Inside Lindsay Clancy's Home

Summary

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48 Hours: Inside Lindsay Clancy's Home

Host: Erin Moriarty
Guest: Christina Rex (WBZ-TV, Boston)
Release Date: August 7, 2026
Episode Theme:
An in-depth exploration of the emotional, legal, and factual complexities in the Lindsay Clancy trial, with a focus on her mental health, the evidence presented, key moments in the courtroom, and broader societal reflections on maternal mental health.

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Episode Overview

This episode of “48 Hours: Case by Case” examines the ongoing trial of Lindsay Clancy, a mother charged with killing her three children in Duxbury, Massachusetts, in January 2023. The case has gripped public attention not only for its devastating facts but for the questions it raises about mental illness, postpartum disorders, and the pursuit of justice in tragedies involving family and mental health.

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Key Discussion Points and Insights

The Trial's Emotional Weight and Courtroom Atmosphere

• Erin starts by addressing the case’s sensitive and disturbing details, including the killing of children and Lindsay Clancy’s mental health crisis.

• Correspondent Christina Rex recounts her experience covering the case from the night of the incident and through nearly two weeks of the trial.

  “That 911 call is going to stick out in my mind for sure as the most harrowing thing I've ever heard in my 10 years of reporting.” – Christina Rex [04:26]

  Courtroom Mood During 911 Call & Testimony

  • The courtroom was "solemn," "really tense," and "emotional" as Patrick Clancy’s chilling 911 call played; many in attendance, including Lindsay and jurors, wept.
  • Testimony since then has become more technical and less emotionally charged.

Medical Details and Forensic Testimony

Lindsay’s Injuries and Mental State

• ER doctors and psychiatrists presented medical details:
  • Lindsay Clancy suffered a severely broken spine resulting in permanent paralysis [06:12].
  • It was revealed she experienced cardiac arrest following her suicide attempt—a fact not widely public before trial [06:55].
• Prosecutors and defense wrangled over the severity and intent behind Lindsay’s suicide attempt, with prosecutors suggesting her injuries were “superficial” [09:06].

Efforts to Save the Children

• Testimony detailed the exhaustive measures to resuscitate the Clancy children (Cora, 5; Dawson, 3; Callan, 8 months).
• Lindsay was visibly upset, especially during testimony about Callan, who was briefly resuscitated but died due to brain injury [08:13].

Lindsay Clancy's State of Mind: Journal Entries and Psychiatric History

Key Journal Excerpts Presented in Court

• The prosecution and defense both used Lindsay’s journal to support their cases:
  • Overwhelming stress:

    “It's like I'm so desperate to get a mental break from taking care of everyone that my mind is trying to make something physically wrong with me.” – Read by Prosecutor Shannon Buckingham [11:17]

  • Mental fog and disconnection:

    “I have crazy brain fog. I feel like I can’t make a plan. I can’t carry it out... I feel completely disconnected with my baby.” – Read by Defense Attorney Kevin Reddington [12:11]

• Both sides framed these writings differently: the prosecution as evidence of motive, the defense as symptoms of severe postpartum mental illness [13:04].

Nanny Testimony: A Glimpse Into the Clancy Home

• The family’s former nanny depicted Lindsay as loving, attentive, and deeply concerned for her children, describing her as a “wonderful mother” despite her struggles with postpartum issues [14:02].
• Lindsay became emotional and cried during this part of testimony and while a home video of Callan played [15:03].
  • The nanny’s testimony stood in contrast to the tragic events and highlighted Lindsay’s internal conflicts [16:01].

Prosecution and Defense Strategies

• The prosecution focused on the physical evidence, severity (or lack thereof) of Lindsay’s injuries, and the blood evidence surrounding her purported suicide attempt [19:07].
• The defense (Reddington) frequently used cross-examination to advocate for Lindsay's mental state and to frame the details as consistent with overwhelming illness and impaired judgment [20:28].
• The defense was frustrated by the prosecution's insistence on proving the murder details, given Lindsay’s admission of her actions and the desire to focus on her criminal responsibility [21:01], [21:34].

Jury View and Its Significance

• Jurors were taken to key locations: CVS (Patrick’s errand), the takeout restaurant, and the Clancy home (crime scene) [22:27].
  • Notably, Lindsay was not present at the jury view due to her paralysis and logistical challenges.
• Jury views are typical in such cases, helping the jury contextualize evidence and better understand the physicality of events (e.g., the window from which Lindsay jumped) [23:14], [25:24].

