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The jury deciding the fate of a Massachusetts woman accused of killing her three children was sent home Thursday after six days of deliberations without coming to a verdict.
Judge William Sullivan dismissed the deadlocked group of nine women and three men for the day at the courthouse in Plymouth, where the trial is taking place.
Earlier in the afternoon, the jury handed a note to Sullivan following several hours of deliberations. The judge then reinstructed the group on the definition of reasonable doubt.
“I just wanted to go over a couple things this afternoon,” Sullivan told the jurors, reports CNN .
“First off, I want to remind you that you are required to follow my instructions on the law as I gave them to you. I also want to at this point go over the instruction that I gave you about reasonable doubt.”
He then read those instructions and told the jury to continue their discussions to determine whether Clancy is guilty of first-degree murder, second-degree murder, or manslaughter. She could also be found not guilty due to lack of criminal responsibility.
A short time later, the jury was sent home for the day and is set to return Friday morning for a seventh day of deliberations.
Courtroom drama
The courtroom drama began when defence lawyer Kevin Reddington spoke to the judge after the jury was sent back to resume their deliberations, seeking to dismiss one juror who appears to be holding up a unanimous verdict.
“Can I suggest respectfully that the soft instruction that you gave them saying, at the sidebar, ‘Can you listen to the law as I instruct you?’, does not focus on the issue,” Reddington said.
“The question is not sufficient enough. It does not allow any foundation for a motion to remove the juror who refuses to accept your instructions from on the law.”
Prosecutor Jennifer Sprague said she had no objection with the judge’s instructions that allowed the jury to continue their discussions.
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Deadlocked jury
On Tuesday and Wednesday, the jurors told the judge that the group was deadlocked, and each day they were told to come back to court to work towards a verdict.
If a jury ultimately decides they cannot reach a unanimous verdict, the judge can declare a mistrial. However, with the group’s permission, a judge could instruct them to continue deliberating.
Clancy, 36, has admitted she killed her three children — Cora, 5, Dawson, 3, and Callan, 8 months — at the family’s Duxbury home in January 2023 while her husband was out running errands.
However, her defence team has maintained she was hearing voices inside her head due to postpartum psychosis and sought mental health care.
Clancy’s lawyers argued she was overprescribed medications and should not be held criminally liable for the deaths.
After she strangled her children with exercise bands, Clancy attempted to kill herself and leapt from her bedroom window, which left her paralyzed from the waist down and confined to a wheelchair.