Lindsay Clancy trial highlights: Jollotta says he did not see signs of postpartum psychosis; court ends
Lindsay Clancy trial LIVE: The defence sharply questioned a nurse practitioner who prescribed Lindsay Clancy a combination of psychiatric medications in the months before the Massachusetts mother allegedly strangled her three children.
Lindsay Clancy trial LIVE: Lindsay Clancy and her then-husband Patrick contacted psychiatric nurse practitioner Rebecca Jollotta on December 15, 2022, during what Clancy described as her “worst day”, the jury heard....Read More
She also told Jollotta in a December 2, 2022 message that she felt “like I’m going to die and I don’t care” and was “concerningly numb”, jurors heard.
Clancy’s defence earlier grilled a nurse practitioner over the psychiatric medications she prescribed to Clancy before the Massachusetts mother allegedly killed her three children.
Lindsay Clancy’s murder trial is underway in Massachusetts, where the 35-year-old faces three counts of murder over the strangling deaths of her three children, aged 5, 3 and 8 months.
Clancy is attending court in a wheelchair after suffering paralysis in injuries sustained when she jumped from a second-storey window in an alleged suicide attempt.
Her defence argues that she was legally insane at the time of the killings, suffering from postpartum depression and the effects of overmedication, and was unable to understand that her actions were wrong. We are bringing you live written updates from the courtroom here.
The Lindsay Clancy case
Lindsay Clancy, a former labour-and-delivery nurse from Duxbury, Massachusetts, is on trial for the first-degree murders of her three children. They died in January 2023. The trial is now in its third week and continued Tuesday, its 11th day. Jurors have heard testimony from Lindsay’s former husband, Patrick Clancy, psychiatrist Dr Jennifer Tufts and other witnesses.
Clancy has pleaded not guilty but does not dispute that she caused the children's deaths. Her defence is based on lack of criminal responsibility. She says she was suffering from severe postpartum mental illness, including postpartum psychosis and bipolar disorder, and that she was heavily medicated in the months leading up to the killings, AP reports.
Prosecutors say that Clancy was mentally troubled but not psychotic when she killed her children, and that the evidence shows planning, deliberation and an effort to create an opportunity to carry out the killings.
The trial is being held in Plymouth Superior Court, before Judge William Sullivan. The jury consists of 12 women and six men. Twelve jurors ultimately expected to deliberate, CBS News reported.
The day of the killings: January 24, 2023
The killings happened at the family's home at 47 Summer Street in Duxbury, Massachusetts. According to prosecutors, Clancy sent her husband, Patrick Clancy, out of the house to get takeout food and make another errand. While he was gone, prosecutors allege, she strangled the three children in the basement using exercise bands.
The children were - Cora Clancy, 5, Dawson Clancy, 3, Callan Clancy, 8 months. Cora and Dawson died that night. Callan was transported to hospital but died several days later from his injuries.
After the killings, Lindsay Clancy attempted to take her own life by jumping from a second-storey window. She survived but suffered catastrophic injuries and is now paralysed from the waist down. She attends court in a wheelchair, as per AP.
Prosecutors' main pieces of the case
1. Sending Patrick out of the house - The prosecution says Clancy deliberately created a period when she would be alone with the children. Patrick testified that Clancy asked him to leave to get food and medication. Prosecutors view this as part of the planning.
2. Evidence of planning - Prosecutors have pointed to searches and other digital evidence that they say show Clancy was thinking about logistics surrounding Patrick's trip and the timing of events. They also say that her highly structured approach to household routines and childcare demonstrates a level of organisation inconsistent with someone who had completely lost contact with reality.
3. Her conduct before the killings - The prosecution argues that Clancy was able to communicate normally with Patrick and function in the hours immediately before the deaths. Patrick himself testified that January 24 appeared to be “one of her best days.”