Anticipated Next Steps and Broader Impact

Upcoming Testimony

• Future testimony is expected from mental health professionals who treated Lindsay before and after the incident [26:19].
• The defense may put the medical profession “on trial” for alleged overmedication and insufficient support for postpartum patients [26:58].

Societal Reflections

• The rarity and horror of maternal filicide evokes public memory of prior cases (e.g., Andrea Yates); the episode suggests this trial is a catalyst for crucial discussions on maternal mental health [27:56].
• Host Erin Moriarty and guest Christina Rex express hope that the case prompts awareness and conversation about available resources and compassionate responses to postpartum crises [28:25], [28:41].

  "If there can be any silver lining in a case this horrific, maybe the conversation around mental health is it." – Christina Rex [28:41]

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Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• “This is a trial that is so hard to watch, and yet it's hard to look away from.” – Erin Moriarty [01:31]
• “Lindsay was visibly upset, especially when they were speaking about the youngest, Callan, because he regained consciousness after CPR...but his brain never regained function.” – Christina Rex [08:13]
• “You have a defendant here, Lindsey Clancy, whose lawyer says she admits what happened, she admits what she did. So I think that brings a whole new layer of emotion into the case.” – Christina Rex [17:21]
• “Jury views...are very typical in criminal cases like this...just being able to see the context of where an event happened.” – Christina Rex [23:14]
• “The central argument of the defense in this case is that Lindsey was so overmedicated that she experienced psychosis.” – Christina Rex [26:58]
• “I think you're right. If there can be any silver lining in a case this horrific, maybe the conversation around mental health is it.” – Christina Rex [28:41]

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Key Timestamps

• 03:51 – Christina Rex describes the emotional impact of covering the case.
• 05:01 – Courtroom reaction to Patrick Clancy’s 911 call.
• 06:12–06:55 – Details on Lindsay’s injuries and psychiatric consultation.
• 07:27 – Testimony of doctors about the children’s injuries.
• 08:13 – Lindsay’s emotional reaction to medical testimony about her children.
• 11:17–12:48 – Journal entries revealed in court; both prosecution and defense interpretations.
• 14:02 – Testimony from the Clancy nanny, offering insight into Lindsay’s parenting.
• 15:03–16:01 – Lindsay’s emotional response to nanny’s testimony and baby video.
• 19:07–21:34 – Forensic evidence debate and defense's cross-examination strategy.
• 22:27–25:24 – Jury visits to key locations, their significance, and context.
• 26:19–26:58 – Anticipated testimony and defense’s strategic direction.
• 27:56 – Societal discussion: comparing case to other rare maternal filicides.

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Themes and Takeaways

• The case presents a unique convergence of mental health, motherhood, and the criminal justice system.
• Rare, highly emotional maternal filicide cases tend to leave a lasting impact on communities and the legal process.
• The trial is as much about the “why” as the “what”—with both sides framing Lindsay's suffering differently.
• The episode, while grim, is threaded with hope for increased awareness and better support around maternal mental health struggles.

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Note: If you or anyone you know is in crisis, resources are provided at the end of the episode, including the 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline and the National Maternal Mental Health Hotline (1-833-TLC-MAMA).

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Transcript

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[Erin Moriarty]

As a warning, some of this content contains graphic and disturbing details, including discussions of suicide and the killing of children. So please listen or watch with care. We'll have resources at the end of the episode.

[Christina Rex]

So we asked her, you know, how are you feeling?

[Lindsay Clancy's Defense Attorney (Kevin Reddington)]

Horrified.

[Christina Rex]

And then she wrote down, do I have an attorney? And I said with my team that at this time we're just getting to know you and getting to know the case and we're not sure exactly, you know, what, what is happening?

[Prosecutor (Shannon Buckingham)]

And

[Christina Rex]

we, we asked her, do you have questions for us? And she asked, is my body broken? Are my legs str.

[Prosecutor (Shannon Buckingham)]

Great.

