A Massachusetts judge has declared a mistrial in the murder case against Lindsay Clancy after jurors conceded they would not be able to unanimously decide whether she should be held criminally liable for killing her three young children after a week of deliberating.
The case against Clancy has both captivated and heavily divided the American public, even spurring remarks from the US president.
There was a sense of disbelief in the courtroom as the case – and Clancy’s future – were left in limbo.
Clancy’s lawyer led a dramatic last-ditch attempt to halt the mistrial and force a verdict, which was unsuccessful. A hearing later this month could establish what happens next in the case.
“At this point, I’m going to declare that the jury is deadlocked and I’m going to declare a mistrial,” Judge William Sullivan told the jury on Friday, dismissing them after weeks of testimony, seven days mulling Clancy’s fate and the panel signalling three times that they were deadlocked.
The deadlock – known as a hung jury – does not mean prosecutors have proven their case, nor does it mean the defendant is not guilty.
A hearing was scheduled for 29 September, in which prosecutors could outline their next steps in the case.
Meanwhile, the 36-year-old former nurse will remain held on the same murder charges and continue to stay in the mental health facility in which she is currently housed.
Prosecutors could decide from a host of options as to what happens next, including holding another trial or coming to a plea agreement with Clancy over the strangulation of her children – five-year-old Cora, Dawson, three, and eight-month-old Callan – in their Massachusetts home.
After killing the children, Clancy cut herself with a knife and jumped from a second-story window in an attempt to take her own life, which left her paralysed.
