Lindsay Clancy judge denies motion to force not guilty finding
A judge on Thursday denied Lindsay Clancy’s attempt to throw out her triple-murder case based on a purported lack of evidence -- putting her one step closer to a potential retrial.
Judge William Sullivan denied the motion for a required finding of not guilty in a five-page written order, concluding that prosecutors presented enough evidence to “permit a rational trier of fact to find beyond a reasonable doubt the elements of the charge of murder.”
The ruling comes two days after the first hearing in the case since a mistrial was declared on Sept. 4 after jurors failed to reach a unanimous verdict.
While Clancy did not contest that she killed her children during the trial, her defense attorney, Kevin Reddington, said in Tuesday’s hearing that the case should be thrown out because prosecutors failed to prove she was responsible for her children's deaths, in addition to continuing to argue her insanity defense.
Sullivan rejected both arguments in his ruling Thursday.
“There was evidence introduced, both physical and circumstantial, that would permit a rational trier of fact to find beyond a reasonable doubt the elements of the charge of murder,” he wrote.
Clancy’s second motion to dismiss the case -- which argues that retrying the case would amount to double jeopardy -- is still pending.
Clancy pleaded not guilty to three murder charges in the deaths of her 5-year-old daughter Cora, 3-year-old son Dawson, and infant son Callan, who were strangled at the family's home in Duxbury, a Boston suburb, on Jan. 24, 2023.
The former nurse attempted suicide on the night of her children's deaths, leaving her paralyzed and in a wheelchair.
During Clancy's five-week trial, Reddington argued that she was suffering from postpartum psychosis -- considered a psychiatric emergency, according to the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists -- and was overmedicated when she strangled her children and attempted to take her own life.
Prosecutors argued that Clancy was criminally responsible for her children's deaths and was capable of understanding the severity of her actions.
Plymouth County District Attorney Timothy Cruz told reporters Tuesday that his office is still evaluating whether to retry Clancy, saying a decision would be made "as soon as we get all the information that we can."
The next hearing in the case is scheduled for Nov. 2.
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