4. Lack of observed psychosis - Several mental-health professionals who treated Clancy before the killings testified that they did not observe hallucinations, delusions or other obvious signs of psychosis. That evidence is particularly important because the defence is arguing that she was experiencing postpartum psychosis at the time of the killings.
5. The suicide attempt - Prosecutors are also expected to challenge the defence's characterisation of Clancy's suicide attempt. They have suggested that some aspects of the aftermath could indicate an effort to make the killings appear connected to a suicidal or psychotic episode rather than deliberate murder.
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- 12 Aug 2026, 01:30:41 AM IST
Lindsay Clancy trial: Court ends for the day
This live blog has ended. Court has adjourned for the day and will resume Wednesday morning.
- 12 Aug 2026, 01:30:09 AM IST
Lindsay Clancy trial LIVE: Jollotta says she did not see signs of postpartum psychosis
Jollotta explained the difference between how she'd react to someone with a suicide plan, potentially calling 911- versus someone who had only been thinking about it, which would mean asking more questions. "What I recall from Lindsay, she was having thoughts of suicide, she did not disclose a plan, no intent. Her husband was aware of this as well, he was on the call," Jollotta said. She told Buckingham that intrusive thoughts are common among women struggling after having kids, and added that she did not see Clancy having postpartum psychosis.
That was Buckingham's final question for the witness. Reddington then jumped in to say it seemed like Clancy did have it, prompting an objection from Buckingham.
The judge looked ready to let Reddington speak, but he took back the question instead. After that, the jury was sent home for the day. They were told once again that the trial was on time or ahead of schedule. Court will resume Wednesday morning.
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- 12 Aug 2026, 01:17:01 AM IST
Lindsay Clancy trial LIVE: Jollotta details Clancy's postpartum symptoms
Jollotta said Clancy reported being unable to stop worrying, with some questions during treatment focused on possible manic symptoms. She did not know Clancy had run a 5K despite others, including her husband, not wanting her to. Patrick Clancy attended one visit in person and joined two phone visits, and Jollotta recalled him being concerned that Clancy's symptoms began after she started taking medication.
When Clancy messaged about having "horrible intrusive thoughts" all day until taking an Ativan, Jollotta followed up with questions, and Clancy's answers about considering suicide changed over the course of treatment. Jollotta said she has treated five people for postpartum psychosis, some of whom heard voices or saw hallucinations. "It is not uncommon for me to hear, 'I have never felt anything like this before,' … all of this sounds like postpartum depression," she wrote to Clancy at one point, as per NBC Boston.
- 12 Aug 2026, 01:04:11 AM IST
Lindsay Clancy trial LIVE: ‘I never received a call from women & infants’ says Jollotta
As per NBC Boston, Jollotta agreed that Clancy had asked for help and went to Women & Infants Hospital as referred, though she did not end up in their program. Reddington asked about Clancy's history of seeing a psychiatrist and being sick, but Jollotta said she couldn't speak to that since she wasn't part of it, and she didn't know what Clancy was diagnosed with there, though she said it mattered to her. Asked if the hospital's concern was that Clancy had been overmedicated, Jollotta again said she couldn't speak to it.
Reddington pointed out that records from Women & Infants Hospital showed they had tried to reach Jollotta. She responded, "I never received a call from Women & Infants," adding, "I absolutely would have called them back." She also said that giving out the book "Good Moms Have Scary Thoughts" at her clinic does not mean a person is dangerous.
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- 12 Aug 2026, 12:23:31 AM IST
Lindsay Clancy trial LIVE: Doctor grilled over Clancy's Xanax prescriptions
The afternoon court session began with Clancy's lawyer, Kevin Reddington, presenting some evidence as housekeeping, as per NBC Boston.
Jollotta told Reddington that Clancy was honest during her treatment and did not hide anything. She said she never spoke to Clancy's psychiatrist, Dr Jennifer Tufts and added that she was surprised to learn Clancy had seen Tufts 14 times during her treatment.