[Erin Moriarty]

That was Dr. Jillum Biswas, a psychiatrist from Brigham and Women's Hospital. Biswas consulted on Lindsay Clancy's treatment in January 2023 after the then 32 year old mother killed her three children and harmed herself at the family's Duxbury, Massachusetts home. This is a trial that is so hard to watch and yet it's hard to look away from. As a reminder, Lindsay is on trial for three counts of first degree murder, but this is not a case of did she do it? But why? Her defense is arguing that she should not be held criminally responsible for the deaths of her children by reason of mental disease or defect, that she was suffering from postpartum psychosis at the time, exacerbated by the medication she was taking. Under Massachusetts law, jurors will have to decide whether Lindsay knew that what she was doing was wrong at the time of the deaths, but also whether she had control of her actions at that time. Clearly, it's a complex case. Opening statements began on July 27 with a trial expected to last several weeks. This week, jurors heard passages from Lindsay's journal, as well as testimonies from doctors and nurses about Lindsay's medical treatment and the efforts to save her three young children, Cora, Dawson and Callan. We've been following this case closely and we covered the first week of the trial in our last episode. For our continuing coverage, you can check the case by case feed wherever you find your podcasts, or you can watch on the 48 Hours YouTube channel. I'm 48 Hours correspondent Erin Moriarty. And this is case by case. Joining me today is Christina Rex, a reporter and anchor for Boston CBS station WBZ tv. Christina, thanks for being here. I know that you're coming right after a long day in court or at least almost two weeks of being in court.

[Christina Rex]

Almost two weeks now. Thank you for having me.

[Erin Moriarty]

Well, you've been covering this case literally from day one. You were actually reporting from the Clancy home on the night of January 24, 2023, when these deaths occurred. And you have been present in the courtroom some extremely intense moments. You heard Patrick Clancy's testimony, his chilling 911 call, along with testimonies from first responders on the scene. So my first question, honestly is about you. How are you doing? This is. This has to have been tough on you.

[Christina Rex]

Yeah, I mean, thank you for asking. That 911 call is going to stick out in my mind for sure as the most harrowing thing I've ever heard in my 10 years of reporting. And this case has not been easy to cover. As you know, we're supposed to kind of remove ourselves from our coverage. Shut off maybe at the end of the day. But this is just one that sticks with you.

[Erin Moriarty]

I'm curious how you would describe what the move was like in the courtroom, particularly during that 911 call or even during Patrick's testimony.

[Christina Rex]

Yeah. So about the 911 call, just a reminder that at Patrick Clancy's request, the judge ruled that that 911 call could not be recorded to distribute. So the mood in the room, it was solemn, it was really tense, it was emotional. You could hear a pin drop. And there were several people shedding tears. When the six and a half minute call wrapped up, there were members of the public, even some jurors who you could see crying. And then Lindsey Clancy herself was loudly sobbing when that call finished playing. And since then, you know, testimony has still been grim at times, but it's taken a much more technical turn and been kind of less emotionally driven than that 911 call in the early days.

[Erin Moriarty]

I understand that Lindsay was first brought to the ER at South Shore Hospital and then later was transferred to Brigham and Women's because she needed further treatment. The children were brought to Beth Israel Plymouth's er. What can you tell us about the testimonies from Physic? First, the ones who treated Lindsey when she got to the hospital. Give me some sense of her injuries. Were you surprised by the extent of some of her injuries?

[Christina Rex]

We had known about some of Lindsey's injuries from her defense attorney and this week, we got to hear from some of the ER doctors who treated Lindsey at South Shore Hospital. And then prosecutors also questioned psychiatrists from Brigham and Women's who had assessed Lindsey's mental state. Shortly after that night, she. Now, most of the questions we heard from the prosecution and defense were about treatment. We heard about rounds of CPR that had been used to attempt to revive the children. We had heard about the marks found on their bodies that were consistent with strangulation. And then also, of course, as you mentioned, the injuries to Lindsey Clancy's body. So Lindsey did sustain serious injuries to her spine. They left her paralyzed. She's still paralyzed today from the waist down.

[Erin Moriarty]

Were you surprised, though, to hear the discussion about coding that she actually went into cardiac arrest? I had not known that.

[Christina Rex]

I had known that from her defense attorney. So it wasn't surprising to me. But I understand that it may have been surprising to the public. You know, all people knew about what had happened was an alleged suicide attempt. I don't think the extent of the injuries, including, you know, cardiac arrest, that first 24 hours in the hospital, I don't think that was very publicly known.

