrific and emotional 911 call and the jury is going to be hearing that for the
first time. Um, Lindsay Clancy, she was hospitalized. She was placed under police supervision following the
killings. Now, according to her defense attorney, as a result of that fall, she is permanently paralyzed from the waist
down. So, I think when we're reviewing all the facts, what we know of the facts in this case, you know, the first
question on everyone's mind is why would a mother kill her three children? And it's not just the first question on
everyone's mind, right? It's going to be the question of this trial. And we really can't answer it definitively, but
we know that Patrick Clansancy, he did file a wrongful death lawsuit in January of this year against some of Lindsay's
healthc care providers, and that may give us some insight into Lindsay's mental health struggles leading up to
these killings. So, I'm just want to tell you a little bit about that lawsuit. It it alleges, quote, "Prior to
the alleged murder, Lindsay sought medical treatment for her anxiety and increasingly poor and deteriorating
mental health condition." That lawsuit goes on to read, quote, ultimately defendants negligent treatment of
Lindsay, including their complete failure to recognize and address the radical erosion of her mental health,
resulted in tragedy, namely allegations that Lindsay took the lives of her children.
Oh, just such a horrific case. Again, I mean, I just cannot overstate that. As of now, um that civil lawsuit is still
ongoing. One of the defendants though has responded in a court filing denying allegations that they provided
substandard care. Yeah, we also reached out to the other defendants for statements related to this case and one
of them, a regional health care system, gave us a statement on behalf of themselves and their employee who's also
named in the lawsuit, noting that they can't comment on specific allegations due to the ongoing litigation here. And
we did not hear back from the fourth defendant at the time of this recording. So, according to both Patrick and the
prosecution, Lindsay actually called Patrick from the hospital about two weeks after the killings, and she gave a
little more insight into what happened that night. Yeah. According to both Patrick and the prosecution here, she
allegedly told him that she heard a voice and had a moment of psychosis. Now, according to the prosecution, she
said that she heard a man's voice telling her to kill her kids and herself [music] because, quote, "It was her last
chance." So, Lindsay was charged with the murders of her three children in February of
2023. Now, leading up to the trial, both the defense and the prosecution's medical experts have evaluated her
mental health. Lindsay's defense attorney has suggested that she was not only suffering from postpartum
depression, but also possibly postpartum psychosis. Now, I think most of us, Christina, have heard of postpartum
depression. It's a type of depression that it can occur after giving birth. You know, Ken is 8 months old at the
time. Now, this is fairly common. Apparently, it affects one in seven mothers. We don't hear often though
about postpartum psychosis. How does that differ from postpartum depression? >> Well, Natalie, it's very different. So,
postpartum psychosis is also a mental health condition that can occur soon after giving birth, but it's categorized
by the medical community as a mental health emergency that affects a person's sense of reality. It can cause
hallucinations, delusions, paranoia, or other behavioral changes. It's rare, estimated to affect about one or two in
a thousand new mothers. And only a very small percentage of those women go on to
die by suicide or commit infanticide. Now, it's also worth noting that it is both preventable and treatable. Medical
experts say that those suffering with postpartum psychosis require inpatient psychiatric care. That's where they can
be continuously monitored by professionals to ensure that they stay safe. >> So different than of course than
postpartum depression. And so we know that at this point Lindsay had been going to doctors. She had been getting
treatment, right? >> Yeah. She had been getting treatment and we know that she was on a variety of
medications in this case and as we mentioned those two different diagnoses really are so different and there should
be a lot of regular screenings for postpartum depression. I mean I can speak from my own personal experience. I
had a baby just about nine months ago now and every appointment including in the hospital at the pediatrician I was
always screened for any postpartum depression symptoms. I was very lucky that I didn't have symptoms but as a
part of my reporting in this case also a few years ago I did some interviews with
women who had experienced PPP that's postpartum psychosis. They were all part of this support organization for women
who had experienced that. And I distinctly remember at the time one woman telling me that when she used to
experience postpartum psychosis, she would have these hallucinations that she had actually stabbed her baby even
though that had never happened and her child was not harmed at all. And fortunately those women who I spoke to
as a part of that story got help and no longer experienced those symptoms. >> Yeah. Something that surprised me about
this case was the statement that Patrick made just days after the killings. Now,
as we said, Patrick was the one he discovered his children in the basement. Um, he was with 8-month-old Ken when he
