The jury in Lindsay Clancy’s murder trial was sent home without a verdict on Thursday after her defence lawyer claimed a single juror was preventing the panel from reaching a decision.
Kevin Reddington asked Judge William Sullivan to remove the juror, alleging they had refused to follow the court’s instructions on reasonable doubt. Prosecutors opposed the request, saying it was impossible to determine which account of the private deliberations was accurate.
The dispute emerged on the sixth day of deliberations in Plymouth Superior Court, Massachusetts, after the jury foreperson sent the judge a note about the alleged hold-out. The panel had already told the court twice that it could not agree on a verdict.
Judge Sullivan questioned the jurors individually before reminding them that they were required to follow his directions on the law. He then reread the definition of reasonable doubt and instructed them to continue deliberating.
“I don’t feel it is proper for me to side with one side or the other of the deliberations,” the judge said, declining to dismiss the juror. He added that the jurors had previously sworn they were able to follow his instructions.
Mr Reddington warned that it would be “a real shame” if the case ended in a mistrial because of a juror who had disregarded the court’s directions. He later said he did not want a mistrial and expected further argument over the issue when court resumed.
The jury, made up of nine women and three men, is due back at 9am on Friday, September 4, for a seventh day of deliberations. It is considering whether Ms Clancy is criminally responsible for the deaths of her three children, Cora, Dawson and Callan, at the family’s home in Duxbury on January 24, 2023.
If the jury remains unable to reach a unanimous decision, Judge Sullivan could declare a mistrial, leaving prosecutors to decide whether to seek a retrial, abandon the charges or pursue another resolution.
