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Commonwealth v. ClancyInvestigation Archive • 2026
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Source: Plymouth Superior Court filing • Public record

Commonwealth of Massachusetts v. Lindsay M. Clancy — Grand Jury Indictment

On September 15, 2023, a Plymouth County grand jury returned a true bill of indictment against Lindsay M. Clancy, age 33, of Duxbury, Massachusetts, charging her with six counts related to the deaths of her three young children on January 24, 2023. Clancy was formally arraigned on October 26, 2023,

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Commonwealth of Massachusetts v. Lindsay M. Clancy — Grand Jury Indictment

Type: Criminal Indictment (Grand Jury)

Case: Commonwealth v. Lindsay M. Clancy

Court: Plymouth Superior Court, Brockton, Massachusetts

Grand Jury Date: September 15, 2023

Arraignment Date: October 26, 2023 (Plymouth County Superior Court)

Source: Plymouth District Attorney's Office; WBUR; Boston.com; Court TV

Overview

On September 15, 2023, a Plymouth County grand jury returned a true bill of indictment against Lindsay M. Clancy, age 33, of Duxbury, Massachusetts, charging her with six counts related to the deaths of her three young children on January 24, 2023. Clancy was formally arraigned on October 26, 2023, in Plymouth County Superior Court, where she entered pleas of not guilty to all charges.

Defendant

  • Name: Lindsay M. Clancy
  • Date of Birth: August 11, 1990
  • Age at Indictment: 33
  • Address: 47 Summer Street, Duxbury, Massachusetts
  • Occupation: Labor and delivery nurse (Massachusetts General Hospital, part-time)
  • Status: Held without bail; receiving treatment at a medical facility

    • Victims

    1. Cora Clancy — Age 5 (born December 4, 2017)

    2. Dawson Clancy — Age 3 (born September 30, 2019)

    3. Callan Clancy — Age 8 months (born May 26, 2022)

    Charges

    Count 1: Murder — Cora Clancy

    Count 2: Murder — Dawson Clancy

    Count 3: Murder — Callan Clancy

    Count 4: Strangulation or Suffocation — Cora Clancy

    Count 5: Strangulation or Suffocation — Dawson Clancy

    Count 6: Strangulation or Suffocation — Callan Clancy

    Total: Three (3) counts of Murder; Three (3) counts of Strangulation or Suffocation

    Each murder charge alleges that Clancy assaulted and beat each child with intent to murder and did kill them. The strangulation charges reflect the alleged method of killing — ligature strangulation, which prosecutors describe as prolonged and deliberate.

    Legal Framework

    Murder (First Degree)

    Under Massachusetts law, first-degree murder can be established through:

  • Deliberate premeditation and malice aforethought
  • Extreme atrocity or cruelty
  • Felony murder

    • Prosecutors charged Clancy under theories of deliberate premeditation and extreme atrocity or cruelty.

    Strangulation or Suffocation

    Under Massachusetts General Laws Chapter 265, Section 15D, strangulation or suffocation is a felony offense reflecting the method of killing.

    Factual Allegations (Per Prosecution)

    Background

    Lindsay Clancy was a labor and delivery nurse at Massachusetts General Hospital and a mother of three young children. Following the birth of her youngest child, Callan, on May 26, 2022, Clancy experienced a significant deterioration in her mental health. She sought psychiatric treatment and was prescribed multiple medications in the months preceding the killings.

    Timeline of Events — January 24, 2023

    Approximately 5:15 PM:

  • Lindsay Clancy asked her husband, Patrick Clancy, to pick up takeout food and a prescription medication.
  • Before he left, she checked Apple Maps to estimate how long he would be gone from the home.
  • Prosecutors allege this was a calculated window of opportunity.

    • 5:15 PM — 6:09 PM (54-Minute Window):

  • Patrick Clancy left the home.
  • During this time, prosecutors allege Lindsay Clancy strangled all three children with exercise/workout bands in the basement of the family home at 47 Summer Street.
  • Her fitness tracker recorded her climbing three flights of stairs in the home immediately after a phone call with her husband around 5:34 PM.
  • She answered her husband's phone call calmly during this period.

