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<v Speaker 1>A trial that has captured America. The trial of Lindsay Clancy.

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<v Speaker 2>The Massachusetts mother claims that postpartum psychosis led her to

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<v Speaker 2>kill her three young children.

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<v Speaker 3>She became very depressed and she was having a really

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<v Speaker 3>hard time.

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<v Speaker 4>The central question for jurors is if she was legally

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<v Speaker 4>responsible at the time.

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<v Speaker 3>This trial has gone global.

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<v Speaker 5>I think you guys are judging the wrong person.

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<v Speaker 6>She was aware that that was wrong or against the

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<v Speaker 6>law and that she could be punished.

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<v Speaker 2>She loved her children, all of them, very, very much.

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<v Speaker 1>Is Lindsay Clancy criminally responsible for the deaths of her

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<v Speaker 1>three young children? That's the question facing a jury in

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<v Speaker 1>Massachusetts today. as the trial of the former nurse accused

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<v Speaker 1>of strangling her children in January 2023 is underway. Lindsay

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<v Speaker 1>Clancy doesn't dispute carrying out the killings of five-year-old Cora,

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<v Speaker 1>three-year-old Dawson and eight-month-old Callan before she jumped out of

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<v Speaker 1>a second window floor. Prosecutors say she acted deliberately, but

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<v Speaker 1>she's pleaded not guilty to murder charges. Her defence team

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<v Speaker 1>argues that she was suffering from a severe postpartum mental illness,

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<v Speaker 1>including psychosis. and was unable to understand the consequences.

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<v Speaker 7>Of her actions.

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<v Speaker 1>Our reporter Anna Feige is following the trial.

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<v Speaker 4>What happened on that January 2023 day was Lindsay Clancy's

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<v Speaker 4>husband went to go run a few errands. He left

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<v Speaker 4>her at home alone with the children, and that's when

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<v Speaker 4>she killed the three of them and attempted to kill herself.

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<v Speaker 4>The prosecution alleges that she made a calculated decision to

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<v Speaker 4>intentionally kill her three children. They say she knew what

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<v Speaker 4>she was doing. and they're arguing against the postpartum psychosis

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<v Speaker 4>explanation that the defense has offered. What they need to

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<v Speaker 4>prove is that she was criminally responsible and should be

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<v Speaker 4>found guilty of those three first-degree murder charges that she faces.

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<v Speaker 1>Lindsay Clancy is not expected to take the stand during

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<v Speaker 1>the trial, but her defense team has argued that she

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<v Speaker 1>was not criminally responsible for her actions. Here's Anna again

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<v Speaker 1>with a closer look at the defense case.

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<v Speaker 4>The argument defending Lindsay Clancy centers around her diagnosis of

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<v Speaker 4>postpartum psychosis. Her lawyers are saying that she wasn't in

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<v Speaker 4>her right mind when she killed her three children. Throughout

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<v Speaker 4>the trial, we've heard from a number of family members

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<v Speaker 4>of Lindsay Clancy's, including her mother and her mother-in-law. And

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<v Speaker 4>they brought forward some of the most emotional testimony talking

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<v Speaker 4>about how she was feeling at the time, how she

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<v Speaker 4>wasn't really herself, how she was, as they say, begging

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<v Speaker 4>for help.

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<v Speaker 6>The beginning of December, it seemed like she very much decompensated.

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<v Speaker 6>I do remember her saying at one point at the

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<v Speaker 6>beginning of December, something along the lines of, I'm in

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<v Speaker 6>a really tough spot. And knowing what she had shared

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<v Speaker 6>with me previously about how her mental health had been struggling,

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<v Speaker 6>I had this gut feeling that something was off and

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<v Speaker 6>that she was really struggling, and I asked her if

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<v Speaker 6>she was safe.

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<v Speaker 2>What did she say?

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<v Speaker 6>She said yes at that point.

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<v Speaker 2>Lindsay was a very loving mother. She was dedicated to

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<v Speaker 2>her children. She was a fun mother. She was always

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<v Speaker 2>doing things for her kids. She always wanted to be

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<v Speaker 2>a mother, have many children, and I felt it was

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<v Speaker 2>the best thing that ever happened to her. And she

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<v Speaker 2>would do anything for her children. She was just a

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<v Speaker 2>loving mother.

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<v Speaker 4>Very early on in the trial, we heard directly from

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<v Speaker 4>Patrick Clancy, Lindsay Clancy's husband. They've since divorced, but he

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<v Speaker 4>took to the stand, and he basically said that the

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<v Speaker 4>person who killed his children was not who he knew

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<v Speaker 4>his wife to be.

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<v Speaker 3>She started to lose a lot of weight, and she

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<v Speaker 3>became very depressed, and she was having a really hard time.

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<v Speaker 7>And.

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<v Speaker 4>Did she describe to you some thoughts or feelings that

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<v Speaker 4>she was having at that time?

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<v Speaker 3>Yeah, she started to say she was suicidal.

