20/20 Recap: The Trial of Lindsay Clancy — What Happened and What Comes Next
Friday was supposed to be a quiet repeat night on ABC. It was not. A few hours after a judge in Plymouth Superior Court declared a mistrial in the case of Lindsay Clancy, ABC pulled the scheduled rerun and put an all-new hour in its place.
That hour, "The Trial of Lindsay Clancy – Special Edition of 20/20," aired at 9 p.m. ET with David Muir and Deborah Roberts. If you came here from our Friday preview, which listed the repeat ABC had originally scheduled, this is the update.
What happened in court on Friday?
Judge William Sullivan declared a mistrial after the jury told him for a third time that it could not agree. Deliberations had run seven days.
Clancy, 36, is charged with three counts of first-degree murder in the January 2023 deaths of her three children in Duxbury, Massachusetts — Cora, 5, Dawson, 3, and Callan, 8 months. She pleaded not guilty and her lawyers argued she lacked criminal responsibility.
So there is no conviction and no acquittal. The charges stand exactly where they stood before the trial began.
Why did the jury deadlock?
The panel of nine women and three men sent a note that read, in part, that it was "with a heavy heart" that they could not reach a unanimous decision.
Defense attorney Kevin Reddington told reporters the vote was 11-1 in favor of finding Clancy not criminally responsible, and that the lone holdout was refusing to follow the judge's instruction on reasonable doubt. That account comes from the defense; the jurors have not spoken publicly.
Reddington took an emergency request to the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court before the mistrial was entered. It was denied.
What did the 20/20 special cover?
ABC built the hour around the five weeks of testimony, which included more than 70 witnesses, and around the question the jury could not settle: whether severe postpartum psychosis left Clancy unable to understand what she was doing.
Prosecutors told jurors she planned the killings and understood they were wrong. The defense case was that she was hearing commanding voices and that the mental health system had missed how sick she was, even as she sought help.
Patrick Clancy, her ex-husband, testified about her decline after their third child was born. ABC followed the special with a separate hour, "Jane Andrews: The Duchess and the Killer," at 10 p.m.
Where is Lindsay Clancy now?
She remains in custody at Tewksbury State Hospital, the state facility where she has been held under psychiatric care since 2023. A mistrial does not change that.
👉 She is still a defendant awaiting trial, not a convicted prisoner and not a free woman.
What happens on Sept. 29?
Sullivan set a status hearing for Tuesday, Sept. 29, at 9 a.m. in Plymouth Superior Court — 25 days after the mistrial. That is the first date on which the case moves again.
Plymouth County District Attorney Timothy Cruz said Friday there would be no announcement that day. Broadly, his office has four roads:
- Retry the same charges. A second jury hears the same first-degree murder counts.
- Reduce the charges. Prosecutors can go to trial on something less than first-degree murder.
- Resolve it without a trial. A negotiated disposition, which in a case built on mental illness usually means a commitment arrangement.
- Drop it. The rarest of the four, and nothing from Cruz points that way.
Reddington has said he is looking at a constitutional challenge to any retrial. Double jeopardy generally does not bar one after a hung jury, so that would be an uphill argument.
Where to stream the special
The 20/20 hour moved to Hulu and Disney+ the next day. Our viewing guide has the full rundown for all three newsmagazines, and the 20/20 archive collects everything we have written on the show.
Next new 20/20: Friday, Sept. 25, the Season 49 premiere.
FAQ
Was 20/20 new on Sept. 4, 2026?
Yes. ABC replaced a scheduled repeat with an all-new special edition after the mistrial.
Was Lindsay Clancy found not guilty?
No. The jury did not reach a verdict, so the judge declared a mistrial. She has not been convicted or acquitted.
Will she be tried again?
That is the district attorney's call, and it had not been made as of the Sept. 4 mistrial. The next court date is Sept. 29.
Sources
- WBUR — Judge declares mistrial in Clancy case (Sept. 4, 2026)
- CBS News Boston — live coverage of the mistrial
- NPR — With jury deadlocked, judge declares a mistrial
- CNN — Judge in Lindsay Clancy trial declares mistrial
- ABC News press release — "The Trial of Lindsay Clancy" special edition
Listings data via TVmaze. Related on this site: the Delphi appeal hearing set for Sept. 21, the Kouri Richins restitution order, and Saturday's 48 Hours double feature.