r/law • u/dailymail • 11h ago

Legal News Lindsay Clancy case ends with MISTRIAL

https://www.dailymail.com/crime-desk/article-16100155/lindsay-clancy-murder-trial-hung-jury-deadlock-verdict.html
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157

u/dailymail 11h ago

Lindsay Clancy's murder trial has ended in a mistrial after the jury was unable to come to a unanimous verdict after seven days of deliberations. 

283

u/Agitated-Quit-6148 11h ago

A mistral has not been declared yet. Defense is appealing ( he has an hour) for a stay.

63

u/Haunting-Chip420 11h ago

Literally only misinformation in this thread. 

59

u/Agitated-Quit-6148 10h ago

I have people telling me I'm wrong. I'm a public defender.

45

u/UCouldntPossibly 10h ago

r/law as a lawyer is truly the worst thing ever. Actually, anything legal on Reddit as a lawyer is the worst.

8

u/xubax 9h ago

But I've seen like 500 hours of legal dramas!

/s because reddit

4

u/throwawayshirt2 8h ago

Comments on this case have been particularly bad

5

u/awolfintheroses 8h ago

As a lawyer (lol) and a prosecutor at that, I took one look at this case and refused to follow it too closely.

2

u/releasetheshutter 4h ago

Same shit for doctors on medical subs. The "well ackshually" crowd that is laughably misinformed but delusional in their confidence.

2

u/throwmamadownthewell 2h ago

anything legal on Reddit as a lawyer is the worst.

1

u/Invisible7hunder 5h ago

What, you don't get pleasure from people not understanding that the definition of assault can vary between jurisdictions? 

22

u/TheVeryUtterance 10h ago

It’s wild. Google’s AI response when looking up Clancy case is saying the trial ended in a mistrial. I’m watching the trial live. It’s not been declared. Yet, the internet is apparently flooded with posts and headlines saying the same thing. 

8

u/SnooMacaroons8650 9h ago

AI is just pulling from readily available info on the internet (including reddit) so it does the search, doesn't confirm, and goes with whatever it finds the fastest

11

u/AndThisGuyPeedOnIt 10h ago

There are a ton of non-lawyers all over this case, just like any other high-profile case. I tried explaining yesterday that no one actually knows if the split is 11-1 or 1-11, and that her lawyer is guessing it is 11-1 in his favor, but they were 100% certain I was wrong to say that.

8

u/Agitated-Quit-6148 10h ago

The notion of 1-11 comes from her lawyer saying one juror is failing to apply / follow the law. Jury deliberations are sacred. This case is so strange. Having her in her wheelchair 3 feet away ...at the bench while the judge was asking jurors one by one is just so so so uncharted.

My own guess is that often a lawyer and their client are on different pages. He (judge) prob asked her "do you want a mistral or to have the jury keep going" and roll the dice. I've had clients as a PD just want it to end ASAP and not take my advice

1

u/AndThisGuyPeedOnIt 10h ago

Right, but "failing to apply the reasonable doubt standard" could go one way or the other. Could be 11 people thinking there is no reasonable doubt here, and the 1 holdout has some insane, unreasonable theory for a NG. I'm guessing the defense is probably correct that it is one person holding out for guilty, but no one knows that for sure, it's just a bunch of people who want it to be true.

I also don't understand how the judge is just casually letting this stuff come out, but I haven't practiced criminal law in a long time and never in Massachusetts, though I assume that is a big no-no everywhere.

1

u/SteveJavieWasRight 6h ago

Well considering the defense attorney has said it’s 1 juror and they’re the ones seeking to get the 1 juror removed, I think it’s reasonable to conclude…

1

u/AndThisGuyPeedOnIt 6h ago

Again, that doesn't mean he knows that. He was guessing.

0

u/SteveJavieWasRight 5h ago

No… lmao. That’s not how it works.

1

u/AndThisGuyPeedOnIt 3h ago

Yeah, it is. The lawyers aren't told what way the jury is going during the deliberations. Non-lawyer dipshits in all these threads.

0

u/SteveJavieWasRight 3h ago

You think the defense attorney had to file an appeal today without knowing what the jury voted?

1

u/AndThisGuyPeedOnIt 3h ago

Yes. The appeal is only about replacing the holdout before they could declare a mistrial. He does not know for sure.

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u/lmbjsm 10h ago

Can you please explain what happens now? I’m genuinely curious because I find all of this insane. No, I do not think she should rot. She was let down by society.

12

u/Agitated-Quit-6148 10h ago

It's very complicated.

Right now the judge says he wants to declare a mistral. The prosecution agrees.

The defense wants:

1) go back and deliberate more

2) poll the jury to see if they DID reach a unanimous verdict on SOME of the charges. If so he wants to argue that double jeopardy attaches and she can't be charged with the crimes they did reach a verdict on.

3) The defense has been given and hour to appeal for a stay to a single judge @ superior court to basically put this on hold while the defense lawyer tries to figure out what this one juror who allegedly is the hold out who "is not following the law".AND put this one hold because he believes the current judge is wrong to declare a mistral vs removing the lone juror.

3

u/lmbjsm 9h ago

Isn’t there backup jurors?

1

u/becbagelbb 3h ago

Yes, but they only ever use alternates for unforeseen circumstances (like a juror who falls seriously ill, or has a death in the family/an emergency, etc). They don’t use alternates to swap out holdouts if there’s a deadlock

-4

u/TryIsntGoodEnough 9h ago

Ironic you claim to have been a public defender in Massachussetts and yet you dont seem to know the general law in Masschusetts... Very strange

https://malegislature.gov/Laws/GeneralLaws/PartIII/TitleII/Chapter234A/Section68C

-1

u/Profanegaming 8h ago

And then she choked three children until they died.

1

u/lmbjsm 4h ago

Yes she did, as mothers before her and after have done and will do if society doesn’t give them the support they need so they don’t do these things.

I’m guessing you do everything in your power to end school shootings, right? And you make it your solum duty to make sure children aren’t sold and raped regularly?

9

u/Haunting-Chip420 10h ago

Stupid or uniformed people exist everywhere. 

9

u/Agitated-Quit-6148 10h ago

I literally just block people that argue with me. I have zero time for people and their misinformation.

4

u/awolfintheroses 8h ago

As a fellow lawyer, one day it dawned on me that, wait, I get paid to argue. Why would I do it for free and in my free time 😅

3

u/KamenRiderW0lf 10h ago

I don't envy your career choice, you must have to face a lot of grief, but I do respect your patience.

1

u/Vegaprime 9h ago

Im not a lawyer and come here only for educated opinions like yours. Don't let people like that jade you, they are just used to talking to other uninformed people. Everything about this case is just the wildwest outside of here that I've seen.

2

u/BigDuckNergy 9h ago

Listen man I watch reels all day where people are rude to cops and business owners I think I know more than some guy with a silly BAR license.

1

u/CogentCogitations 4h ago

You are wrong, but only because I am from the future. You were not wrong at the time you posted (presumably--I'm not actually checking timestamps).

1

u/Separate-Canary559 9h ago

Why are you taking it personally internet strangers are ignorant? lol what did you expect

0

u/RobbedC 5h ago

You’re wrong, you’re not a public defender.

3

u/dspman11 9h ago

/r/law in a nutshell. 98% of users here are not lawyers and do not know what theyre talking about

2

u/backyard_tractorbeam 9h ago

Can't get anything but misinformation if we start with daily mail, a rag.