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Lindsay Clancy returns to court after mistrial
Lindsay Clancy appeared in Plymouth Superior Court on November 2, 2026, as her lawyers petitioned a judge to drop her murder charges, claiming a second trial would violate double jeopardy protections following September’s deadlocked mistrial. LiveNOW from FOX's Josh Breslow breaks down the latest details with Nana Knight, a criminal defense attorney.
A Massachusetts judge on Monday denied Lindsay Clancy’s bid to have murder charges against her dismissed and has potentially cleared the way for the mother accused of killing her three children to be retried.
What they're saying:
"Because the court concludes that there was manifest necessity for a mistrial based on the jury's deadlock, a retrial on the murder indictments does not violate Clancy's right not to be placed in double jeopardy," Judge William Sullivan wrote.
FILE - Lindsay Clancy attends a status hearing for her case at the Plymouth County Superior Court in Plymouth, Massachusetts on Sept. 29, 2026. (Photo by Greg Derr / POOL / AFP via Getty Images)
Lindsay Clancy’s 1st trial declared mistrial
Dig deeper:
On Sept. 4, the judge declared a mistrial in the murder case against Clancy after the jury reported one juror prevented a unanimous verdict.
What's next:
The judge scheduled a Nov. 16 hearing to discuss when the second trial will take place.
A retrial for March was the latest suggestion made by the judge, according to Reuters.
The high-profile case of Lindsay Clancy
The backstory:
Clancy was 34 when she was charged with the 2023 deaths of daughter Cora, 5, and sons Dawson, 3, and Callan, 8 months. Prosecutors said Clancy strangled the children inside the family’s Duxbury home before attempting suicide by jumping from a second-story window.
Clancy, a former labor and delivery nurse, doesn’t deny strangling her children in the basement of their home and her attorney argued that postpartum psychosis led to her actions.
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The five-week trial had over 80 witnesses, including Clancy’s ex-husband, multiple psychologists and psychiatrist, and many additional friends and relatives testifying in her defense.
The Source: Information for this article was taken from The Associated Press and reporting by Reuters and Boston 25 News. Previous reporting by LiveNOW from FOX also contributed. This story was reported from San Jose.