[Warning: Potentially Triggering Content]
The trial for Lindsay Clancy, the mom who allegedly murdered her three children, has begun. And the details coming out are heartbreaking.
As we previously reported, the 36-year-old labor and delivery nurse at Massachusetts General Hospital took off for a week to spend time with her now ex-husband Patrick Clancy and their kids — 5-year-old daughter Cora, 3-year-old son Dawson, and 8-month-old son Callan — in January 2023. Patrick left the kids alone with Lindsay at their house on January 24 to run an errand. And when he returned home 20 minutes later, he discovered a horrific scene.
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Patrick found a broken window in his upstairs bedroom along with blood on the frame, and later his injured then-wife on the front lawn following a suicide attempt. Then, the unthinkable. He saw Cora, Dawson, and Callan with exercise bands wrapped around their “little necks.” Sadly, Cora and Dawson died the same day. Callan passed away three days later.
Lindsay survived but had been paralyzed from the waist down following her attempt, ultimately leaving her in a wheelchair. She has been charged with three counts of murder. And while she has admitted to killing her kids, her legal team argues she is not criminally responsible for their deaths because she had postpartum psychosis at the time.
She allegedly struggled heavily with postpartum depression and psychosis, and despite never having a formal diagnosis, she was taking medication. Lindsay allegedly told her psychologist she heard a “male voice” telling her to carry out the killings. And according to People, both Lindsay and Patrick even sued her medical providers for allegedly failing to diagnose and treat her severe postpartum psychiatric condition. However, prosecutors argue she intentionally and carefully planned the three murders.
Three years after the kids’ murders, Lindsay is on trial. Day one began on Monday with graphic photos and a devastating account of their final moments. Brace yourselves for this…
Patrick Takes The Stand
According to The US Sun, Patrick took to the stand as the first witness in the murder trial. He opened up about their lives after welcoming Callan in May 2022, saying that Lindsay faced “a lot of stress” with three kids. She also allegedly had been experiencing anxiety about going back to work and being away from their baby months later in October 2022, which is why a month before her return, she decided to get help.
Patrick testified that in September 2022, Lindsay told him she was going to take Zoloft and see a psychiatrist because she believed “it’s going to help with my anxiety and going back to work.” However, he later found out she already had the prescription when she told him about it.
While on the medication, Patrick claimed Lindsay “wasn’t really improving.” In fact, he thought she was “getting worse and worse” from mid-October to the end of December 2022. He alleged Lindsay struggled with sleeping and asked him to sleep in the basement at one point, which he agreed to do for two nights before she slept there for a few weeks.
By December 2022, Patrick said Lindsay told him she was having “intrusive thoughts” about “hurting the kids or them having some sort of ailment.” The dad claimed Lindsay described the troubling thoughts as “something might happen to the kids.” According to Patrick, Lindsay would become extremely concerned when the kids weren’t feeling well, such as the time when Cora had a stomach ache, and the mom thought she had a liver problem “or something much more dramatic.”
Despite her thoughts, Lindsay allegedly said she didn’t plan on hurting the kids and didn’t need to worry about their safety. Patrick confirmed he never saw his then-wife harm their children before the murders. And he called the situation “very confusing” at the time because Lindsay would say she thought about hurting the kids but then “a minute later she was making them lunch or playing with them.”
That same month, Patrick alleged Lindsay told her dad she wanted to commit suicide. She was taken to Massachusetts General Hospital, where a doctor recommended she seek inpatient treatment at McLean Hospital in Belmont. She was also told to go to a day program in Providence. But by New Year’s Eve, Lindsay was in the emergency room again for her suicidal thoughts. Patrick recalled:
“I was exhausted. I said I think it’s time to go to McLean. We didn’t have a diagnosis so we just didn’t know what was wrong. For me, I was just hoping McLean could evaluate her and find out what was wrong.”
Things improved, though. Or at least so he thought. Patrick said “her mood seemed better,” “she was more active,” and “she was able to partake in more things.” He said he even went skiing with Cora on January 16, 2023, and left his two younger kids with Lindsay alone because he had no concerns about their safety.
He also shared that January 24, 2023, had been one of her “best days” in months, saying she never mentioned having thoughts of harming the kids or feeling suicidal. Overall, Patrick felt she was happy and in a good mood, enjoying a day with the kids outside in the snow. And what started as the best day for the family turned into a horrific nightmare.
Patrick claimed he had been working in the basement when he got a text from Lindsay before 5:00 p.m. that day. She allegedly suggested they get takeout from a local restaurant called ThreeV for dinner since she didn’t have a chance to cook anything. He said they continued to exchange a few more texts about what they wanted to eat and Callan’s nap before she placed the order.
Patrick said he eventually went upstairs to get ready to grab the food, and he took a few moments to see his kids. Little did he know that would be the last he’d see them alive. He testified:
“I took Callan for a minute, and I rocked him by my knees, kissed Cora on the head and said, ‘Be right back.’”
Heartbreaking. He recalled that Dawson had been on the couch eating chicken nuggets. Meanwhile, Patrick said Lindsay seemed “normal” as she stood in the doorway of their living room, near the basement.
And we all know what happened after Patrick left. Just awful…
Graphic Photos
Elsewhere in the trial, jurors saw graphic photos taken of Lindsay in the hospital bed following her suicide attempt. Her lawyer, Kevin Reddington, said while showing the images:
“There was no plan to fake her sickness. This is a young woman that, with her husband, tried very hard to get the help she needed.”
The judge ended up adjourning the court until Wednesday. It’ll pick back up at 9:00 a.m. that day. What are your reactions to the emotional testimony from day one of the trial, Perezcious readers? Let us know in the comments (below).
To learn more about postpartum depression, CLICK HERE or HERE.
For resources on mental health, visit https://www.nimh.nih.gov/health/find-help.
If you or someone you know is contemplating suicide, help is available. Consider contacting the 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline at 988, by calling, texting, or chatting, or go to 988lifeline.org.
If you have sincere cause to suspect child abuse, call the Childhelp National Child Abuse Hotline at 1-800-4-A-Child or 1-800-422-4453, or go to www.childhelp.org.
[Image via GoFundMe, Law&Crime/YouTube]
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