Latiesha Dukes, a counselor who had sessions with Lindsay Clancy in the months leading up to the tragic murder of her children, gave her testimony on Wednesday.
Dukes was employed at the Perinatal Behavioral Health Clinic of South Shore Hospital, where Clancy received treatment from November to December.
During her time at the Clinic, Clancy collaborated with two nurse practitioners who prescribed her a variety of psychiatric medications.
Counselor Latiesha Dukes stated that she advised Clancy to seek a "higher level of care" through an outpatient program designed for postpartum mothers.
Latiesha Dukes Duke held video therapy session with Lindsay Clancy
During a video therapy session on December 12, 2022, Dukes informed Clancy about Women and Infants Hospital located in Rhode Island, just weeks before the tragic incident involving Clancy's children.
"I was recommending this higher level of care because of continued passive suicidal ideation," Dukes remarked, highlighting that Clancy had mentioned contacting a crisis hotline the previous week.
{{/usCountry}}"I was recommending this higher level of care because of continued passive suicidal ideation," Dukes remarked, highlighting that Clancy had mentioned contacting a crisis hotline the previous week.
{{/usCountry}}Dukes had a total of four meetings with Clancy between December 2 and December 19. According to her, Clancy did not communicate any suicidal intentions, despite having experienced such thoughts.
She stated that Clancy disclosed her mental health challenges, which included insomnia, anxiety, postpartum depression, and occasional suicidal thoughts.
Clancy informed Dukes about her weight loss in the previous month and her sleep deprivation. “She constantly worried something bad was going to happen to her kids or something bad was going to happen to her baby,” Dukes stated.
Did Lindsay Clancy call crisis hotline ASPIRE twice?
Clancy contacted the crisis hotline ASPIRE on two occasions, including once during the weekend of December 3 and 4, 2022, and on both instances, he was denied assistance.
“Two times she contacted ASPIRE, not once. Both times they told her there was nothing they could do for her?” Clancy's attorney, Kevin Reddington, asked counselor Latiesha Dukes.
“Correct,” Dukes said.
During an appointment on December 5, Clancy informed Dukes, who was not connected to the crisis hotline, that she had experienced a difficult weekend filled with intrusive suicidal thoughts and had reached out to the emergency number for assistance.
ASPIRE responded by stating that they were unable to provide help since she did not have any intentions to act on her suicidal thoughts.
During her testimony while being questioned by the prosecution, Dukes stated, “She had a difficult weekend, having intrusive thought that she wanted to die.”
“She met with the clinician virtually and was told she did not meet the criteria for in-patient treatment due to not having suicidal ideation plan.”
Lindsay Clancy trial
Clancy, 35, along with her ex-husband, has filed separate lawsuits against the medical professionals and hospitals that provided her treatment. They allege that she was “overmedicated” and that there was a failure to properly diagnose her with bipolar disorder and postpartum psychosis.
The accused, who is charged with the murder of her children Cora, 5, Dawson, 3, and Callan, 8 months, claims that these oversights contributed to her actions in the basement of their Duxbury, Massachusetts home.
As a former labor and delivery nurse, Clancy faces three counts of first-degree murder and could be sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole if found guilty.