A forensic psychologist testified Wednesday that Lindsay Clancy was not criminally responsible for the deaths of her three children due to mental health issues, including bipolar disorder and postpartum psychosis. Dr. Paul Zeizel, who began seeing Clancy as a patient after the killings, stated that the defendant "did not appreciate the ‘wrongfulness’ of her act" and "was unable to conform her behavior to the rule of law."
Zeizel's testimony supports the defense's contention that Clancy, 36, should not be held legally responsible for the murder charges in the deaths of Callan, Dawson, and Cora Clancy, who were aged 8 months to 5 years. These were the strongest assertions yet from the defense regarding Clancy's mental state during the January 2023 incident.
Postpartum psychosis, a condition estimated to affect 1 to 2 per 1,000 women after childbirth, is associated with the stress, sleep deprivation, and hormonal changes that can follow delivery. Researchers consider it more serious and less common than postpartum depression.
Prosecutors argue that Clancy, a former labor and delivery nurse, planned the killings. They allege she manipulated her husband into leaving the house by sending him to retrieve medication for one of the children and to pick up dinner.
According to Zeizel, who reported spending over 35 hours with Clancy and reviewing her medical records, she had sought help at a perinatal clinic in December 2022. At that time, she expressed feelings that her "brain was damaged," that "she should kill herself," and that she would "never get any better." She also exhibited paranoia and feared people could hear her thoughts and that her children would be taken away.
Zeizel acknowledged on cross-examination that Clancy's medical records do not indicate she reported hearing voices, only that she expressed a desire to die. He also conceded that despite her mental state, Clancy was able to perform daily tasks, such as driving and searching the internet for a pharmacy and restaurant on the day of the killings.
Prosecutors have also questioned the severity of Clancy's suicide attempt following the deaths of her children. Clancy is paralyzed from the waist down after jumping from a second-story window. Daily reports from Tewksbury Hospital, where Clancy is housed, reportedly do not mention any actions she took to commemorate her children on significant dates, such as the anniversary of their deaths or their birthdays.
Zeizel countered that Clancy frequently discusses her children, emphasizing that she "really loves them and misses them and thinks of them every single day, almost every moment of the day."
If convicted of murder, Clancy faces a sentence of life in prison without parole. A finding of not guilty by reason of lack of criminal responsibility would result in her commitment to a state mental health facility.