Psychiatrist testifies in Lindsay Clancy triple-murder trial

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Dr Jennifer Tufts testified that Lindsay Clancy reported anxiety attacks, insomnia, racing thoughts and poor appetite during a September 2022 assessment. Clancy also disclosed drinking one or two drinks on five days a week and feeling guilty about it. She did not report suicidal thoughts, plans to harm others or auditory hallucinations on the intake form. Tufts diagnosed her with generalised anxiety disorder and adjustment disorder with depressed mood, and prescribed Zoloft, which Clancy later stopped because of side effects.

The trial concerns the January 2023 deaths of Clancy’s three children, aged five, three and eight months. The defence says her mental state was severely impaired, while prosecutors argue she understood her actions and remains criminally responsible. A McLean Hospital psychiatrist had diagnosed severe major depressive disorder without psychotic features shortly before the killings. Clancy survived a suicide attempt and is now paralysed. A guilty verdict could bring life without parole, while a finding of not criminally responsible could lead to institutionalisation.