[Erin Moriarty]

And let's talk about the children, which I think is very difficult to talk about. On Monday, the prosecution called to this the ER physicians who treated Dawson and Kellen Clancy when they were rushed to Beth Israel that night. And the physician who treated Cora also testified. The doctors went into great detail about the children's conditions and the efforts, the heroic efforts to try to save them. These children were only, you know, Cora was five years old, Dawson three, and Callan eight months old, being brought into the ER with severe injuries. How difficult was that for people in the court to hear and particularly for Lindsey, who was sitting there?

[Christina Rex]

Yeah, I mean, it was really hard for everybody in the courtroom to hear these life saving efforts. But Lindsay was visibly upset, especially when they were speaking about the youngest, Callan, because he regained consciousness after cpr, but he was eventually declared dead because his brain never regained function. That was after a few days. And I've also noticed in the courtroom that Lindsey doesn't look at pictures of her kids. So she has an evidence screen that's right in front of her at her seat. But often when pictures of her children are up on that screen during these testimonies, she looks at her lap instead of at the screen.

[Erin Moriarty]

The prosecution also entered some pretty graphic pictures of Lindsay from that night showing pictures of her neck and wrists where they were cut. What argument, what is the point of the prosecution showing these photos to the

[Christina Rex]

Jury, there's been a lot of testimony about these photos and prosecutors are trying to make the case that Lindsey Clancy's suicide attempt was over dramatized. So this goes directly to prosecutors attempts to show the jury that Lindsay was

[Erin Moriarty]

in her right mind, that she used a suicide as part of her plan.

[Christina Rex]

You know, some of the testimony the prosecutors have elicited, it's focused on calling the cuts that she made to herself superficial, implying that she didn't cut deep enough to actually kill herself. The defense, of course, pushed back on that, questioning the doctor's full recollection of Lindsay's injuries. And then also this week, prosecutors had elicited some testimony suggesting that Lindsey maybe hung or leaned from her second story window rather than actually jumping out of it. Now, a reminder, that is what led to her breaking her spine and ultimately the paralysis that she has today.

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[Erin Moriarty]

Christina. This week, the juries gained more insight into Lindsay's state of mind on those days leading up to the death by going through her journal. In it, she wrote about everything from financial guilt to the difficulties of raising her children to her worries about returning to work in court. We actually heard excerpts of some of those journal entries that were read aloud. And let's play some of these. First, an entry that was read to the jury by one of the prosecutors. That's Shannon Buckingham. And then one by Lindsay's defense attorney, Kevin Reddington.

[Prosecutor (Shannon Buckingham)]

That page reads, it's like I'm so desperate to get a mental break from taking care of everyone that my mind is trying to make something physically wrong with me. Recall reviewing that in the journal?

[Lindsay Clancy's Defense Attorney (Kevin Reddington)]

Yes.

[Prosecutor (Shannon Buckingham)]

I'm completely overwhelmed trying to take care of the three kids. I feel like I'm drowning every day. Again, another page that's not dated. Correct. At some point, there are some dated pages in this journal, fair to say, right?

[Lindsay Clancy's Defense Attorney (Kevin Reddington)]

Yes.

[Prosecutor (Shannon Buckingham)]

And there's one on November 18th and November 18th. That page reads, it's like I'm so desperate to get a mental break from taking care of everyone that my mind is trying to make something physically wrong with me. Recall reviewing that in the journal?

[Lindsay Clancy's Defense Attorney (Kevin Reddington)]

Yes.

[Erin Moriarty]

Christina didn't. The defense also made some references to her mental state at the time. Let's play that exchange here.

[Lindsay Clancy's Defense Attorney (Kevin Reddington)]

She wrote, I have crazy brain fog. I feel like I can't make a plan. I can't carry it out. Like I just live moment to moment waiting for the next nap time. I'm terrified of Cal getting overtired now because I feel I can't help him. She wrote that, right?

[Prosecutor (Shannon Buckingham)]

Correct.

[Lindsay Clancy's Defense Attorney (Kevin Reddington)]

She then wrote, I'm really worried about going back to work and not being able to function with the brain fog. I feel like I should start with a four hour shift and see how I do. I can't tell if I am withdrawing from Ativan and Benadryl or is this my new baseline? I feel completely disconnected with my baby. I feel like I'm going through the motions every day. She wrote that, right?

[Prosecutor (Shannon Buckingham)]

Correct.

[Erin Moriarty]

Christina, it appears that both sides, both the prosecution and the defense, are using these same entries to make their case. How do you think this could aid or hurt the defense's argument?