was removed from life support, and he now, of course, is grieving the loss of his three children and that life that he
once knew. But just 4 days after the killings, he posted a statement on a GoFundMe page that had been set up for
medical bills and funeral expenses. And he actually asked people to please forgive his wife. I mean, forgive his
wife for the unthinkable. >> Yeah, it was a stunning and really interesting aspect of the case at the
time. So, Patrick's GoFundMe statement. It was mainly about his children. He said the shock and the pain was
relentless and that with the little sleep he got, he dreamed about them on repeat. But he also wrote about Lindsay
and he said she was a loving wife, a loving mother and nurse. He said she loved being a nurse, but he said, quote,
"Nothing matched her intense love for our kids and dedication to being a mother. It was all she ever wanted." And
he also asked others to join him in forgiving his wife. So, he said their marriage was wonderful and grew stronger
even as her condition rapidly worsened leading up to these killings. Now, Patrick was also asked about the status
of his marriage in an extensive interview that he did with the New Yorker back in 2024. Right.
>> Yeah. And at the time, he said he preferred not to comment out of deference to Lindsay. Although his
mother was quoted as saying he has to come to terms with the fact that she's no longer part of anything. Quote,
"She's going to go her way and he's going to go his." >> And I know some of our listeners are
going to be surprised by Patrick's ability to forgive Lindsay. I mean, so soon after the deaths of his children,
but as we've touched on, he had additional insight into her mental health struggles leading up to the
killings. And he really opened up about those struggles in that 2024 New Yorker article. Right.
>> Yeah. In addition to laying out Lindsay's treatment history and the civil lawsuit that he filed against
several medical professionals, Patrick also broke down Lindsay's history of mental issues leading up to the night of
the killings in that New Yorker interview that you mentioned. So according to Patrick, Lindsay began
seeking out psychiatric support in September 2022 after giving birth to their son Ken in May prior to that. So
she was diagnosed with generalized anxiety disorder and received a prescription for Zoloft from a local
psychiatrist as well as additional medication including Adavan after she suffered from insomnia as a side effect.
And just a reminder, in a recent court filing, the psychiatrist denied allegations that she provided
substandard care. So, what else did Patrick detail in that interview? >> So, Patrick claims that over the next
couple of months, Lindsay visited the emergency room, attended virtual teleaalth and in-person appointments
with a perinatal psychiatric nurse practitioner, and visited a facility that specializes in perinatal care. And
she was prescribed several more medications, including ambient and cerakquil. And various doctors said she
should be okay or found that she had no symptoms of postpartum depression, actually. So when I read the interview,
I was just struck when Patrick said that Lindsay actually told him she had had thoughts of wanting to die. She had also
had unwanted thoughts of harming the children. This was about a month before the killings. Now Patrick says she told
him she needed to be admitted to a hospital. And so she spent 5 days in an inpatient facility before being
discharged with a prescription apparently for an anti-depressant. Now, according to Patrick, this was her 13th
medication in a span of 4 months. I mean, she was being heavily medicated and treated at this point, right?
>> Yeah. And that's part of her defense strategy as well, Natalie. But according
to the prosecution, when she left the inpatient hospital, she denied having any more intrusive thoughts at that
point. By mid January, she seemed to be improving and was back under the supervision of that first psychiatrist
we talked about. And I also want to mention that Patrick was never told that Lindsay shouldn't be left alone
according to the defense. >> Now, Lindsay's treatment history is of course something that her defense lawyer
has really emphasized as well. You're going to be hearing this throughout the trial as it gets underway. But here's a
clip of her defense attorney, Kevin Readington, at her arraignment in February of 2023.
Now, our society fails miserably in treating women with postpartum depression or even postpartum
psychosis. It's medicate, medicate, medicate. Throw the pills at you and then see how it works. If it doesn't
work, increase the dose or decrease the dose. Then end up trying another combination of medications.
>> Yeah. And Lindsay's most recent pre-trial hearing was actually just this week. And Kevin Readington, her lawyer,
reiterated that same sentiment. So Lindsay's defense lawyer, Mr. Readington, he's a well-known defense
lawyer here in Massachusetts. He's a self-described kind of old school lawyer. He even has a license plate on
his car famously that has the initials NG for not guilty. I should also mention that at the arraignment, the prosecutors
made pretty much the opposite argument of what he did. They say Lindsay was of sound mind at the time of her children's
deaths. They pointed to evidence that she had looked up the restaurant for takeout on Apple Maps before sending
Patrick to pick up food, arguing that she had calculated how long he was going to be gone. And I hear that they also
argued Lindsay had not been diagnosed with postpartum depression, though they conceded that according to Patrick, she