They then went through Clancy's medication history. Reddington asked if Jollotta was worried about the symptoms Clancy showed. She said, “It's common for us to treat” women with suicidality post-partum, adding, “Her symptoms were serious and it's not uncommon for me to treat women with serious symptoms in the post-partum period.”
When asked about Xanax prescriptions listed under Clancy's name, Jollotta said she did not remember entering those prescriptions on those dates. She asked if it was possible that Clancy had filled previously written prescriptions on that date.
- 11 Aug 2026, 11:40:04 PM IST
Lindsay Clancy trial LIVE: ‘This is not TripAdvisor’ on TikTok witness bid
Judge William Sullivan heard a defense motion to add Emily Thorndike as a witness. She is a former McLean Hospital social worker who posted on TikTok about her time in the unit where Lindsay Clancy was treated in January 2023. Defense attorney Kevin Reddington said prosecutors “made it out on direct examination that McLean is some kind of a five-star institution” where Clancy was “blithely refusing care and treatment, which is not the case.” He said Thorndike is willing to testify about “what woeful environment McLean Hospital offers, especially on holidays such as major holidays like New Year's.”
Assistant District Attorney Shanan Buckingham objected, citing the late disclosure and Thorndike's lack of direct knowledge of Clancy's treatment. Judge Sullivan said, “I can't imagine that that witness would be allowed to give her, in a sense, review of McLean's. This is not Tripadvisor; I wouldn't allow that.” He postponed the decision on the motion and said he may question Thorndike privately, without the jury present.
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- 11 Aug 2026, 10:38:51 PM IST
Lindsay Clancy trial LIVE: Lindsay Clancy’s ‘worst day’
Lindsay Clancy trial LIVE: Lindsay Clancy and her then-husband Patrick contacted psychiatric nurse practitioner Rebecca Jollotta on December 15, 2022, during what Clancy described as her “worst day”, the jury heard. Jollotta’s notes said Clancy was experiencing “persistent and intrusive thoughts of suicide”, although she did not have an active plan. The couple agreed they would likely go to the emergency department at Massachusetts General Hospital and went there that day. However, Clancy told Jollotta the following day that she had not stayed overnight and instead planned to pursue treatment through the perinatal programme at Women & Infants Hospital in Rhode Island.
- 11 Aug 2026, 10:08:40 PM IST
Lindsay Clancy trial LIVE: Lindsay Clancy showed ‘mixed manic’ symptoms, nurse testifies
Lindsay Clancy trial LIVE: Psychiatric nurse practitioner Rebecca Jollotta testified that she became concerned Lindsay Clancy was experiencing a “mixed manic, hypomanic state” and “strongly, strongly” recommended that she enter a partial hospitalisation programme. Jollotta said Clancy was struggling to sleep but did not feel tired, had racing thoughts and was also experiencing depression and numbness. She described the mixed-state presentation as “clinically acute” and “unstable” and said she wanted to get Clancy’s manic symptoms under control and help her sleep. Jollotta also recommended gradually increasing the antipsychotic medication Seroquel and urged Clancy to enter a specialist perinatal programme at Women & Infants Hospital in Rhode Island.
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- 11 Aug 2026, 09:44:49 PM IST
Lindsay Clancy trial LIVE: ‘Pressured speech’ explained as key psych term comes up in Clancy trial
Lindsay Clancy trial LIVE: “Pressured speech” has emerged as a key psychiatric term in Lindsay Clancy’s murder trial. Psychiatric nurse practitioner Rebecca Jollotta said she looked for signs of mania during a November 29, 2022 appointment, including distractibility, pressured speech, grandiosity, poor sleep and increased goal-directed activity. The term refers to unusually rapid and urgent speech, with little opportunity for others to interrupt. Doctors have discussed it during the trial because pressured speech can be a symptom of mania and is associated with bipolar disorder. Clancy’s psychiatrist, Dr Jennifer Tufts, previously testified that she did not believe Clancy had bipolar disorder because she did not display classic signs of mania, including pressured speech.