[Christina Rex]

At the end of the day, it really depends on how the jury interprets these notes that Lindsey wrote. So prosecutors say Lindsey was so overwhelmed that she just wanted out of her life completely and that she was allegedly so controlling that she wanted to take her children with her. So will the jury believe that from hearing these journal entries, or will they believe the defense's interpretation that Lindsay was struggling with severe postpartum anxiety and depression and that she was making every effort to get help and be there for her family until she snapped one day?

[Erin Moriarty]

We've heard through the trial from many professionals who speak about Lindsay from a very clinical outsider's perspective. But then this week, we got more of a sense of who the Clancy family was from inside the home. On Wednesday of this week, we actually heard from Clancy's family's former nanny. I want to play some of her testimony.

[Prosecutor (Shannon Buckingham)]

Did you come to find out that Lindsay was having some issues? I did. Did she talk to you about that? She did. And what did she tell you about her issues? She shared with me that she was suffering from postpartum. Now, when she shared this information with you, had you noticed anything different about her demeanor or her presentation around the house? I didn't at all. I observed a wonderful mom who loved her kids, who was. She was very concerned with their safety. She was very concerned with Callan's eating and sleeping. She was a wonderful mother.

[Erin Moriarty]

So according to the testimony, nanny took care of the kids between September and December of 2022, just about a month before the deaths of those kids. And on the stand, she spoke about the kids personality And Lindsay's parenting during that testimony, Lindsay seemed to be very emotional.

[Christina Rex]

Yeah, it actually looked like Lindsay was crying throughout this testimony. She had her head in her hands, and you could see her shoulders shaking, and she was pulling tissues to wipe her eyes. And she specifically became visibly emotional when a very short video that the nanny had taken of baby Callan drinking a bottle played on the evidence tv. I can't imagine what was going through her head at that moment. To hear all these kinds of things about herself and the kids.

[Erin Moriarty]

You know, I wasn't in the courtroom. I'm watching, you know, through the tv, and the camera shows Lindsay after. Well, it was actually right after the nanny had said something wonderful about her parenting. And it didn't look like Lindsay was even looking at her. And I was a little surprised by that. It looked like she was looking down because it was very sweet testimony from this woman who was a nanny who said she loved Lindsay.

[Christina Rex]

She said that quoted. She said, I loved Lindsay. I think at that point, the video of the baby had already played, and there had already been some descriptions of the children's personalities. And also Lindsay as a mother. And Lindsay seemed to have already kind of gotten emotional and had her face in her hands. So you're right that at that point, she didn't look back up. This was near the end of the nanny's testimony.

[Erin Moriarty]

And again, Christina, I can't see what's going on in the courtroom. You can. And I was curious. It doesn't look like she is participating very much in her own defense. Am I just not able to see it?

[Christina Rex]

No, you're correct. Every now and then, her lawyer will ask her a question, but she certainly is just there listening, often crying, often looking down. When the more technical testimony is happening, she tends to watch the witness and actually look. But you certainly in the courtroom don't see her stripped, strategizing or contributing or offering information to her lawyer throughout the course of testimony.

[Erin Moriarty]

And then just one other question about her. You know, you and I have both sat through a lot of trials. I have never seen a defendant cry or seem as visibly upset by the evidence, even refusing to look at things. Do you see the same thing? I don't know.

[Christina Rex]

Yeah, I mean, it's certainly unusual, but at the same time, isn't that part of the unique nature of this case? You know, you have a defendant here, Lindsey Clancy, whose lawyer says she admits what happened, she admits what she did. So I think that that brings a whole new layer of emotion into the case. You know, she claims that she had A postpartum psychosis episode when this happened. So if now she's in her right state of mind, you might expect to see those emotions.

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[Erin Moriarty]

So on Tuesday, we also heard from over a half dozen forensic scientists at the Massachusetts State Police crime lab. The prosecution and defense asked about, of course, the medications in Lindsay's system that night. They talked about the blood that was found on the knife that she used to cut herself. And then it was interesting, the blood spatters that were found on the interior and exterior of the Clancy home. I just want to play a bit of their back and forth here, because you're going to hear from both the prosecution and then the defense and defense

[Christina Rex]

counsel asked you about the red brown stains on the windowsill, the one on the exterior, the interior, and asked if it could be from someone leaning out the window. Correct.

[Prosecutor (Shannon Buckingham)]

Correct.