    • After the Killings:

  • Lindsay Clancy allegedly returned upstairs and inflicted superficial cuts to her wrists and neck.
  • She took an overdose of medication.
  • She exited through a second-story window.
  • Blood evidence suggested she lowered herself out rather than jumping, with blood on window sills indicating she slid down and tried to grab lower sills on the way down.

    • Approximately 6:11 PM:

  • Duxbury Police received a 911 call for a report of a suspected attempted suicide of a female resident who had jumped from a window.
  • Patrick Clancy had found his wife on the ground outside and called 911.
  • While on the phone with 911, Patrick entered the house to look for the children.
  • He made his way to the basement and discovered all three children; each was unconscious and in medical distress.
  • Officer Brian Josephine was among the first police officers to arrive. The basement "was divided into a left side and right side." Mr. Clancy came out of the far room and stated "she killed the kids."
  • Resuscitation efforts were made by emergency responders.
  • Clancy was still outside, injured, and semi-conscious.

    • Method of Killing

  • The children were killed by ligature strangulation using exercise/workout bands.
  • Strangulation requires:
  • Minimum of 10+ pounds of pressure
  • Sustained force even after unconsciousness
  • 10 seconds to 1 minute to render a person unconscious
  • Additional 4-5 minutes of continued pressure to cause death
  • Injuries suggested prolonged force, particularly in Dawson's case.

    • Cause of Death

    The State Office of the Chief Medical Examiner took jurisdiction of the deaths and determined:

  • Cora Clancy: Asphyxia
  • Dawson Clancy: Asphyxia
  • Callan Clancy: Complication of asphyxia

    • Additional Charges (District Court)

    At her initial remote arraignment on February 7, 2023, Clancy also faced charges of assault and battery with a dangerous weapon, in addition to murder and strangulation charges.

    Evidence Summary

    Digital Evidence

    1. Apple Maps Search: Clancy allegedly checked Apple Maps to estimate how long her husband would be gone, creating a calculated window of opportunity.

    2. Fitness Tracker Data: Her device recorded her climbing three flights of stairs immediately after a phone call with her husband around 5:34 PM, consistent with moving between floors of the home.

    3. Phone Records: Clancy answered her husband's call calmly during the crime window, discussed medication and errands normally, and had earlier ordered food from a restaurant with correct details.

    Physical Evidence

    1. Exercise/Workout Bands: Used as ligatures to strangle each child.

    2. Crime Scene: Children found in the basement of the family home.

    3. Blood Evidence: Found on window sills suggesting Clancy lowered herself from the window.

    4. Injuries to Defendant: Superficial cuts to wrists and neck; spinal cord injuries from the fall resulting in paralysis from the waist down.

    Journals and Writings

  • Clancy's journal entries were described as clear, organized, and detailed.
  • Included medication tracking and daily functioning notes.
  • No evidence in writings of delusions, hallucinations, or disordered thinking at the time of writing.
  • She wrote about postpartum anxiety, not psychosis.
  • She wrote about suicidal thoughts in December 2022 but later denied them.
  • A note stated she felt she "resented" her other children at times and struggled to feel connection with them.

    • Internet Searches

  • Just days before the killings, Clancy allegedly searched: "Can you treat a sociopath"
  • Another search: "Ways to kill"

    • Toxicology

  • Clancy's blood was tested around 8:18 PM on January 24, 2023.
  • Several medications found at therapeutic, low, or negligible levels.
  • One medication found at a toxic level.
  • Prosecution expert testified to grand jury that these medications do not cause psychosis.
  • Timing of highest medication levels (around 6:00 PM) suggests she took the overdose after the killings.

