Jury deliberations began Thursday in the trial of Lindsay Clancy, a Massachusetts woman charged with the murder of her three young children in January 2023. Clancy, 36, has admitted to killing her children by strangulation using exercise bands in the basement of her home in Duxbury, a suburb of Boston. Following the killings, she attempted suicide by cutting herself and jumping from a second-story window, injuries that left her paralyzed.

During closing arguments at Plymouth County Superior Court on August 27, Clancy’s defense attorney, Kevin Reddington, argued that she was suffering from postpartum psychosis at the time of the killings and should be found not guilty by reason of insanity. He maintained that Clancy’s mental state had deteriorated over months as she struggled with postpartum mental health issues and suicidal thoughts after the birth of her third child.

“She was in the throes of a disease and defect,” Reddington said, urging jurors to consider evidence of her efforts to seek treatment and the impact of medication and medical care on her condition. He characterized her actions as the result of her illness rather than a conscious choice.

Assistant District Attorney Jennifer Sprague acknowledged Clancy’s mental health challenges but contended that the key question for the jury was whether Clancy understood that killing her children was wrong on January 24, 2023, and deliberately went ahead with the act. Sprague described the defense’s focus on mental health as a distraction from the facts of the case.

Sprague pointed to evidence that Clancy had sent her husband, Patrick Clancy, out to run errands—picking up food and visiting a pharmacy—after calculating how long it would take him to return. Patrick Clancy testified that during a brief phone call while at the pharmacy, Lindsay made no mention of any voices or mental disturbances. Upon his return, he found her in the backyard with self-inflicted wounds, and after calling 911, discovered the three children deceased in the basement.

The prosecution challenged the defense’s claim that Clancy was hearing a voice compelling her to act, suggesting she fabricated this assertion after her hospitalization. Sprague argued that the methodical nature of the killings—bringing each child to the basement individually—and the timing of the errands indicated that Clancy’s actions were premeditated and deliberate.

Clancy faces three counts of first-degree murder, carrying a potential life sentence without parole if convicted. Alternatively, jurors may consider lesser charges including second-degree murder or manslaughter. If found not guilty by reason of insanity or lack of criminal responsibility, Clancy would be committed to a state psychiatric hospital for evaluation.

The five-week trial has drawn comparisons to the 2001 case of Andrea Yates, a Texas mother who drowned her five children and was later found not guilty by reason of insanity on the grounds of postpartum psychosis.

Judge William Sullivan instructed the jury Wednesday to carefully weigh the evidence, acknowledging the difficult nature of the decision facing the 12 jurors tasked with determining Clancy’s fate.