[Christina Rex]

Could it also be from someone hanging out the window, holding onto in those spots?

[Prosecutor (Shannon Buckingham)]

Correct.

[Christina Rex]

Nothing further.

[Lindsay Clancy's Defense Attorney (Kevin Reddington)]

Wouldn't there be drops if somebody was bleeding significantly from cuts on their wrist? To the extent that one of the marks on the shingle, you said had a drip on it. Right.

[Christina Rex]

So depending on the amount of blood, where that contact is coming into place is what is deposited.

[Lindsay Clancy's Defense Attorney (Kevin Reddington)]

So if somebody was going to climb out the window and hang on the ledge and then what, like, do a Spider man and go down the side of the shingles? They would leave a smear going all the way down on the shingles, wouldn't

[Christina Rex]

they, if they came in contact the entire way down? Yes, there would be a transfer all the way down.

[Erin Moriarty]

What does it appear, Christina, that the prosecution is trying to do with these, you know, blood stains on the windowsill and outside the house?

[Christina Rex]

I think this is more of the prosecution questioning the validity of Lindsey's suicide attempt, which we had spoken about in the courtroom. You could really sense Kevin Reddington's frustration with this line of questioning as we just heard him in that Spider man reference there.

[Erin Moriarty]

Well, I want to make another point here because I've really noticed it during this trial. It's pretty clear, so, so far that the defense attorney is not waiting to put on his case. You know, I have seen examples over and over again of Kevin Reddington using cross examination to make some pretty strong points for the defense. I want you to listen to another example of this.

[Prosecutor (Shannon Buckingham)]

In this clip, do you recall collecting the knife?

[Lindsay Clancy's Defense Attorney (Kevin Reddington)]

Yes.

[Prosecutor (Shannon Buckingham)]

Why would you collect the knife? As part of the crime scene response. Excuse me.

[Lindsay Clancy's Defense Attorney (Kevin Reddington)]

There's no objection to any of this physical evidence being introduced. That's all. I'm gonna allow this line of inquiry just to kind of put things in perspective.

[Erin Moriarty]

I mean, Christina, you hear him insert time and time again points that he wants to make that. You hear him at times saying that Lindsey, how ill Lindsay was when she got to the hospital. He sounds so frustrated at times. Where do you think this tension is coming from? Is this real, or is this just a, you know, a defense ploy?

[Christina Rex]

It could be both. To be fair, the feeling has been a theme of the trial. Lindsay's defense attorney, Kevin Reddington, he had actually offered, before the trial even started to stipulate that she admits to killing her kids in the exact manner that prosecutors claim that she did. In return, he wanted this trial focused only on her criminal responsibility and her mental health issues. Now, at the time, prosecutors actually objected to that idea, and the judge ruled against it. Meaning that we're seeing what we're seeing now. Prosecutors are still putting on a case where they're proving every little detail of evidence about the actual murders, despite the fact that Lindsey Clancy has more or less confessed to them. And I think that's why you can see her lawyer getting frustrated as certain testimony comes up. But our legal analysts have also said it could be a little bit of grandstanding for him to kind of play to the jury.

[Erin Moriarty]

So at the end of last week, the trial was actually brought outside the courtroom. Members of the jury were taken to three locations that were crucial to the events of January 24, 2023. First, they were taken to the CVS, where Lindsay's husband, Patrick, picked up meds for Cora. Then the restaurant where he got the takeout. And then lastly, the jury was taken to the site of the killings, the Clancy family home. Again, we've been talking about cases you've covered. Is this kind of trip typical for a trial? You know? And why do you think it was so important for the jury to actually go to the scene of these deaths?

[Christina Rex]

