Lindsay Clancy’s ex mother-in-law sends heartbreaking signal to her in court
Warning: This article contains discussion of suicide and the death of children, which some readers may find distressing.
Lindsay Clancy's former mother-in-law sent a quick and touching signal towards her as she appeared to testify in the mum-of-three's ongoing trial.
The trial in Massachusetts has focused on Lindsay, who allegedly killed her children - Cora, five, Dawson, three, and eight-month-old Callan - at the family home in January 2023.
She is accused of murdering them before then attempting to take her own life by jumping from a first-storey window at the home.
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Her legal team do not dispute that Clancy killed the children, but are arguing that she is not criminally responsible as she was suffering from postpartum psychosis and severe mental illness at the time, as well as being overmedicated.
So far, the court has heard how Lindsay had reached out to her mother for help, admitted to having dark thoughts about their children to then-husband Patrick, and opinions from varying experts who saw the 'wonderful mother' prior to the alleged crimes. Nurses and medical professionals have also given evidence.
The court has also heard testimony about data taken from Clancy’s phone, including a conversation she had with her then-husband about picking up takeaway on the day of their children’s deaths.
But her former mother-in-law, Susan Clancy, mother to ex-partner Patrick, has also been called to the witness stand. She testified on Tuesday (18 August) that she had concerns about Lindsay's mental health and noted a 'decline' in her health in the November before the killings.
However a stream from the courtroom has shown Susan appearing to send her ex daughter-in-law a heartbreaking signal.
She was seen walking from the witness box before then turning her head toward the defense table, where Lindsay was seen sat in a wheelchair beside her attorney.
Susan is then seen to give her a subtle and reassuring nod as she leaves the courtroom.
Patrick Clancy’s mum Susan asked 'sick' question
The judge presiding over the case also had to step in after a 'cheap' question was asked during Susan's testimony.
Plymouth County Assistant District Attorney Jennifer Sprague cross-examined Susan and appeared to attempt to link Christian doctrine to Lindsay's crimes whilst in the courtroom, leading to an immediate interruption by the judge.
“Are you an active member in the Catholic Church?” Sprague can be heard asking in the court's footage. She then followed up with: “So you’re aware that murder is considered a mortal sin?”
Susan didn't answer the question, and Judge William Sullivan immediately called a sidebar and then struck the remark from the record, and online commenters have dubbed the question both 'sick' and 'trashy'.
Susan told jurors she had concerns about Lindsay's mental health during the holidays in 2022 and noted what she called a decline in her health come November.
"Lindsay was struggling. We were all very concerned," Susan explained.
"She was very nurturing, very loving. She was a wonderful mother. Wonderful."
"She reached out to me in November and told me that she felt unwell," she claimed. "She felt ... mostly she had insomnia.
"She was losing her appetite. She was very anxious and sad. She was begging for help."
Timeline of Lindsay Clancy case
May 2022
Lindsay gives birth to her third child, Callan.
She’s open about her postpartum struggles with her other two kids on social media. Six weeks after Callan’s birth, she posts that she’s feeling ‘dialed in’ while focusing on exercise, nutrition, and mindset, and ‘it has made all the difference’.
September 2022
As the end of her maternity leave nears, Lindsay, who works as a labour and delivery nurse at Massachusetts General Hospital, starts to experience anxiety about returning to work.
She visits two different psychiatrists and receives a diagnosis of generalized anxiety disorder.
Lindsay is prescribed several different psychiatric medications.
October 2022
According to court docs, she writes in a note on her phone: “I think I sort of resent my other children because they prevent me from treating Cal like my first baby. And I know that’s not fair to them. I know that. I was feeling so depressed last evening when Cora and Dawson came home from school, I know it runs off on them, so we had a pretty rough evening, I want to feel love and connection with all my kids.”
December 2022
Lindsay undergoes an evaluation at the Women and Infants Hospital Center for Women’s Behavioral Health. She is not diagnosed with postpartum depression, prosecutors say.
Lindsay’s husband Patrick tells police she is having suicidal thoughts and thoughts of harming their children, according to his testimony in court.