    • Medications Found

  • Amitriptyline (antidepressant)
  • Diazepam/Valium (two prescriptions)
  • Trazodone (antidepressant/sleep aid)
  • Additional medications previously prescribed: Zoloft, Ativan, Klonopin, Prozac, Seroquel

    • Witness Statements

  • Patrick Clancy stated his wife had been prescribed multiple medications including Zoloft, Valium, Trazodone, Ativan, Klonopin, Prozac, and Seroquel.
  • He reported she took as many as four medications a day, always as prescribed.
  • Friend Kyle Carney stated that at a dinner two days before the killings, Lindsay "seemed fairly normal, mostly quiet while on her phone."
  • Patrick had confided in friends about Lindsay's anxiety and "withdrawals" from Benzodiazepines.

    • Prosecution's Theory

    The prosecution argued that Lindsay Clancy:

    1. Planned the murders in advance

    2. Created a specific window of opportunity by sending her husband on an errand

    3. Checked Apple Maps to estimate how long he would be gone (54 minutes)

    4. Carried out methodical killings during that calculated window

    5. Remained calm and functional during the crime (answered phone, discussed errands normally)

    6. Attempted to stage self-harm afterward with superficial cuts

    7. Tok an overdose of medication after the killings, not before

    8. Showed no evidence of psychosis in her writings, communications, or behavior

    As ADA Jennifer Sprague stated at arraignment:

    "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. She did so with deliberate premeditation, extreme atrocity and cruelty."

    Defense Position

    Attorney Kevin J. Reddington argued that Clancy:

    1. Was suffering from severe postpartum depression and mental health decline

    2. Was prescribed multiple psychiatric medications that may have altered her mental state

    3. Was described as acting like a "zombie" by her husband

    4. Was a devoted mother with no motive to harm her children

    5. Had sought mental health treatment and was following medical advice

    6. Should not be held criminally responsible due to her mental state at the time

    Reddington stated Clancy "was having bad thoughts; she was having worsening depression" and "wasn't sleeping." He noted she was hospitalized and paralyzed from the waist down from spinal injuries sustained when she jumped from the window.

    Procedural History

    DateEvent
    January 24, 2023Deaths of Cora, Dawson, and Callan Clancy; Lindsay Clancy hospitalized
    February 7, 2023Remote arraignment; not guilty pleas entered; held without bail
    May 2023Committed to Tewksbury State Hospital for mental health care
    September 15, 2023Grand jury returns indictment on 3 counts murder, 3 counts strangulation
    October 26, 2023Formal arraignment in Plymouth County Superior Court; not guilty pleas
    July 2026Murder trial begins in Plymouth Superior Court
    August 27, 2026Closing arguments delivered
    August 28, 2026Jury deliberations begin

    Prosecution Team

  • Lead Prosecutor: ADA Jennifer Sprague
  • Co-Prosecutor: ADA Amanda Fowle
  • Investigating Agencies: Massachusetts State Police and Duxbury Police

    • Defense Team

  • Lead Attorney: Kevin J. Reddington

    • Key Legal Issues

    1. Criminal Responsibility (Insanity Defense): The defense does not dispute that Clancy killed her children. The central legal question is whether she was legally sane at the time of the killings.

    2. Postpartum Psychosis: Whether Clancy was suffering from postpartum psychosis that rendered her unable to appreciate the wrongfulness of her actions.

    3. Medication Effects: Whether the combination of psychiatric medications affected her mental state and impaired her judgment.

    4. Medical System Failures: Whether providers failed to properly diagnose and treat her condition.

    Significance

    This case became one of the most closely watched criminal cases in Massachusetts, raising profound questions about:

  • Postpartum mental health and psychosis
  • Criminal responsibility for actions during mental health crises
  • The intersection of psychiatric medication and criminal behavior
  • Medical provider responsibility in treating severe postpartum conditions
  • The adequacy of the mental health care system

    • The case drew national attention and comparisons to other cases involving mothers who killed their children during postpartum psychiatric episodes, including Andrea Yates (2001) and Dena Schlosser (2004).

    Note: This document compiles information from the Plymouth District Attorney's Office press release, court filings, and news reporting from WBUR, Boston.com, Court TV, and other sources. The full text of the indictment was contained in a scanned PDF image (CCITT-encoded) and could not be extracted verbatim; this summary represents the substantive content as reported by multiple news sources.