- 11 Aug 2026, 09:28:13 PM IST
Lindsay Clancy trial LIVE: Nurse reveals why she screened her for bipolar disorder
Lindsay Clancy trial LIVE: Psychiatric nurse practitioner Rebecca Jollotta told jurors that she did not believe Lindsay Clancy had bipolar disorder after assessing her in December 2022. Jollotta said she considered the possibility because Clancy had struggled to tolerate antidepressants such as Zoloft, telling her that the medication had kept her awake for 48 hours without making her tired. Jollotta then screened Clancy for bipolar disorder during a December 6 meeting with Clancy and her then-husband, Patrick, but concluded that she did not have the condition. Jollotta also recalled Patrick telling her, “My wife is not bipolar.”
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- 11 Aug 2026, 09:04:24 PM IST
Lindsay Clancy trial LIVE: Lindsay Clancy told nurse ‘I feel like I’m going to die and I don’t care’, jury hears
Lindsay Clancy trial LIVE: Lindsay Clancy told psychiatric nurse practitioner Rebecca Jollotta in a December 2, 2022 message that she felt “like I’m going to die and I don’t care” and was “concerningly numb”, jurors heard. Clancy also said she had never experienced anything like it and asked whether her symptoms would eventually go away. Jollotta responded that it sounded like depression and later told Clancy that her symptoms were consistent with postpartum depression, describing the condition as real and treatable. She also provided Clancy with resources to contact if her condition worsened over the weekend.
- 11 Aug 2026, 08:38:10 PM IST
Lindsay Clancy trial LIVE: Lindsay said Ativan was ‘root cause’ of her insomnia, jury hears
Lindsay Clancy trial LIVE: Lindsay Clancy told psychiatric nurse practitioner Rebecca Jollotta in a December 2, 2022 message that she was convinced she had become dependent on the anxiety medication Ativan. Clancy said she had been taking it daily for about two and a half weeks after a bad reaction to Zoloft and felt “addicted” and “completely numb”. She also told Jollotta she believed Ativan dependence was the root cause of her insomnia, rather than anxiety. Jollotta advised her to take Ativan every other night and said she would not renew the prescription once it ran out. She later told jurors that she did not believe Clancy was addicted to the drug.
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- 11 Aug 2026, 08:23:28 PM IST
Lindsay Clancy trial LIVE: Lindsay Clancy had ‘Good Moms Have Scary Thoughts’ book at home
Lindsay Clancy trial LIVE: Psychiatric nurse practitioner Rebecca Jollotta testified that she recommended Lindsay Clancy pick up free reading material from the perinatal clinic where she worked, including the book Good Moms Have Scary Thoughts. Jurors had previously seen evidence that the book was found in Clancy’s kitchen cabinet. Jollotta said she recommended the book to Clancy on December 1, 2022, and Clancy told her she would collect the reading materials at her next clinic appointment.
- 11 Aug 2026, 07:50:35 PM IST
Lindsay Clancy trial LIVE: Lindsay Clancy lost nearly 3 kg weeks before killings, nurse testifies
Lindsay Clancy trial LIVE: Psychiatric nurse practitioner Rebecca Jollotta testified that Lindsay Clancy lost around 2.7 kg between October 20 and November 16, 2022.
Jollotta said Clancy weighed about 59 kg at her October 20 appointment and around 56.2 kg on November 16. Clancy reported a loss of appetite, and Jollotta said she considered the antidepressant Remeron a suitable option because “it is a good choice for someone who is having depression with anxiety with decreased appetite.”
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- 11 Aug 2026, 07:39:43 PM IST
Lindsay Clancy trial LIVE: Who is Patrick Clancy’s new wife?
