Lindsay Clancy trial (live updates): Judge sends jury home early after hospital chaplain’s testimony

PLYMOUTH, Mass. — Jurors were dismissed early Thursday after hearing from just one witness in the Lindsay Clancy murder trial, as the defense continued its effort to show the Duxbury mother was suffering from severe mental illness when her three children were killed.

The testimony comes as Clancy’s attorneys argue she was suffering from postpartum psychosis and was not criminally responsible for the deaths of her three children. Prosecutors contend the killings were planned and deliberate.

The trial is expected to resume Friday, with the judge indicating it will likely be a longer day for jurors. It’s unclear if the defense plans to call any more witnesses before resting, while the prosecution can still call rebuttal witnesses.

Attorneys from both sides continued meeting with the judge later Thursday to discuss potential jury instructions as the closely watched case moves toward its final stages.

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Chaplain testifies Lindsay Clancy spoke of voice

Defense attorney Kevin Reddington called Sheila Cavanaugh, a board-certified chaplain at Brigham and Women’s Hospital, to the stand.

Cavanaugh testified that she has worked at the hospital for the past seven years and has visited Clancy at least 14 times since the January 2023 killings.

According to Cavanaugh, Clancy repeatedly discussed hearing a male voice that allegedly instructed her to kill her children and then take her own life.

“She alluded to having heard a voice and the voice, according to Lindsay, told her that if she did not follow the command, neither she nor her children would be safe,” Cavanaugh testified.

Cavanaugh also told jurors that during one of their earliest interactions, Clancy appeared confused about what had happened.

The chaplain testified that the first thing Clancy said to her was, “I’m so glad my children are safe.”

During cross-examination, prosecutors challenged the reliability of Cavanaugh’s testimony, pointing out that her written notes from visits with Clancy did not include references to the alleged voice.

“All of these notes that detail every time you interacted with her. You never once wrote that she told you she heard a voice or what that voice said. Correct?” a prosecutor asked.

“Correct,” Cavanaugh responded.

Prosecutors also questioned Cavanaugh about her recollection of conversations with Clancy during her recovery at Spaulding Rehabilitation Hospital, highlighting details Cavanaugh said she could not remember.

Show of support before court

Before court returned to session, hundreds of people gathered to show support for Clancy.

The silent “Stand in Peace” demonstration began at 8 a.m., with a designated, roped-off area set up outside the courthouse for a sea of people who arrived dressed in pink to champion mental healthcare.

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“I think it’s about time that women’s health is brought into focus,” one woman in the crowd said. “Mental health is very important to my family and me. I’ve lost loved ones to suicide before. I just think that the mental health system really needs a wake-up call.”

Defense case nears conclusion

The defense is expected to call at least one final witness before resting its case. After that, prosecutors will have an opportunity to present rebuttal witnesses before the trial moves closer to closing arguments.

On Wednesday, Judge William Sullivan ruled that TikTok creator Emily Thorndike would not be permitted to testify. Thorndike had posted videos about her experience working at McLean Hospital between 2014 and 2021.

Prosecutors successfully argued that Thorndike should not be allowed to testify because she did not work at the hospital when Clancy was a patient there.

Defense psychologist faces tough cross-examination

Much of Wednesday’s testimony focused on defense psychologist Dr. Paul Zeizel, who testified that he has met with Clancy approximately 60 times and spent about 35 hours evaluating her over the past three and a half years.

Zeizel told jurors that Clancy continues to think about her children every day.

“She really loved them, misses them, and thinks of them every single day, almost every moment of the day,” Zeizel testified.

The psychologist reiterated his opinion that Clancy was suffering from a severe mental illness at the time of the killings.

“My opinion is that she did indeed have a mental disease or defect... she had bipolar disorder with postpartum psychosis,” Zeizel told the jury.

Prosecutors question expert’s objectivity

During cross-examination, prosecutors challenged Zeizel’s impartiality, highlighting his lengthy involvement in the case and his public comments shortly after the deaths.

Jurors were shown video from a news conference held about two weeks after the killings in which Zeizel appeared alongside Clancy defense attorney Kevin Reddington.

Prosecutors also questioned Zeizel about how much time he has spent evaluating Clancy compared to other defendants and asked whether he had become too personally invested in her case.

Zeizel acknowledged that only one other criminal defendant he has evaluated received a similar amount of attention and that he had testified he cared deeply about only one other defendant.

Charges Clancy faces

Clancy is charged with three counts of murder in the January 2023 deaths of her children, Cora, Dawson, and Callan Clancy.

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