The jury deciding the fate of Lindsay Clancy told the judge that it “will not be able to” reach a decision.
The declaration came after seven days of deliberations.
The judge hearing the case said he intends to declare a mistrial moments later. Initially, The Associated Press and CNN reported he had declared a mistrial.
“I don’t feel I have any choice but to declare a mistrial,” Judge William Sullivan said on Friday morning.
[ More from Boston25News.com ]
Judge William Sullivan gave the defense an hour to make an emergency appeal for a stay, CNN reported.
They had come back a handful of times over the past several days telling the judge that they were deadlocked, but he sent them back to deliberate further.
Clancy, a former labor and delivery nurse, was charged with killing her three children in 2023. She did not deny strangling her children, but her attorney said it was due to postpartum psychosis and losing touch with reality. She said she had sought help for her mental health, going as far as to be admitted into a psychiatric hospital, according to The Associated Press.
She pleaded not guilty by reason of lack of criminal responsibility.
Postpartum psychosis is what the Cleveland Clinic called a “mental health emergency” where a person’s “sense of reality, causing hallucinations, delusions, paranoia or other behavior changes” can be affected. People with the condition can harm themselves or their newborns, the institution said.
“The disorder is caused by a complex combination of biological, environmental, and cultural factors. The exact pathophysiological mechanisms of postpartum psychosis remain very poorly understood,” the National Institutes of Health said, adding that more research and increased knowledge for medical professionals is needed.
Prosecutors said she knew what she was doing and made the choice to kill her children before trying to commit suicide by cutting herself before jumping from a second-floor window, the AP reported.
Clancy’s three children — Cora, 5; Dawson, 3; and Callan, 8 months — were strangled with exercise bands in their Duxbury, Massachusetts basement. She then tried to kill herself while her husband was running errands,
Twelve jurors deliberating the case on Aug. 27 after testimony from more than 70 prosecution and 10 defense witnesses. Clancy did not testify.
Jurors had at one point requested that the judge allow them to see the knife found in her bedroom as well as two plastic bags of prescription medications, WFXT reported.
Note: If you or someone you know is thinking of harming themselves, the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline provides free support via the Lifeline by dialing 988. For more about risk factors and warning signs, visit the organization’s official website.