had been initially diagnosed with generalized anxiety disorder. >> Yeah, that's right. They argued that she
had never used the word psychosis until after she had met with a doctor that was
hired by her defense team in this case. >> And I want to talk a little bit more about Lindsay Clancy's trial that is
getting underway this month. I mean, she has been charged again with three counts
of firstdegree murder. She's pleaded not guilty. Her defense lawyer has indicated
he's going to pursue an insanity defense. And what does the law say about when a defendant can be found not guilty
by reason of insanity? Well, in Massachusetts, somebody can be found not guilty by reason of insanity if due to
mental illness, they couldn't control their actions, even if they did understand what they were doing and they
knew it was wrong. So, basically, the law not only considers whether Lindsay knew what she was doing was wrong, but
if she was able to act on that understanding at the time of these killings. So, at Lindsay's arraignment,
the prosecution suggested that her actions earlier that day, including taking her daughter to a doctor's
appointment, show that she was thinking lucidly. But some experts have noted that evidence that Lindsay was acting
rationally earlier in the day. And even evidence that she planned the killings possibly is not enough to rule out
temporary insanity. >> So, what would happen in Lindsay's case if a jury were to find her not guilty by
reason of insanity? So, according to legal analysts, it wouldn't be the same as being acquitted. Lindsay is currently
in a secure mental health facility here in Massachusetts. So, it's likely she would stay there and be evaluated
periodically to determine whether it would be safe for her to be released. But, it is possible that she would stay
in that facility for a very long time. There have been several famous cases in the US of mothers killing their
children. Can any of these other cases be seen as perhaps benchmarks in this case?
>> You are right that there have been so many high-profile cases of women killing
their children that could offer some insight, but most of them occurred outside of Massachusetts, so they don't
necessarily provide a legal benchmark for this case. The case that comes to mind for me is the 2001 case of Andrea
Yates. She drowned her five children in a bathtub at the family home in Texas. And she said at the time that Satan
ordered her to kill her children to save them from eternal damnation. She'd been
hospitalized with postpartum depression shortly before those killings. Now, initially a jury did convict her of
capital murder, but they rejected the death sentence in that case. But that verdict was later overturned and a
second jury found Yates not guilty by reason of insanity. So today, Yates remains at a mental health facility and
she's repeatedly declined to seek release, meaning she chooses to remain under that psychiatric care.
>> And you know, I think also back to the Susan Smith case. I mean, she killed her
two young sons in 1994 by rolling her car into a South Carolina lake while they were strapped in their car seats.
And she initially claimed that a carjacker drove away with her sons, but when the truth came out, she was
convicted of their murders. That's right. She was convicted of murder and the jury sentenced her to life in
prison, but again, not the death penalty in that case, >> you know. And it's interesting that in
both these cases, the women were spared the death penalty. I'm wondering if there is a social or a cultural element
at play with how the juries looked at these kinds of cases. >> Yeah. Interestingly, Philip Resnik, so
he's a national expert on philicide. He was retained by Lindseay Clancy's legal team. He evaluated her mental health.
And in that New Yorker article we talked about, he suggested that women who are accused of killing their children may
actually benefit from society's assumptions about a mother's unconditional love. So Resnick argued
that many people believe a mother must be insane to kill her child because no sane mother would ever do that.
>> Yeah. Yeah. And then on on the other hand, I mean, the social expectations of
mothers, does it make it harder for women who are struggling with we're talking seriously struggling with mental
health conditions to ask for help before they reach a point a point of crisis. >> Yeah. I mean, absolutely. Researchers
actually say social norms and expectations around motherhood that can leave women suffering with mental health
conditions feeling isolated or guilty. and the stigma around mental illness can make it harder for them to ask for help.
Speaking from my own experience, having again just had a baby nine months ago, I
was asked regularly about my own mental health, even at my daughter's appointments by the pediatrician, and I
was always pointed to resources if I was feeling depressed in any kind of way. So, it did feel like there was an effort
from doctors and nurses to kind of reduce the stigma around asking for help if needed. But in Lindsay's case, she
apparently actually turned to strangers online for support in the months leading
up to the killings. So, for example, she was in a Facebook group called I am not
alone, postpartum depression/ anxiety and rage, but she didn't really share the extent of her struggles with the
other mothers in the town of Dubury. I can't imagine also you being a new mother reporting on this case as
extensively as you did. I mean, it must be, you know, just it must hit so much harder in some ways, too. I mean,
