PLYMOUTH, Mass. (Court TV) — Attorneys representing a woman accused of murdering her three young children have cited another prominent Massachusetts case as they seek additional discovery from prosecutors.
Lindsay Clancy appears in court via Zoom on April 23, 2026. (Court TV)
Lindsay Clancy, 35, is charged with three counts of murder and three counts of strangulation or suffocation in the deaths of her daughter, 5, and sons, ages 3 years and 7 months. Investigators say the children were killed with exercise bands at the family’s home in Duxbury, Massachusetts, in January 2023.
On Thursday, prosecutors confirmed that two doctors had examined Clancy on their behalf, and a third is scheduled to examine her via Zoom. Clancy has not denied killing her children; her defense claims that she was suffering from postpartum psychosis at the time of the incident and has argued that she is not criminally responsible. Prosecutors confirmed that the doctors said they would be able to submit their reports in time so as not to impact the trial, which is currently scheduled to start in July.
MORE | Defense: Lindsay Clancy willing to stipulate to her involvement in kids’ deaths
Clancy’s defense attorney, Kevin Reddington, argued in a motion that prosecutors should turn over all conversations and messages they have had with their witnesses, including proposed expert witnesses and doctors, ahead of the trial. As he argued for access to the data, Reddington invoked an infamous Massachusetts case. “I hate to even mention the case, but the Karen Read case, where that detective, his personal cellphone was utilized, not his business cellphone, so I would ask that the court enter an order that personal or business-related cellphones, computers, tablets would be covered under that order.”
Read stood trial twice in Norfolk County, Massachusetts, on charges she hit and killed her boyfriend, Boston Police Officer John O’Keefe, and left him to die in the snow after a night of drinking. After a first jury deadlocked, a second jury convicted her of driving under the influence but acquitted her of all other charges. Michael Proctor, who served as lead detective in Read’s case, was fired from his position at the Massachusetts State Police after it came to light that he had sent inappropriate text messages on his personal phone, referring to Read as a “nutbag” and a “whackjob” with “no ass.”
The Clancy prosecutors took issue with Reddington’s request, saying they were well aware of their obligations and that there was no basis to hand over data from personal phones. “I’m not trying to be invasive to anyone’s privacy by any means,” Reddington said.
Judge William Sullivan said he would take the issue under advisement and issue a ruling later.
Thursday’s hearing came after Sullivan rejected the defense’s renewed request to bifurcate Clancy’s upcoming trial into two phases.
Clancy is due back in court next month for another pretrial hearing.
