Patrick Clancy and his new wife have announced that they are planning to start a family, roughly three-and-a-half years after his former wife, Lindsay Clancy, strangled their three children with exercise bands inside the family’s suburban Massachusetts home.
Patrick and Dr. Rachel Danis discussed their future together in an interview with 60 Minutes, their first public conversation since Lindsay’s criminal case ended in a controversial mistrial earlier this month.
The newlyweds did not say whether Rachel is currently pregnant. But when correspondent Ross Douthat asked, “And you guys are starting a family?”, she smiled, nodded and replied, “Yeah.”
The couple, who married in New York City in April, also said they intend to tell their future child about Patrick’s late children, Cora, Dawson and Callan.
“I think every parent can agree, you have different relationships with your kids, but they’re all your kids. And I can’t wait to tell them about their brothers and sister,” Patrick said.
The interview came just weeks after Patrick faced his former wife in court during her closely watched murder trial, marking an emotional reunion between the pair.
Lindsay Clancy was charged with three counts of first-degree murder in the deaths of Cora, five, Dawson, three, and eight-month-old Callan. The children were killed inside the family home in Duxbury, Massachusetts, on January 24, 2023.
The 36-year-old labor and delivery nurse allegedly strangled the children with exercise bands in the basement after Patrick left the house to collect medicine from CVS and pick up a takeout order from a nearby restaurant.
Patrick and his new wife, Dr. Rachel Danis, spoke with 60 Minutes about their plans for the future in their first interview since Lindsay Clancy’s case ended in a controversial mistrial earlier this month
Patrick and fertility specialist Dr. Rachel Danis said they are planning to start a family about three-and-a-half years after the deaths of his children
Lindsay then attempted to take her own life by cutting her wrists and neck before jumping from a second-floor bedroom window. She survived but was left paralyzed from the waist down.
The mother of three did not dispute that she had killed the children. However, she pleaded not guilty by reason of insanity, arguing that she had been experiencing severe postpartum depression and psychosis at the time.
Her six-week trial in Plymouth, Massachusetts, prompted widespread discussion about postpartum mental illness and criminal responsibility, drawing intense attention in the United States and around the world.
After seven days of deliberations, the jury was unable to reach a unanimous verdict, leading the judge to declare a mistrial.
In an unusual development, it emerged during deliberations that one male juror, later identified as Michael P. Desronvil, had refused to join the other 11 jurors in finding Clancy not guilty by reason of insanity.
Several jurors later accused Desronvil of acknowledging reasonable doubt but declining to apply it under the law. Desronvil, who has hired an attorney, rejected their account in a statement and said he believed Clancy “knew exactly what she was doing.”
Patrick was a key prosecution witness, describing his then-wife’s deteriorating mental health in the months before the killings and recounting the devastating moment he discovered that their three children had died.
Several months after the children’s deaths, Patrick relocated to New York City, sold the family home and filed for divorce.
Our News Outlet exclusively reported in July that the 38-year-old technology executive had found love again and married Rachel, a fertility doctor.
Lindsay, Patrick, Cora, Dawson and Callan Clancy pictured together just weeks before the killings
Clancy’s trial ended in a mistrial after a lone holdout refused to join the other 11 jurors in finding her not guilty by reason of insanity
READ MORE: LINDSAY CLANCY COVERAGE
The couple wed this April in an intimate ceremony at the historic Ladies Pavilion overlooking Central Park’s lake before celebrating with family and friends at Sarabeth’s restaurant.
Speaking to 60 Minutes, Patrick and Rachel revealed that they first met in the same Manhattan park back in January 2024 – one year after his children’s deaths.
They met at a run club in Central Park and Rachel quickly learned about the tragedy that had brought Patrick to New York.
She recalled how they had gotten coffee together after the run club and Patrick pulled out his phone to pay.
She noticed an ‘adorable photo’ of children as the wallpaper and asked: ‘Who are those cuties?,’ Rachel recalled.
When Patrick told her they were his children, she said she first asked if they lived in Massachusetts.
‘And Pat said, “They died.” And this is just at the cashier,’ Rachel told Douthat.