Yeah, so they call it a jury view. And it actually is very typical in criminal cases like this. So the judge takes the jurors to view the premises or the property related to the case. When they're there, the prosecution may point out the essential features of the Location, you know, just where things are located, certain rooms, but no comment or discussion is allowed in that time. There are no witnesses who are heard, and jurors are not allowed to ask any questions or even discuss amongst themselves. And the presence of the defendant in a criminal case, that's left to the judge's discretion. So in this instance, Lindsay was not present because, according to her attorney, she chose not to be just because of her paralysis. She's wheelchair bound. It was just too much to plan logistically to get her to all three locations. But observations that are made by the jury and the judge on a view may be used by the jury to find her of fact when they start making a decision. In this case. In this case, it was interesting because the current owners of the Duxbury home, a new family, they didn't want jurors allowed inside the property. But last week, Judge William Sullivan, who's overseeing this case, he ordered them to allow access to the premises for the purposes of a view. So in this case, three groups of six or 18 jurors were taken inside the home, one group at a time. They were given specific instructions, you know, not to touch anything, not to open any drawers. But part of that is just being able to see the context of where an event happened. You know, it's all described in court. But then when jurors get to see it for themselves, it kind of puts things in perspective for them. In particular, in this case, going to the other two locations, not just the house. A big part of the testimony has been about the amount of time that Lindsey spent at home alone with the kids to allegedly commit these crimes. And the reason that the jury is able to experience that is by taking the same journey that Patrick Clancy did. You know, going to cvs, going to the takeout restaurant, and going back to the house. That's the exact route that he took that night. But, Erin, I'm very curious. In your experience covering murder trials, how often have you come across jury views like this, and how do you think they help the prosecution?

[Erin Moriarty]

Well, I haven't seen it very often. I think I've only seen a jury go to the scene of a crime one time. And that actually surprises me, because if you look at this specific case, I think the jurors are going to be really interested since there is, you know, a difference. The prosecution is saying that she carefully planned to go out the window, while the defense is saying she threw herself out the window. I think the jurors would want to actually see the home. And I think it often puts the crime scene or the death scene in

[Christina Rex]

context and in perspective in this case. Right. I mean, they've seen pictures of the window on the back of the house and they've been told how high it is off the ground. But to see it in person is certainly different.

[Erin Moriarty]

What are you expecting to come out of, you know, the rest of this week and the coming weeks?

[Christina Rex]

So, of course, more of the trial is going to have to focus on Lindsey Clancy's state of mind. We have to hear from the doctors and nurse practitioners who treated her for psychiatric issues before the murders and then alter some additional providers who continue to treat her after the murders happened. That has yet to happen. And the defense attorney actually told me that he doesn't know for sure if prosecutors are going to call her psychiatrist from before the children's death, but if they don't, he will.

[Erin Moriarty]

Well, because don't you expect the defense to kind of put the medical profession on trial as well?

[Christina Rex]

Oh, absolutely. I mean, that's really the central argument of the defense in this case is that Lindsey was so overmedicated that she experienced psychosis.

[Erin Moriarty]

We look forward to covering this in our next episode on the trial. Christina, thank you. We're very grateful that you could join us this week to share your experiences inside that courtroom. I've been thinking about this because even though this trial has been so hard to watch, you know, everyone I know has been talking about it. And I feel that people have become really invested in this case. And the reason why might just be because, as you mentioned at the very beginning, it is so rare for a mother to kill her children. It is so rare that we actually remember the names of other mothers like Andrea Yates in Texas who. Who killed her five children. And yet here we are back again.

[Christina Rex]

I actually had a conversation about this this week. I covered another case here in Massachusetts. It was on Christmas Day several years ago where a mother threw her two children off of a garage roof and then jumped into her own life. So something that would never go on trial because she died in that suicide attempt. But when you hear a case like this, they're so rare, but it's really hard to hear it and not immediately think of other similar situations.

[Erin Moriarty]

And I'm hoping that this makes people talk about this issue. I think that is the one of the best reasons for putting a trial like this on television and talking about it is to let other people know that there is help.

[Christina Rex]

Yeah, I think you're right. I think you're right. If there can be any silver lining in a case this horrific, maybe the conversation around mental health is it.

[Erin Moriarty]

Thanks again, Christine. I really appreciate it.

[Christina Rex]

Thank you.

[Erin Moriarty]

Now we want to take this opportunity to say that if you or someone you know may be experiencing a mental health Crisis, please contact the 988 Suicide and Crisis Life. Just call or text 988-and-If you're pregnant or you've just had a baby, you can dial or text the National Maternal Mental health hotline at 1-833-TLC Mama M A M A. And we'll be back next week with another episode of Case by Case. Be sure to rate and review and let us know know which cases you're following and which cases you'd like us to follow.

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[Lindsay Clancy's Defense Attorney (Kevin Reddington)]

Dinner.

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[Christina Rex]

The critically acclaimed series Colin from Accounts returns for a brand new season. But what is it? We're together. We are togetherly. We're friendly together with a dog. Colin from Accounts. New season streaming September 10th only on Paramount Plus.