The defense has now rested in the trial of Lindsay Clancy.
And to the unsettling chorus of women who seem determined to turn this horrific case into a referendum on themselves, perhaps it is time they rested, too.
For days, hundreds of protesters dressed in pink have gathered outside Plymouth Superior Court in Massachusetts, some with their children in tow, wearing shirts emblazoned with messages such as “Believe,” “She Needed Help” and “Peace for Lindsay.”
At one particularly jarring moment, the crowd — a polished wave of coral, fuchsia, magenta and salmon — raised their hands together to form heart symbols.
A 72-year-old retired nurse from Rockland, Massachusetts, told the Associated Press: “I am a mother, I am a grandmother. I have a sister who had problems after birth and it’s just very sad. I hope Lindsay gets the care she needs and deserves and other women will come together like we did today.”
But in all this public emotion, one question keeps cutting through: where is the same attention for the real victims in this case — Clancy’s three young children, whom she has admitted strangling to death?
Online, the response has been even more disturbing. A trend has emerged of women filming themselves clutching their babies and crying as they listen to audio from Clancy’s troubling diary entries being read aloud in court.
“My mind never shut off. It’s constantly thinking of the next thing someone needs. I can’t shut it off,” Clancy’s lawyer is heard saying in one such video, reading from his client’s written words.
The caption reads, ‘same Lindsay.’
‘Same Lindsay’?
Hundreds of pink clad protesters, some holding children, have rallied for days outside the Plymouth, Massachusetts Superior Court House wearing shirts reading, ‘Believe,’ ‘She Needed Help’ and ‘Peace for Lindsay’
In one hair-raising scene, these ladies – a primped-up sea of coral, fuchsia, magenta and salmon – made the ‘heart symbol’ with their hands, in unison
The defense has rested in the Lindsay Clancy trial. To the self-indulgent women who have taken it upon themselves to make this tragedy about them, I say: maybe you should give it a rest, too
If that’s really the case, then dial 911. If it’s not, then spare us the performance.
Other mothers are posting videos of themselves throwing handfulls of ice into empty bathtubs – an apparent technique to safely release pent up anger.
If that works for you, great. I think ice is better used in a margarita.
Look, I get it. I’m a working mother of two. I understand the pressure of raising children and while I’ve been blessed, I have struggled and know other women who have cleared far higher hurdles and carried far heavier burdens than I have.
But this Lindsay Clancy disaster, I believe her legal team has shown, is no ordinary case.
I have no doubt she was suffering from postpartum psychosis – a severe medical illness that is considered a critical medical emergency.
Crying in front of your iPhone makes light of that.
So, let’s say it together: THIS IS NOT ABOUT ME.
You can also make the case Clancy was a victim of gross psychiatric misconduct. This harried 36-year-old mom appears to have had a pharmacy of anti-psychotics, anti-depressants and sleep aids thrown in her face by medical providers who admit they didn’t review her medical history. (Clancy’s doctors and nurses deny all wrongdoing)
Thirteen different drugs in four months seems horrific, in my opinion; and for a woman who begged for help, called suicide hotlines and even checked herself into a psychiatric hospital, a grave ending is wholly unsurprising to me.
This can all be true and still, it doesn’t make Clancy an avatar for struggling moms or, even worse, some kind of feminist folk hero.
Here’s a thought experiment for anyone clucking to themselves over my point of view.
Nick Reiner, the troubled son of Rob and Michele Reiner, is accused of killing them in cold blood while they slept. He reportedly had a long-documented history of severe mental illness, stints in rehab and substance abuse issues.
I don’t see gals in matching track suits and bedazzled blouses reading ‘He Needed Help’ protesting outside the Los Angeles correctional facility where he’s held.
Reiner allegedly committed parricide, the killing of one’s own parents, that’s not too dissimilar from Clancy’s charge of filicide. But somehow, in the twisted minds of Clancy’s new fanbase, a mother killing her kids somehow makes her a martyr.
‘My mind never shut off. It’s constantly thinking of the next thing someone needs. I can’t shut it off,’ Clancy lawyer says in one video
What seems to be missing in this outpouring of hysteria is any mention of the true victims in this case: Clancy’s three innocent children, who she admittedly strangled to death
The tragedy cannot result in the canonization of Lindsay Clancy, no matter the outcome of the trial. Instead, we must work toward greater awareness of postpartum conditions to prevent future catastrophes. But that requires unemotional, rational thinking. Something that’s in seriously short supply these days.
Another aspect worth noting is the differing way that typical men and women seem to be consuming the trial. I know a lot of men who are not only disgusted by the murders themselves, but empathize with ex-husband Patrick Clancy, who has been subjected to some brutal accusations, which I wrote about last week.
Patrick’s on a sort of public trial; one being played out on Reddit pages and TikTok posts that have portrayed him as a monster. I obviously disagree with that assessment, but I am troubled by the number of people in Lindsay’s orbit who, I believe, could have done more to intervene.
While Patrick has my sympathy, I’m not quick to bestow sainthood on him either.
Let’s all regain our composure and turn our attention to the ones who cannot advocate for themselves. And while we are discovering what it really means to advocate for children, perhaps we can leave them at home and off social media?
