Lindsay Clancy’s defense attorney is asking President Donald Trump to pardon his client after a Massachusetts jury deadlocked over whether she was criminally responsible for fatally strangling her three young children: 5-year-old Cora, 3-year-old Dawson, and 8-month-old Callan.
In an interview with “Good Morning America” that aired on Tuesday, Kevin Reddington made an unusual request to the White House after a hopelessly divided jury failed to reach a verdict in a trial that captivated and divided the country.
“I’d like to say that perhaps Donald Trump, who felt compelled to speak out about this case … Mr. President, I would hope that you would consider this young lady, [the] type of person she is, what she’s been through, and consider a pardon,” Reddington told host George Stephanopoulos.
It’s unclear how Trump could grant Clancy a pardon, however, because she was charged under Massachusetts state law, not federal law. The president’s constitutional pardon power extends only to federal crimes, and does not give the president authority to pardon someone for a state offense.
Even if Trump had the power to pardon Clancy, he is unlikely to do so after previously condemning her conduct. In the Oval Office on Friday, Trump called the killings a “horrible tragedy” and predicted that Clancy, who argues she was in the throes of postpartum psychosis, would face another trial, The Daily Wire reported.
“It’s a shame. It’s a horrible tragedy,” Trump told reporters in the Oval Office. “Look, she did a horrible, horrible thing. Can’t be worse.”
In January 2023, Clancy led her three young children to the basement of their Duxbury home and strangled them one by one with exercise bands. She never disputed that she killed her children, but her defense argued that she was suffering from postpartum psychosis.
Trump said the case, which sparked a heated nationwide debate over mental illness and criminal responsibility, had been difficult to avoid because it received so much television coverage. He said Clancy would face consequences and could end up confined in a psychiatric institution or prison.
“There’ll be a price,” Trump said, adding that he believes prosecutors would bring the case to trial again and called that scenario “too bad.”
The Daily Wire reached out to the White House for comment.
Massachusetts Superior Court Judge William Sullivan declared a mistrial Friday after the jury of nine women and three men failed to reach a verdict following 38 hours of deliberations.
“With a heavy heart, we report we cannot come to a unanimous decision,” the jurors wrote in their final note to the judge.
The most serious charges Clancy faced were three counts of first-degree murder, each carrying a mandatory sentence of life in prison without the possibility of parole. She is expected to remain at Tewksbury State Hospital, a psychiatric hospital, for now.
Reddington said he believed the jury was split 11-1 in favor of finding Clancy not guilty by reason of insanity, but the panel’s actual vote remains unknown. As of Tuesday, Reddington said he had not spoken to any of the jurors, and none had given media interviews.
At a Friday press conference, Plymouth County District Attorney Timothy Cruz vowed to pursue justice for the three victims but stopped short of saying his office would retry the case.
“Our priority has always been to fight for Cora, for Dawson, and for Callan. The noise in this case may be louder than it is for other prosecutions in our county, but we have treated it the same as any other case,” Cruz said. “Children were murdered, and it’s our job to seek justice.”
Reddington, on the other hand, said he is optimistic about a possible deal to avoid another trial for Clancy, whom he described as a daughter to him — an “incredible person” with whom he shares a “strong bond.”
“I’m willing to listen to Tim [Cruz]. I’ve known Tim for 30 years. He’s a very high-charging prosecutor, conservative gentleman,” Reddington told ABC. “I hope, however, after sitting through this trial and seeing the evidence that was presented from the government as well as from the defense, that he would revisit that issue and hopefully would be able to work something out that would be acceptable to both sides.”
