(CNN) — A psychiatric nurse practitioner who examined Lindsay Clancy months before she killed her three children took the stand Tuesday in the third week of the Massachusetts mother’s murder trial.
Rebecca Jollotta, a psychiatric nurse practitioner with South Shore Hospital’s perinatal behavioral health program, testified she had a telehealth visit with Clancy in November 2022. Clancy appeared anxious and was struggling to get a full night sleep. Still, she had no signs of mania or psychosis, and her thought process was “linear” and “goal-directed,” Jollotta testified.
The testimony comes three weeks into Clancy’s trial on three counts of murder in the killings of her children Cora, 5; Dawson, 3; and Callan, 8 months. The trial has featured testimony about the lead-up to the killings and Clancy’s struggles with post-partum anxiety, depression and insomnia — and stoked a nationwide conversation about the issues.
Prosecutors have argued Clancy “acted intentionally, rationally and swiftly” when she fatally strangled her three children and attempted suicide at their Duxbury home on January 24, 2023.
Her defense attorneys have argued what’s known as the “insanity defense,” saying she is not criminally responsible because she was in the midst of a psychotic episode stemming from postpartum mental illness.
Her family, friends and mental health professionals have said Clancy did not show any signs of psychosis before or after the killings and did not believe she was a danger to herself or her children. Yet those who knew her unanimously said she was a caring mother whose mental health was deteriorating. Clancy told one friend in January 2023 that a medication caused her to have “some dark thoughts,” the friend testified.
Tuesday marks Clancy’s 36th birthday.
Testimony began two weeks ago with opening statements and an emotional witness account from her husband, Patrick Clancy. Last week’s testimony focused on her mental health status before and after the killings, her physical injuries from her suicide attempt, and her friends’ and family’s concerns.
The trial is expected to last six to eight weeks. Clancy faces life in prison if convicted of murder. She is being held at the public Tewksbury Hospital in Massachusetts, which specializes in treating those with mental illness.
Defense sharply questions mental health experts
On Monday, Clancy’s defense attorney Kevin Reddington sharply questioned Dr. Jennifer Tufts, Clancy’s primary psychiatrist, about her treatment plan and her expertise.
Tufts saw Clancy 14 times between September 2022 to January 2023, repeatedly adjusting her prescriptions as Clancy grappled with anxiety, depression and insomnia. She also provided counseling support.
“I listened to her, listened to her concerns, provided support, tried to provide her with hope that things would improve,” Tufts said.
Reddington challenged Tufts on her qualifications and experience, her use of telemedicine, her many prescriptions and her notes. He repeatedly cut off her answers with follow-up questions, leading to objections from the prosecution and admonishments from the judge.
“If I ask you a question, respectfully, can you just not go on and ramble? Answer yes or no, that’s all,” Reddington said.
“It’s sometimes impossible to do that,” Tufts responded.
Tufts finished her residency in August 2022 and saw Clancy for the first time a month later. She testified she had treated at least 50 people with postpartum issues during her residency.
Tufts’ and Clancy’s 14 visits were all conducted via telemedicine, and this trial is the first time they have been in the same room together, Tufts testified. Reddington challenged her use of telemedicine and noted she couldn’t even give Clancy a hug over the computer.
“I couldn’t give her a hug, but that’s not actually something psychiatrists typically do with patients,” Tufts said.
Tufts said she almost exclusively relied on Clancy’s own statements in evaluating her mental health. She did not speak to Clancy’s parents and only spoke to her husband at one session in December 2022.
On Monday afternoon, Julie Paul, a psychiatric nurse practitioner, testified that Clancy in November 2022 had anxiety, felt overwhelmed and had racing thoughts, conditions that are “very typical” for postpartum patients. Paul prescribed Clancy Prozac and advised her that the medication takes some time to see benefits, but within days Clancy reported she wanted to switch to a different medication.
It was part of a pattern for Clancy, who took about a dozen different medications between late 2022 and January 2023, according to testimony in the trial.
“I keep reaching out to different people and not sticking with the plan,” Clancy said, according to Tufts.
This is a developing story and will be updated.
The-CNN-Wire
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