As jurors in Lindsay Clancy’s murder trial told the court for a second time Wednesday that they could not reach a unanimous decision, a former Massachusetts Superior Court judge said a mistrial could leave the defense in an unusually strong position if the case is tried again.
Clancy, 36, is charged with three counts of first-degree murder in the deaths of her young children — Cora, Dawson and Callan, each younger than 6 — who were discovered strangled inside the family’s home in January 2023.
After the jury again reported being deadlocked Wednesday afternoon, Judge William Sullivan issued a Tuey-Rodriguez instruction, a special charge used in Massachusetts to urge jurors to keep deliberating. The instruction encourages panel members to carefully consider one another’s views while making clear they should not abandon sincerely held beliefs simply to reach a verdict.
Lindsay Clancy looks on as the jury enters the courtroom during her murder trial at Plymouth Superior Court in Plymouth, Mass., on Monday, Aug. 17, 2026. (Greg Derr/Pool The Patriot Ledger via AP)
Sullivan had chosen not to give the Tuey-Rodriguez charge earlier in the week when jurors first indicated they were struggling to agree, instead directing them to return to the jury room and continue discussions.
The jury weighing Clancy’s case has several possible outcomes to consider, ranging from first-degree murder and second-degree murder to voluntary or involuntary manslaughter. Jurors may also consider a verdict of not guilty by reason of lack of criminal responsibility, commonly referred to as an insanity defense, or a full not guilty verdict.
Judge William Sullivan, left, issued the rarely used Tuey-Rodriguez charge to the deadlocked jury Wednesday while Lindsay Clancy, right, watched from the courtroom at Plymouth Superior Court. (Greg Derr/The Patriot Ledger via Pool and David L. Ryan/Pool)
Retired Massachusetts Superior Court Judge Jack Lu told News Outlet that prosecutors have historically benefited from a second trial after a mistrial, but he said the rise of social media has changed the dynamics surrounding high-profile criminal cases.
“In the past, the conventional wisdom was that the prosecution is more likely to win on a retrial after a hung jury. Now it’s different… The new conventional wisdom is question mark because of social media infected trials,” Lu said.
Defense attorney Kevin Reddington addresses reporters as jurors weigh the case against Lindsay Clancy in the 2023 deaths of her three children. (JOSEPH PREZIOSO / AFP via Getty Images)
Lu pointed to Karen Read’s case, the Massachusetts woman who was tried twice in the death of her Boston police officer boyfriend. Her case drew a massive amount of social media interest, which he said had a major impact on her trials. In 2024, jurors deadlocked in Read’s trial, and she was acquitted at her retrial in 2025.
“In the Karen Read case, the social media abuse was at a slow boil in the first trial. At the second trial, it just all erupted,” Lu said.
Kevin Reddington, an attorney for Lindsay Clancy, speaks to reporters outside Plymouth Superior Court on Sept. 1, 2026. (Greg Derr/The Patriot Ledger via AP, Pool)
Lu himself said he’s no longer on social media because “it’s too abusive an environment.”
While Reddington himself said he’d “absolutely” go to trial again if Sullivan declares a mistrial, he said Clancy couldn’t emotionally handle another one.
“She had a flat affect, she’s sad,” he said on Tuesday to reporters.
A GoFundMe for Clancy’s parents, the Musgrove family, has surpassed $830,000, though it’s unclear who would fund her defense in a retrial, or whether Reddington would charge for it.
Callan, left, Dawson and Cora Clancy. The three children were killed at their Duxbury, Massachusetts, home in January 2023. (Lindsay Marie Clancy/Facebook)
Wednesday marks the second time the Clancy jury reported they’ve been unable to reach a unanimous decision.
In a note sent to Sullivan on Tuesday, jurors said that “after many hours of deliberation, we are unable to come to a unanimous decision.” He directed them to resume their work.
“I brought you back out because I know that this was a long trial. All right, I know there were over 80 witnesses. There were over 300 exhibits. Because of that, I’m going to ask you to go back out, keeping in mind all of the instructions that I gave you to go out and to continue your deliberations at this time. All right. And so, with that, I’m going to ask you to go back out. Like I said, keep in mind the instructions I gave you reviewing the evidence, and I’d ask you to resume your deliberations at this time,” Sullivan said.
Lindsay Clancy’s defense lawyer, Kevin J. Reddington, addresses the media outside of Plymouth Superior Court, Wednesday, Aug. 26, 2026. Clancy is on trial for the murder of her three children in January 2023. (David McGlynn for News Outlet)
If jurors return once more to say they are still deadlocked, Lu said, the case will likely end in a mistrial.
“I’m afraid so, with limited exceptions, it would end up being a mistrial, a true hung jury, deadlocked jury,” Lu said.
Jurors will return Thursday to continue deliberations for a sixth day, having already spent more than 28 hours weighing a verdict.
