Major case, massive conversation: Understanding the Lindsay Clancy trial

The State of Massachusetts v. Lindsay Clancy court case has dominated social media discourse since before it began on July 27.

The case itself revolves around the 2023 triple infanticide committed by Clancy while she was reportedly suffering from postpartum psychosis. It has inspired countless spin-off conversations about mental healthcare, where responsibility for the crime lies, and whether the matter even belongs in a courtroom.

Some believe Clancy to be cold-hearted and calculating while others say she is as much a victim as 5-year-old Cora, 3-year-old Dawson and 8-month-old Callan. She has pleaded “not guilty” to murder charges by reason of insanity.

The “insanity plea” is famously difficult to achieve, largely outmoded, and outlawed in four states. But Casey Jordan, Ph.D., criminologist, behavioral analyst and attorney, believes Clancy has a good chance of it being used.

An East Idaho News interview with Casey Jordan, Ph.D. YOUTUBE

Clancy was never officially diagnosed with postpartum psychosis, which affects one to two women per 1,000 according to recent studies. It is more likely to occur in people who already have bipolar disorder or schizophrenia.

Her then-husband Patrick Clancy, then-mother-in-law Susan Clancy, and mother Paula Musgrove reported witnessing her progression into mental illness.

Susan said Clancy “was begging for help” and “loved her children, all of them, very, very much.”

Her mother testified that the two exchanged near-daily texts for her to check on her daughter, who leaned on her for support. Clancy asked her mother to babysit the kids and sleep in the same bed as her when she was “afraid to be alone.”

**A crisis lifeline is available by calling 988.** AMERICAN PSYCHOLOGICAL ASSOCIATION

On the night of the killings, Clancy reported hearing voices urging her to “do it.” According to Patrick, she had never reported hearing voices before, but had expressed thoughts of harming herself and the children.

Witnesses say Clancy called the suicide crisis line several times, but said she did not have a weapon or a direct plan to act on the intrusive thoughts, so she was allegedly dismissed.

Testimonies from medical professionals have called attention to close coordination of care, as well as the importance of keeping accurate records.

Clancy was prescribed more than a dozen medications between September and January, but was only taking three at the time of the killings. She was briefly admitted to McLean Hospital and was participating in an outpatient program five days per week. Jordan called the medical management “lacking, conflicting” and “incomplete.”

@nursecsjourney
If you didn’t document it, it wasent done ! #lindsayclancy #nurse #rn #bedsidenurse #charting
♬ original sound – SPAM LIKE = BLOCK

@nurse.johnn
Oh baby every step I take, I ever move I make, every breath I take, every beach I hear I’ll be watching and documenting too. #nursejohnn #nurse #nursing #healthcareworker #comedy @OLIPOP
♬ Chopin Nocturne No. 2 Piano Mono – moshimo sound design

According to the National Library of Medicine, postpartum mood disorders affect up to 85% of people after giving birth. Many mothers have shared their own stories of postpartum depression, anxiety and other mood disorders. Some have said they “could have been Lindsay Clancy.”

About one in five U.S. adults report mental illness at some point in their lives, which means actual numbers are estimated to be higher. Marginalized groups such as Black and Latino people are more likely to underreport these illnesses and to stop treatment prematurely. This is another aspect being spotlit in the Clancy case given that the family was white, thin, attractive and affluent.

The case was initially expected to last four to six weeks, but is moving along speedily. The prosecution has rested its case and the defense is underway.

The court of public opinion is widely divided, not just toward Clancy, but toward her ex-husband. The response to him has ranged from sympathetic to critical, with some even blaming him for neglect or for committing the crime itself.

Patrick is not under investigation, and Clancy’s lawyers have said that “her actions led to the death of the children.”

Even so, the widespread, vocal support for Clancy shows a cultural shift in attitudes toward criminal mental illness.

Hannah Kichline, executive editor

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