Lindsay Clancy trial LIVE: As Lindsay Clancy’s murder trial continues, her former husband Patrick Clancy has rebuilt his life in New York City after moving from Massachusetts in 2023, months after the deaths of their three children.
Patrick, 38, has since married Dr Rachel Danis, a New York-based reproductive endocrinologist and fertility specialist. The couple reportedly began dating in 2024, married in April 2026 and now live together in Manhattan.
- 11 Aug 2026, 07:34:48 PM IST
Lindsay Clancy trial LIVE: New testimony puts postpartum psychosis claim under focus
Lindsay Clancy trial LIVE: Jollotta told the court that she has treated five women with postpartum psychosis during her career and hundreds more with postpartum depression and anxiety. Clancy’s defence is seeking a finding of not guilty by reason of insanity, arguing that she was experiencing severe postpartum psychosis when she strangled her three children.
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- 11 Aug 2026, 07:33:21 PM IST
Lindsay Clancy trial LIVE: Key mental health witness takes the stand
Lindsay Clancy trial LIVE: Psychiatric nurse practitioner Rebecca Jollotta has been called to testify in Lindsay Clancy’s murder trial about the treatment she provided to Clancy at the South Shore Perinatal Behavioral Health Clinic in 2022.
Jollotta told the court that she has treated five women with postpartum psychosis during her career, as well as hundreds of women with postpartum depression and anxiety.
- 11 Aug 2026, 07:31:23 PM IST
Lindsay Clancy trial LIVE: Nurse practitioner Julie Paul back on stand
Lindsay Clancy trial LIVE: Psychiatric nurse practitioner Julie Paul, who worked with Lindsay Clancy for about a week in November 2022 and prescribed medication to her, returned to the witness stand during Clancy’s murder trial.
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- 11 Aug 2026, 07:23:42 PM IST
Lindsay Clancy trial LIVE updates: Psychiatric nurse practitioner Rebecca Jollotta questioned
Lindsay Clancy trial LIVE updates: Psychiatric nurse practitioner Rebecca Jollotta is being questioned in Lindsay Clancy’s Massachusetts murder trial as the court examines Clancy’s mental health and treatment before the deaths of her three children.
- 11 Aug 2026, 07:17:59 PM IST
Lindsay Clancy trial LIVE updates: Murder trial begins
Lindsay Clancy trial LIVE updates: Lindsay Clancy’s murder trial has begun in Massachusetts.
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- 11 Aug 2026, 07:05:41 PM IST
Lindsay Clancy trial LIVE updates: The defence case
Lindsay Clancy trial LIVE updates: The defence does not primarily dispute that Lindsay killed the children. Instead, attorney Kevin Reddington is attempting to show that she was not legally responsible for her actions because of severe mental illness.
The defence says Clancy was suffering from a combination of postpartum psychosis, bipolar disorder, severe depression, suicidal thinking, extreme anxiety and insomnia, along with the effects of multiple psychiatric medications.
Her attorneys say she experienced a dramatic psychiatric deterioration after the birth of Callan and repeatedly sought professional help.
- 11 Aug 2026, 06:51:57 PM IST
Lindsay Clancy trial LIVE updates: What prosecutors allege
Lindsay Clancy trial LIVE updates: Prosecutors say the key question is not whether Clancy was experiencing mental-health difficulties, they acknowledge that she was, but whether she was suffering from a psychotic condition so severe that she could not understand what she was doing or that it was wrong, as per CBS news.
Buckingham asked jurors not to turn the case into a general debate about women's mental health or the US healthcare system. Instead, prosecutors want the jury to focus on Clancy's specific mental state and conduct.
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- 11 Aug 2026, 06:46:37 PM IST
Lindsay Clancy murder trial LIVE updates: The prosecution's case
Lindsay Clancy murder trial LIVE updates: Assistant District Attorney Shanan Buckingham told jurors that the children were killed deliberately and meticulously and that Clancy made a calculated decision to kill them.