A Massachusetts judge has denied a defense motion to question a juror who refused to acquit Lindsay Clancy of murder charges in the deaths of her three children. The trial ended in a mistrial on September 4 after the jury could not reach a unanimous verdict.
Michael Desronvil, 48, was the sole juror who did not vote to find Clancy not guilty by reason of mental defect. The other 11 jurors had concluded that Clancy was suffering from postpartum psychosis when she allegedly killed her children, five-year-old Cora, three-year-old Dawson, and eight-month-old Callan.
Following the mistrial, details emerged regarding Desronvil's past, leading Clancy's attorneys to claim he had lied during jury selection about prior domestic violence allegations that would have disqualified him. They filed a petition seeking an evidentiary hearing to investigate whether Desronvil had committed perjury, improperly used a cellphone, or failed to follow the judge's instructions.
However, Judge William Sullivan ruled on Wednesday that information discovered after a mistrial was declared cannot be used to challenge the necessity of that declaration at the time. He also rejected the defense's assertion that the jury foreperson's notes were unclear. The judge noted that the defense did not object to Desronvil serving on the jury before the mistrial was declared, and that the information about potential disqualification appeared in post-trial media reports.
Sullivan stated that "potential evidence of good cause to dismiss a deliberating juror that came to light only after a mistrial was declared simply is not relevant to whether there was a manifest necessity for a mistrial."
The judge has not yet ruled on a separate motion filed by Clancy's defense to dismiss the three murder charges on double jeopardy grounds. Arguments on that motion are scheduled for November 2.