Dr Jennifer Tufts’ testimony gave the court a closer look at Lindsay Clancy’s mental health in the weeks before her children’s deaths, detailing worsening depression, suicidal thoughts and repeated medication changes.
What Happened
Clancy has pleaded not guilty, and while the defense does not dispute that she killed the children, it argues that severe mental illness, including postpartum psychosis and bipolar disorder, left her unable to be held criminally responsible. Tufts also looked into Zulresso, an intravenous drug used for severe postpartum depression, but Clancy did not end up pursuing that treatment. She never had mania. They also discussed a plan for hospitalization, and Clancy later spent one day at Women & Infants Hospital in Rhode Island.
Lindsay Clancy is on trial for the deaths of her three children, Callan, Dawson and Cora, who were found strangled at the family’s home in Duxbury, Massachusetts, in January 2023. She saw Clancy again the next day, on October 21.
Tufts said she was “very concerned” at this stage and decided to stop Clancy’s Zoloft and monitor her closely. During a telehealth visit on November 2, Tufts said Clancy’s psychiatric condition was “improving,” so she decided to lower Clancy’s Ativan dose and look at other options for sleep-related anxiety. When Reddington asked if she had bipolar disorder, Tufts said, “No.
Background
Reading from her records, Tufts described Clancy’s condition at the time: “Anxiety was really bad even before med, now hard to differentiate. Overnight racing thoughts, paranoid of getting suicidal thoughts, something bad happening. Doesn’t want to be alone.”
Responses and Reactions
Defense attorney Kevin Reddington pressed Tufts on how she responded: “You’ve got a woman telling you she’s hopeless, she doesn’t care if she dies, she can’t sleep, what did you do to validate on your therapy?
Tufts replied, “I told her that this was something we could address, there was hope, there were treatments.”
