A tense moment unfolded during the Lindsay Clancy trial when prosecutor Shanan Buckingham questioned Susan Clancy about her Catholic faith and the concept of a “mortal sin.”
On the latest episode of The Trial USA, crime correspondent Rachel Sharp takes listeners inside Plymouth Superior Court for day fifteen of the Lindsay Clancy trial, the second day of the defence’s case.
Clancy, 36, stands accused of the murders of her three young children, Cora, 5, Dawson, 3, and eight-month-old Callan. The former maternity nurse admits killing her children, but her defence argues she was suffering from postpartum psychosis and bipolar disorder and is therefore not criminally responsible.
Susan Clancy, the defendant’s former mother-in-law and grandmother of the three children who died, was called to the stand by the defence. She told jurors Lindsay had been a good mother, and described her mental decline after the birth of her third child, Callan.
During cross-examination, prosecutor Shanan Buckingham asked Susan to recount the family’s Christmas in 2022, a month before the children died. Having established that Susan was an active member of the Catholic Church, Buckingham then asked: ‘So you’re aware that murder is considered a mortal sin?’
On the latest Trial USA, crime correspondent Rachel Sharp takes listeners inside Plymouth Superior Court for day fifteen of the Lindsay Clancy trial
Susan Clancy, the defendant’s former mother-in-law and grandmother of the three children who died, was called to the stand by the defence
‘The reaction in the court was one of shock,’ Sharp told Trial USA host Kayla Brantley.
‘Jurors looked up a bit stunned by her questioning of that. Judge William Sullivan told the jury [the question] would be struck and they should disregard it entirely.
‘We have looked into this and there is a section of the Mᴀssachusetts guide to evidence which says that a witness’s religious beliefs or opinions are not admissible to attack or support that witness’s credibility.
‘That raised questions as to whether the defence’s attorney, Kevin Reddington, could seek a mistrial because of those comments.
‘I asked Kevin about that and he said no. The judge addressed it by getting it struck and he was very firm. He did not ask for a mistrial.’
Asked by Brantley why the prosecution went down that road, Sharp said it was the question everyone in the room was asking.
Sharp said: ‘This is a grieving grandmother who has lost her three grandchildren. Her family has been torn apart by this.
‘It was a very curious tactic, to seemingly attack her in that way. The Clancys are very faith-filled people.
Clancy, 36, stands accused of the murders of her three young children, Cora, 5, Dawson, 3, and eight-month-old Callan
‘In fact, her priest was there in the courtroom to support her, along with her husband, while she gave this testimony. I saw them in the corridor before, saying a prayer together.
‘Obviously, faith is a big thing [for them]. So it’s definitely an interesting one.’
The trial continues, with the defence expected to rest its case and closing arguments anticipated early next week.
To hear Rachel Sharp on the rest of the defence case, including the psychologist who let Clancy call her husband from her hospital bed, search for The Trial USA wherever you get your podcasts.
SOURCE: https://www.dailymail.com/crime-desk/article-16070595/lindsay-clancy-trial-mortal-sin-question-grandmother-trial-usa.html
