CALGARY — A mistrial has been declared in the Lindsay Clancy trial after the jury in Massachusetts was unable to reach a verdict.Jurors informed Judge William Sullivan on Friday they were unable to reach a unanimous decision after spending more than 40 hours deliberating over the case.That note set off hours of court drama.Just before the jury was to be brought back in for the judge to declare a mistrial, the defence asked for an hour to file an emergency apeal to the appelate court to remove the single jury hold-out.That appeal was denied hours later.Sullivan then brought the jury back into the courtroom and declared a mistrial.Defence lawyers said the jury had voted 11-1 to find Clancy was insane at the time of the murder — with one male juror holding out for conviction.Clancy, 36, was charged with three counts of first-degree murder in connection with the deaths of her children, Cora, 5, Dawson, 3, and Callan, 8 months, at the family's Duxbury home in January 2023.The jury's inability to reach a verdict followed multiple notes to the judge during deliberations. Jurors had previously indicated that they were deadlocked, prompting Sullivan to issue a Tuey-Rodriguez instruction — commonly known as a “dynamite charge” — directing them to continue deliberating and make another effort to reach a unanimous decision.The prolonged deliberations came after a five-week trial that focused heavily on Clancy's mental state..The defence argued that Clancy was experiencing severe postpartum psychosis when the children died and therefore was not criminally responsible for her actions.Prosecutors argued that while Clancy suffered from significant mental-health problems, she nevertheless understood what she was doing and deliberately carried out the killings.More than 80 witnesses testified during the trial, including family members, investigators, medical professionals and psychiatric experts. Jurors also reviewed hundreds of exhibits.The case was further complicated during the trial by the arrest of a 56-year-old woman accused of filming jurors outside the courthouse..Dawn Light, a retired nurse from Sutton, Massachusetts, was charged with felony jury intimidation after authorities alleged she recorded members of the jury as they left Plymouth County Superior Court. Light pleaded not guilty and her lawyer described the incident as a misunderstanding.Judge Sullivan subsequently questioned jurors individually about whether they had been photographed or recorded and whether the incident had affected their ability to remain impartial.With the jury now deadlocked, the judge will determine the next step in the proceedings. A mistrial could allow prosecutors to seek a new trial against Clancy.
