The tension in the Plymouth courtroom grew palpable on Wednesday as the jury in the Lindsay Clancy murder trial remained unable to reach a unanimous verdict. For the second time, the group of twelve jurors informed Massachusetts Superior Court Judge William Sullivan that they were deadlocked, leaving the proceedings teetering on the edge of a potential mistrial. Under state law, a judge can only request that a jury continue deliberating twice unless the group agrees to keep working. Should they report a third deadlock, Judge Sullivan may be forced to declare a mistrial.

In an effort to nudge the jurors toward a resolution, Sullivan read them the Tuey Rodriguez instructions, a standard legal reminder that encourages jurors to make every possible effort to reach a consensus. This instruction emphasizes that it is desirable for cases to be decided and reminds those in the majority to listen closely to those in the minority. Despite these prompts and several additional hours of discussion, the jury was dismissed late Wednesday afternoon with orders to return Thursday morning.

At the heart of this grueling deliberation is whether Clancy is criminally responsible for the deaths of her three young children in January 2023. Her defense maintains she suffered from severe postpartum psychosis and acted upon auditory hallucinations, arguing that medical professionals failed her through improper medication management. Conversely, prosecutors argue that Clancy meticulously planned the attack and deliberately cleared her husband from the house before killing her children and attempting suicide, pushing for a first degree murder conviction.

Defense attorney Kevin Reddington spoke candidly outside the courthouse, praising the jurors’ diligence while acknowledging the profound trauma inherent in such a case. While he expressed confidence should a retrial become necessary following a hung jury, he insisted that no outcome could be viewed as a true victory given the tragic nature of the family’s loss. Meanwhile, adding to the chaos surrounding the trial, authorities arrested a woman outside the courthouse for allegedly photographing jurors, leading to separate charges of aggravated intimidation.