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Killings of Cora, Dawson and Callan Clancy

Three children died after an attack at their Duxbury home; their mother pleaded not guilty to murder charges on lack-of-criminal-responsibility grounds.

Place
Duxbury, Massachusetts, United States
Date
24–27 Jan 2023
Status
UnsolvedNo person has been convicted, and the case remains unresolved.
Sources
3 cited sources

Updated 27 Aug 2026

Overview

Case overview

On 24 January 2023, emergency responders were called to the Clancy family home in Duxbury. Five-year-old Cora and three-year-old Dawson were pronounced dead that evening; eight-month-old Callan died in hospital several days later. [1]

Lindsay Clancy was charged with three counts of murder and pleaded not guilty. At trial, the defense argued that she lacked criminal responsibility because of severe mental illness, while prosecutors argued that she understood her actions and was legally responsible. The jury began deliberating on 27 August 2026. [2]

Duxbury Town Hall in Duxbury, Massachusetts, photographed in 2025
Duxbury Town Hall in Duxbury, Massachusetts, photographed in 2025Kenneth C. Zirkel · CC BY-SA 4.0 · View original ↗
Detailed chronology

Key events

7 sourced milestones

Major events in the case, shown in chronological order.

  1. Emergency responders are called to the family home

    Police and emergency medical personnel responded to the Clancy home in Duxbury after Lindsay Clancy's husband called 911. Cora and Dawson were taken to hospital and pronounced dead.

    Source: Plymouth County District Attorney's Office ↗
  2. Callan Clancy dies in hospital

    Eight-month-old Callan Clancy died at Boston Children's Hospital three days after the emergency response. Prosecutors subsequently brought a third murder charge in connection with his death.

    Source: Plymouth County District Attorney's Office ↗
  3. Clancy pleads not guilty at her first arraignment

    Lindsay Clancy was arraigned from a medical facility and pleaded not guilty to three counts each of murder, strangulation, and assault and battery with a dangerous weapon.

    Source: Plymouth County District Attorney's Office ↗
  4. A grand jury returns murder indictments

    A Plymouth County grand jury indicted Lindsay Clancy on three counts of murder and three counts of strangulation, moving the prosecution into Massachusetts Superior Court.

    Source: Plymouth County District Attorney's Office ↗
  5. Superior Court arraignment takes place

    Clancy pleaded not guilty at her Superior Court arraignment, which was conducted at Tewksbury State Hospital. The court ordered that she continue to be held without bail.

    Source: Plymouth County District Attorney's Office ↗
  6. The murder trial begins

    The trial opened in Plymouth Superior Court. The central dispute was not whether Clancy caused the children's deaths, but whether severe mental illness left her without criminal responsibility under Massachusetts law.

    Source: Associated Press ↗
  7. Jury deliberations begin; the trial remains ongoing

    After closing arguments, the jury began deliberating whether Clancy was criminally responsible for the killings. No verdict had been returned when this record was reviewed.

    Source: Associated Press ↗
Watch

Case videos

3 videos

Who is Lindsay Clancy and why is her murder trial so controversial?

ITV News

A concise overview of the charges and the criminal-responsibility question at the center of the trial.

Lindsay Clancy arraignment: Prosecution, defense make cases in killing of 3 Duxbury children

CBS Boston

Extended recording of the prosecution and defense presentations at the February 2023 arraignment.

Lindsay Clancy trial Day 22: Jury begins deliberating

Associated Press

Direct courtroom coverage from the day the jury began deliberating.

Play here or open the original video on YouTube.

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