Updated
Updated · The Boston Globe · Sep 8
Healey Says She Cannot Pardon Lindsay Clancy After 2023 Killings Without a Conviction
Updated
Updated · The Boston Globe · Sep 8

Healey Says She Cannot Pardon Lindsay Clancy After 2023 Killings Without a Conviction

3 articles · Updated · The Boston Globe · Sep 8

Summary

  • Maura Healey said Tuesday she lacks authority to pardon Lindsay Clancy because last week’s mistrial left no conviction for the 36-year-old Duxbury mother.
  • Jurors deadlocked on whether Clancy was criminally responsible for killing her three children in 2023, and prosecutors have not said whether they will retry the first-degree murder case or pursue lesser charges.
  • Kevin Reddington, Clancy’s lawyer, publicly asked President Trump for a pardon, but presidential clemency applies only to federal crimes and Clancy’s case is in Massachusetts state court.
  • Massachusetts pardons require the governor and Governor’s Council, with applications typically vetted by a Parole Board advisory panel; Healey has issued more than two dozen pardons, including a 2024 blanket marijuana pardon.

Insights

With a pardon legally impossible and the jury deadlocked, will prosecutors risk another trial or pursue lesser charges for Lindsay Clancy?
If a mistrial prevents a pardon, how will the justice system ultimately handle a tragic case rooted in severe postpartum psychosis?