there's so many hormones and emotions that you're dealing with and then, you know, covering a case like this. Wow.
>> Absolutely. It's uh, you know, I'll be honest that I'm a bit anxious about seeing the evidence at trial.
>> Yeah. Going back to the to the case here, though, in a June 2026 pre-trial hearing, prosecutors revealed that
Patrick Clancy will testify at his wife's trial. Do you have any insights into what information he might share?
>> Well, it's possible that Patrick will be asked about his conversations with Lindsay, you know, both before and after
the killings. We know from that interview he did in the New Yorker that he says he and Lindsay spoke over the
phone a few times following the deaths of their children. And he asked her in one of those calls if she had planned to
kill their children and if if that's why she had actually sent him out to get the
takeout food and medicine that night. And according to Patrick, she said no, it was just like a snap of the fingers.
And Patrick also said he asked Lindsay why she looked up how long it would take him to get to the restaurant. And
Lindsay told him she'd been concerned about him getting stuck in rush hour traffic. Now Lindsay's trial is set to
start next week. The prosecution has listed 168 names. That includes law enforcement, medical professionals,
family members, also of course including Patrick. Now, Patrick is also on the defense's witness list with so many
witnesses. I mean, do we know how long this trial could last? >> So, there have been estimates at the
pre-trial hearing earlier this week, lawyers estimated 6 to 8 weeks for this trial. And just remember, just because a
witness is listed, it doesn't mean either the Commonwealth or the defense will actually call them to the stand.
They have to send in a list of any potential witnesses. We do know in the case of Patrick, he could be called by
the Commonwealth, for example, by prosecutors and then just cross-examined by the defense. It doesn't mean the
defense will then also call him as a witness. >> And what do we know about the possibility of whether or not Lindsay
Clancy will testify in her own defense? >> She's not on the defense's witness list,
but Lindsay has attended her recent pre-trial hearings in person, so she does plan to attend the entire trial in
person as well. Now, she's paralyzed from the waist down and she's wheelchair bound now because of what happened that
night back in 2023. She gets full-time care at a Massachusetts hospital for people with mental and physical
illnesses. In the pre-trial hearing earlier this week, Lindsay's lawyer said she does intend to be present for the
full trial, but it is unusual for a criminal defendant to take the stand. So, I would be shocked if she testifies.
>> Yeah. Now, is there anything else we should be looking out for at trial? >> I think that really Patrick's testimony
is going to be what uh people are looking to see. He's he's the closest thing to a firstirhand witness of what
happened that night, with the exception of Lindsay, of course. And the judge also did rule in this case that he's
going to allow Patrick's 911 call to be played for the jury after he provides what's called a limiting instruction. So
that instruction typically directs jurors to consider that recording only for its evidentiary value and not to be
swayed by the emotional impact it might cause. And one other thing is just in the final pre-trial hearing this week,
the judge denied a motion from the defense, uh Kevin Readington, the defense attorney, actually wanted to
introduce testimony from over a dozen witnesses who have personally experienced postpartum psychosis and
postpartum depression, but had no direct connection to this case. Prosecutors challenged that motion, and the judge
ruled that just expert testimony on that issue would suffice here. So for the jury, it really all will come down to
what they believe was Lindsay Clancy's state of mind at the time that she killed her three children. So I imagine
there's going to be a lot of medical evaluation, a lot of talk about the differences between postpartum
depression, postpartum psychosis, and that's what the jury is going to have to decide here. Right, Christina?
>> Exactly. and really whether they believe that Lindsay understood that what she
was doing was wrong or if she had the ability to act on that understanding. And I think, you know, jury selection is
always so important in criminal trials and murder trials. But in this case, with just how emotional the evidence is
going to be and the fact that it involves the deaths of children, I think jury selection could take a long time
for that reason >> there. Yeah, I I imagine it would. Um Christina Rex, so nice to have you with
us. This is just a horrific, tragic case. I can't imagine um, you know, being a new mother yourself having to,
[music] you know, report on this case, but we really appreciate what you're doing and and thanks for sharing your
thoughts with us today. >> Of course. Thank you so much for having me. Now, we do want to use this
opportunity to say that if you or someone you know may be experiencing a mental health crisis, contact the 988
[music] suicide and crisis lifeline by simply dialing or texting 988. [music] If you are pregnant or have just had a
baby, you can dial or text the National Maternal Mental Health Hotline at [music]
1833 TLC MAMA. And we will be back next week with another episode of Casey by Case. Be sure to rate and review and let
us know which cases you are following and which cases you would like us to follow. [music]