1-5 January, 2023
Lindsay admits herself to McLean Hospital for psychiatric treatment. She is discharged after five days as clinicians do not believe she poses an imminent danger to herself or others, prosecutors say.
22 January, 2023
Lindsay, Patrick, Cora and Dawson have dinner at family friend Kyle Carney’s home. Kyle later tells police that Lindsay ‘seemed fairly normal’.
23 January, 2023
According to prosecutors, Lindsay pens a note on her phone which says she has ‘a touch of postpartum anxiety’ about going back to work.
24 January, 2023
Prosecutors allege the following took place this day:
Morning: Lindsay takes Cora to a scheduled pediatrician appointment. After returning home, they play in the snow with Dawson. She sends photos of the kids to Patrick and her mom.
4:02pm: Lindsay searches for ‘kids Miralax’ (a laxative) on her phone, and 11 minutes later looks up ‘take out 3v’, referring to restaurant ThreeV in Plymouth. She uses Apple Maps to calculate how long it would take to drive from the family’s home to ThreeV.
4:47pm: Lindsay rings a CVS in Kingston to ask if they have any Miralax in stock. A manager tells her they don’t, but they do have similar medications.
The manager later tells authorities that she did not slur her words or sound impaired during the call.
4:35pm: Lindsay texts Patrick, who is working from home: “Any chance you want to do takeout from 3V … I didn’t cook anything … It’s been a long day.”
Patrick says yes, and Lindsay asks him to ‘check the menu when you can’.
5:10pm: Lindsay calls ThreeV to place the order.
5:15pm: Lindsay allegedly texts Patrick: “Pedialax liquid stool softener.” He then leaves to pick up the medication.
5:33pm: When Patrick arrives at CVS, he rings Lindsay, but she doesn’t pick up. She rings back one minute later and confirms the medication.
5:54pm: Patrick gets to ThreeV, pays for the food and leaves.
6:09pm: Patrick returns home. “The first thing he noticed was the silence,” prosecutors say. “He did not see or hear the defendant or the children.”
Patrick calls for his wife but gets no response. He discovers their second-floor bedroom is locked. Patrick eventually manages to get in the room but sees blood on the floor. He runs outside and finds Lindsay lying on the ground, according to prosecutors.
6:11pm: Prosecutors say that Patrick rings 911 and Lindsay is saying: “I tried to kill myself.”
He is then said to ask Lindsay: “Where are the kids?” She responds: “In the basement.”
While on the call, Patrick goes down to the basement and is heard ‘screaming in agony’,
Cora and Callan are discovered on the floor of the den. Dawson is found in his dad’s home office.
When officers arrive at the scene, Patrick alleges: “She killed the kids.”
Lindsay is taken to hospital, where she is treated for injuries that leave her paralysed below the waist. The three children are also rushed to hospital.
7:28pm: Cora and Dawson are pronounced dead. Callan is medically flown to another children’s hospital.
25 January, 2023
Police issue Lindsay an arrest warrant, charging her with two counts of murder, three counts of strangulation or suffocation, and three counts of assault and battery with a dangerous weapon.
27 January, 2023
Callan is pronounced dead at 11.18am.
According to Assistant District Attorney Jennifer Sprague, Lindsay later wakes up and uses a whiteboard to ask: “Do I need an attorney?”
6 February, 2023
While in the presence of a psychologist hired by her lawyer, Lindsay calls Patrick and tells him she had a ‘moment of psychosis’ and heard ‘a man’s voice telling her to kill the kids and kill herself’ after he left on January 24.
7 February, 2023
On the day of her arraignment, Lindsay’s attorney says that she’s still suicidal. She pleads not guilty to three counts of murder.
October 2024
Patrick asks the public to forgive Lindsay, telling The New Yorker: “I wasn’t married to a monster - I was married to someone who got sick.”
January 2026
Lindsay and Patrick file a civil lawsuit, accusing medical providers of not properly diagnosing, treating and monitoring her for a ‘severe postpartum psychiatric condition’.
9 July, 2026
The Plymouth County District Attorney's Office says the three counts of strangulation would be subsumed into the murder charges.
27 July, 2026
Lindsay’s murder trial begins.
James Holt