LINDSAY Clancy has been left struggling as her blockbuster murder trial nears its end, her lawyer has revealed after his dramatic bid to have the case thrown into a mistrial.
Clancy, 36, is accused of murdering her three young children at her Duxbury, Massachusetts home in January 2023, but has pleaded not guilty on the grounds she was suffering from postpartum psychosis.
Her attorney Kevin Reddington spoke exclusively to The U.S. Sun outside Plymouth Superior Court on Monday afternoon, shortly after jurors were sent home early following a dramatic showdown over testimony about Clancy’s Catholic faith.
“Lindsay is, you know, she’s pretty beat up and is used to not having support, and I think it means a lot to her,” Reddington told The U.S. Sun.
Hundreds of people have rallied behind Clancy during the trial, with supporters wearing pink gathering outside the courthouse.
Reddington said he has made sure Clancy knows about the backing she has received.
“I’ve tried to tell her that there’s a lot of people that are behind her and at least recognize the fact that she’s a nice person and was dealt bad by the medical profession,” he said.
Asked how Clancy was coping as the trial moves toward its conclusion, Reddington said, “She doesn’t have a mindset, you know, she just listens and sits there.”
He later said Clancy was “under medication” and “doing okay” while being treated at Tewksbury Hospital.
His comments came just after Reddington asked Judge William Sullivan to declare a mistrial over testimony from the prosecution’s forensic psychologist, Dr Kirk Heilbrun.
The dispute erupted after Heilbrun brought Clancy’s Roman Catholic background and the concept of sin into his testimony while discussing her state of mind surrounding suicide.
Reddington stressed afterward that Heilbrun had not actually used the words “mortal sin” on Monday.
“They didn’t say mortal sin today,” he said outside of court.
“They made reference to the Roman Catholic religion and sin, but they didn’t use the mortal sin analogy today.”
That distinction came after religion had already sparked controversy earlier in the trial, when Clancy’s former mother-in-law was questioned about whether murder was considered a “mortal sin.”
“I believe it was intentional misconduct,” Reddington told Sullivan during arguments outside the jury’s presence.
Sullivan denied the motion but sharply questioned why Clancy’s religion had been raised at all.
“How is any of that proper at this point?” the judge said before deciding to give jurors a forceful instruction to disregard the evidence.
He then told the panel that “the religion that the defendant was raised with” was irrelevant before sending jurors home early on Monday afternoon.
Reddington said afterward that the ruling did not shake his confidence in the jury.
“I knew that Judge Sullivan would exercise his discretion, and he would give a strong instruction if he denied the motion,” he said.
“So that’s what he did.”
Asked whether he feared jurors would struggle to put the religious testimony out of their minds, Reddington said, “No. I have no doubt that the jury will listen to the judge’s instructions and be able to overlook it.”
And when asked outside of court whether the drama had changed his mindset heading toward closing arguments, he replied simply, “Not at all. Nope.”
Still, the veteran defense lawyer refused to predict an outcome.
“It’s a trial. You never know. Up and down. You’re happy. You’re not. Who knows?” he said.
“But yeah, it’s been a good trial. I think the evidence has come out and I feel pretty good about it.”
Asked whether Monday’s religious testimony could eventually provide grounds for an appeal, Reddington said he was focused on avoiding that scenario altogether.
“Well, you have to be found guilty before you do an appeal,” he said. “And I’d rather not have her found guilty.”
The mistrial drama capped an already fiery day in court.
Earlier Monday, Reddington tore into prosecution psychiatrist Dr Avram Mack over his experience and conclusions about Clancy’s mental state.
At one point Mack appeared to smile, prompting the lawyer to snap: “What are you smiling for? This is not funny, sir.”
Judge Sullivan also reprimanded Mack during the tense questioning, telling him, “You don’t really ask a lot of questions. You answer the questions.”
Several jurors were seen shaking their heads and rolling their eyes during parts of Mack’s testimony, while Clancy later appeared to smirk after he was dismissed from the stand.
Source : https://www.the-sun.com/news/16891120/lindsay-clancy-lawyer-breaks-silence-mistrial-motion/
