Massachusetts, USA, September 6, 2026 — A Massachusetts judge has declared a mistrial in the murder case against Lindsay Clancy after jurors failed to reach a unanimous verdict on whether she was criminally responsible for the deaths of her three young children.
The mistrial was declared on Friday after the jury remained deadlocked following seven days of deliberations in a trial that lasted nearly six weeks.
Clancy, 36, was charged with murdering her children — five-year-old Cora, three-year-old Dawson and eight-month-old Callan — at the family's home in Duxbury in January 2023. She did not dispute killing the children but pleaded not guilty by reason of lack of criminal responsibility, with her defence arguing that she was suffering from postpartum psychosis at the time.
Prosecutors, however, argued that Clancy understood her actions and deliberately killed her children. The trial featured conflicting testimony from mental health experts over whether she was experiencing a psychotic episode when the killings occurred.
The jury repeatedly informed the court that it could not reach a unanimous decision. The defence also raised concerns about the conduct of one juror, arguing that the juror had not properly applied the legal standard concerning reasonable doubt. An emergency appeal seeking to prevent the mistrial was ultimately unsuccessful.
A mistrial does not amount to either a conviction or an acquittal, and the murder charges against Clancy remain pending. Prosecutors have not yet announced whether they will seek a retrial. A further court hearing has been scheduled for September 29.
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