‘I guess I had so many questions, and yet at the same time I didn’t know exactly what to ask.’
Patrick, who shared in the interview that he had become suicidal after his children’s deaths, said that meeting Rachel changed his life ‘in such a positive way.’
‘I always try to take some of the weight from Pat. I always want to strive to do that,’ Rachel added.
Clancy was charged with three counts of first-degree murder for killing Cora, five, Dawson, three, and Callan, eight months old, in 2023
‘I know I can’t fix, I can’t bring his kids back. But if I can honor them and allow Pat to grieve but also just continue to honor them in the present, I guess that’s all I can do.’
A longtime friend of Rachel’s family previously told Our News Outlet that, as a reproductive expert, Patrick’s new wife understands the issues at the heart of the family tragedy – perhaps more than most.
Speaking to 60 Minutes, the couple also spoke out about the vile, baseless accusations and rumors they have faced in recent months.
As Clancy’s trial drew attention all across the globe – with postpartum mental illness taking center stage and pink-clad supporters staging rallies outside the courthouse – with it came a groundswell of online conspiracies.
Patrick’s testimony was picked apart online with some going as far as to accuse him of possible involvement in his children’s deaths.
Since the trial ended, the 38-year-old’s attorney has issued a warning to conspiracy theorists that ‘this spread of blatant and baseless falsehoods must stop’ or ‘there will be consequences.’
Speaking to 60 Minutes, Rachel hit out at the story becoming ‘so twisted’ as she described Patrick as the ‘most selfless father and supportive partner.’
‘I don’t understand how the story has been so twisted. I was just a girl that met a guy running in Central Park on a really cold Saturday. And I don’t think there’s anything wrong with that,’ she said.
Despite trying to move forward with his own life, Patrick continues to defend Clancy and said he has forgiven her for killing their children.
Patrick and Rachel revealed that they first met at a run club in Central Park in January 2024 – one year after his children’s deaths
Patrick, who shared in the interview that he had become suicidal after his children’s deaths, said that meeting Rachel changed his life ‘ in such a positive way’
During her trial, Patrick testified about the moment that he returned home that day to find his wife injured in the back yard and his children dead in the basement.
In one of the most harrowing moments of the trial, jurors heard Patrick’s gut-wrenching, unearthly screams in the 911 call as he found Cora, Dawson and Callan’s bodies.
Throughout his courtroom testimony, Patrick appeared to struggle to contain his emotions, trembling at points and taking deep breaths as he relived the painful memories.
He told Douthat that – despite speculation online that he seemed to be stoic on the stand – he suffered a panic attack in between testimony.
‘We did take a break right before they played the 911 call, which I knew was going to be just horrific,’ he said.
‘And I went to a back room, and I started having this massive traumatic panic attack. My heart was pounding.’
Patrick said he was put in an ambulance and offered medication, but insisted he wanted to resume testifying. ‘I want to finish this so I can be done with this,’ he said of that moment.
Despite killing their children, Patrick testified that Clancy was a ‘very dedicated mother’ who loved the children ‘very much’ but whose mental health had deteriorated drastically in the months leading up to the killings.
As her mental health spiraled, she repeatedly sought psychiatric help and was given more and more medications, he testified.
Speaking to 60 Minutes, the couple also spoke out about the vile, baseless accusations and rumors they have faced in recent months
Despite his unwavering support – and belief that the family was failed by Clancy’s medical providers – Patrick had not seen his now ex-wife in the three and a half years since their children’s deaths.
The moment he took the stand at her murder trial marked the first time they had come face-to-face since that tragic day.
While Patrick tries to rebuild his life with Rachel, Clancy’s criminal case now hangs in the balance.
Plymouth County District Attorney Tim Cruz is yet to reveal whether or not his office plans to try her a second time – and whether on the same or lesser charges.
Clancy’s defense attorney Kevin Reddington has filed a motion asking the court to acquit her on all charges, arguing that the state did not present enough evidence in its case and so should not be able to retry it.
The motion will be argued when the two sides return to Plymouth County Superior Court for a hearing on September 29.
