Lindsay Clancy Heard Male Voice Telling Her to Kill Her Children and Herself, Testimony Says

A psychologist testified that Lindsay Clancy told her husband she heard a “male voice” ordering her to kill her three children and then herself.

Clancy, 36, faces three counts of first-degree murder in connection with the 2023 deaths of her children, Cora, Dawson and Callan, who were all under 6 years old. Prosecutors have finished presenting their case, and Clancy’s defense is now arguing that she was suffering from severe postpartum psychosis when the killings occurred.

Dr. Paul Zeizel, a clinical and forensic psychologist, testified that Clancy told her husband, Patrick, that she heard a voice telling her she had no choice but to kill her children and then herself.

“She had said that she heard a male voice ordering her,” Zeizel testified. He said Clancy was also able to tell her husband that she loved him, although she showed little emotion at the time.

Defense attorney Kevin Reddington asked Zeizel whether Clancy could have been pretending to have these symptoms. Zeizel said she was not faking and that there was no evidence she was deliberately exaggerating or making up her condition.

Zeizel had met with Clancy in the hospital after the deaths after the defense obtained permission from the court for him to speak with her.

Clancy’s mother-in-law, Susan Clancy, also testified about Lindsay’s mental health. She said the family had become concerned about her during the 2022 holiday season and that Lindsay had been struggling and asking for help.

Despite those concerns, Susan described her daughter-in-law as a “wonderful mother” who was loving and nurturing.

The defense is now presenting evidence aimed at showing that Clancy was experiencing severe postpartum psychosis when her children died. Her attorneys hope the testimony about her mental state will convince jurors that she was not fully aware of her actions at the time.