As the trial of Lindsay Clancy is set to begin, Natalie Morales is joined by WBZ-TV Boston reporter and anchor Kristina Rex to examine the case that has drawn national attention and intense public scrutiny. They break down the events leading up to Clancy killing her three young children, the competing arguments expected at trial, and the role mental illness may play in the case.

Crime. Social justice. Impact. "48 Hours" investigates the most intriguing crime and justice cases that touch on all areas of the human experience including greed and passion. "48 Hours," which premiered in 1988, has developed a rich history of original reporting and impact journalism that has helped exonerate wrongly convicted people, caused cold cases to be reopened and solved, and along the way changed lives.

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Brief Summary

Lindsay Clancy faces trial for murdering her three children amid claims of mental illness and premeditation.

Key points

The Tragic Case of Lindsay Clancy. Lindsay Clancy is accused of murdering her three children in a shocking case that raises questions about mental health.
Postpartum Psychosis Explained. Experts discuss the differences between postpartum depression and postpartum psychosis, a rare but serious condition.
Patrick Clancy's Forgiveness. Just days after the tragedy, Patrick Clancy publicly forgave his wife, Lindsay, for the unthinkable.
Motherhood and Mental Health. Experts discuss how societal expectations can isolate mothers struggling with mental health.
Patrick Clancy's Testimony. Patrick Clancy is expected to testify at his wife's trial, revealing key conversations.
Trial Duration Estimates. Lawyers estimate the trial could last 6 to 8 weeks, with many witnesses involved.

Episode highlights

Episode quotes

Why would a mother kill her three children?

The central question of Lindsay Clancy's case.

5:02WatchJul 28, 2026

Tension

75/ 100High tension

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