Potential jurors excused from Lindsay Clancey murder trial amid emotional distress
More than 250 prospective jurors have been dismissed from the Lindsay Clancey case in Massachusetts after expressing difficulty handling the evidence, as the court continues jury selection.
More than 250 individuals who volunteered for jury duty in the Lindsay Clancey trial have been excused after indicating they could not remain impartial while hearing details of the murders of the defendant's three young children. The court, presided over by Plymouth County Superior Court Judge William Sullivan, plans to select a pool of 18 jurors, of whom 12 will ultimately serve on the verdict.
The defense argues that Clancey, a former labor and delivery nurse who is now wheelchair-bound after a suicide attempt, acted while experiencing postpartum psychosis exacerbated by medication. Prosecutors contend she was aware of her actions and deliberately planned the killings.
"The whole case is just her state of mind and whether she was aware of right from wrong and literally if [she was aware] what she was doing was going to end up killing her kids," former prosecutor Mark Bederow said.
"Any juror is gonna wanna know why the hell would this woman do this? Why would a seemingly normal young woman living a beautiful life just murder her three children? It will take a great deal of humanity and compassion for jurors to get past the act itself and really focus on her mental state," Bederow added.
Prospective jurors have been questioned about personal connections to mental-health issues, relationships to the defendant or witnesses, and their ability to consider an insanity defense. Each candidate meets with attorneys for both sides and the judge before a decision is made.
Clancey faces charges of killing her three children—aged three, five, and eight months—using exercise bands in the family home in Duxbury, Massachusetts, before attempting suicide that left her paraplegic. Her attorney, Kevin Reddington, intends to seek a verdict of not guilty by reason of insanity, claiming she heard a commanding voice due to severe postpartum psychosis. The defense has also moved to limit testimony from first responders who attended the crime scene, arguing that their prior grand-jury statements would be prejudicial.
The trial, expected to last up to two months with as many as 200 witnesses, continues its jury selection process on Thursday.