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<v Speaker 1>Well, as we've just heard, a key element of the

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<v Speaker 1>trial is the concept of postpartum psychosis. But what is

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<v Speaker 1>it exactly? Here's Debra Becker, host at WBUR, the National

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<v Speaker 1>Public Radio's affiliate in Boston, who's also been following the trial.

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<v Speaker 8>It's one of the disorders that new mothers can experience

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<v Speaker 8>in the months after giving birth. And it's described as

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<v Speaker 8>having symptoms that can be misdiagnosed quite easily. Irritability, anxiety, insomnia,

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<v Speaker 8>things that might happen to a sleep deprived person who

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<v Speaker 8>is taking care of a new infant. And so I

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<v Speaker 8>think it hasn't been getting the attention that it probably

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<v Speaker 8>should be getting because it happens in about one to

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<v Speaker 8>two of every 1,000 births. And what happens in that

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<v Speaker 8>case is someone becomes detached from reality and can start

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<v Speaker 8>being very delusional and having very extreme symptoms. And it

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<v Speaker 8>can be a dangerous disorder. But what most experts say

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<v Speaker 8>is it's temporary and it's treatable if it's diagnosed properly.

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<v Speaker 8>And of course, the defense in Lindsay Clancy's case is

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<v Speaker 8>arguing that this is what she experienced that led her

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<v Speaker 8>to kill her children.

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<v Speaker 1>Well, let's hear now from a woman who's spoken about

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<v Speaker 1>her own struggle with postpartum psychosis. Hayley Ashcombe has been

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<v Speaker 1>sharing her experience with Chanel Call of CBS News.

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<v Speaker 5>Good job!

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<v Speaker 9>Haley Ashcom dreamed of having a big family.

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<v Speaker 7>I had always wanted to be a mom.

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<v Speaker 9>But in 2020, after giving birth to her first son, Kane,

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<v Speaker 9>that dream turned into a nightmare.

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<v Speaker 7>It first presented kind of as insomnia, difficulty sleeping, a

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<v Speaker 7>lot of anxieties, but they continued to escalate. What I

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<v Speaker 7>believe were intrusive thoughts. ended up turning into voices.

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<v Speaker 9>Ashcom says she was diagnosed with postpartum depression and prescribed Zoloft,

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<v Speaker 9>the same anti-anxiety medication Lindsay Clancy was first prescribed. But

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<v Speaker 9>those voices, Ashcom says, got louder and turned violent.

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<v Speaker 7>I've never in my life gone through a period where

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<v Speaker 7>I thought it would be better not to be alive.

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<v Speaker 7>And all of a sudden, it became the only option.

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<v Speaker 9>Ashcom says she went straight to a hospital. And like Clancy,

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<v Speaker 9>was prescribed a second anti-anxiety med.

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<v Speaker 3>Did those voices go away?

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<v Speaker 7>Unfortunately, they just continued to get worse.

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<v Speaker 9>Ultimately, she checked herself into a psychiatric hospital, where she

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<v Speaker 9>says she was diagnosed with postpartum psychosis. How much did

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<v Speaker 9>you know about postpartum psychosis?

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<v Speaker 6>Nothing.

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<v Speaker 7>I was so taken aback and thought that I was

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<v Speaker 7>such a monster.

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<v Speaker 1>This feels like a watershed moment.

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<v Speaker 7>Dr.

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<v Speaker 9>Catherine Berndorf treats women with this illness. Is this being underdiagnosed?

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<v Speaker 3>I fear that it is.

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<v Speaker 9>She says postpartum psychosis isn't listed in the standard handbook

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<v Speaker 9>used by American mental health experts, which means many doctors

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<v Speaker 9>often don't know what to look for. Are women falling

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<v Speaker 9>through the cracks here?

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<v Speaker 4>Yeah, they are.

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<v Speaker 7>It's A very lethal and dangerous illness that when left

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<v Speaker 7>untreated has tragic outcomes.

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<v Speaker 9>Ashcom is thankful she got the treatment she needed in

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<v Speaker 9>time and went on to have three more children without

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<v Speaker 9>experiencing psychosis again. Chanel Call, CBS News.

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<v Speaker 1>Well, back to the trial now because the court proceedings

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<v Speaker 1>have been streamed by millions of people online and have

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<v Speaker 1>sparked intense debate.

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<v Speaker 5>I think you guys are judging the wrong person.

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<v Speaker 1>Social media has been flooded with commentary, claims about perceived

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<v Speaker 1>inconsistencies in the evidence and a range of conspiracy theories.

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<v Speaker 1>Our social media investigations correspondent, Marianna Spring, has been looking

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<v Speaker 1>into them.

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<v Speaker 5>This case has absolutely taken over social media feeds. And

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<v Speaker 5>what started as often legitimate concerns and questions that people

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<v Speaker 5>had about the trial, people expressing support for Lindsay Clancy

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<v Speaker 5>or concerns around the way that women are treated when

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<v Speaker 5>they've had kids and are possibly experiencing mental health difficulties,

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<v Speaker 5>has now snowballed into a whole range of unfounded conspiracy

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<v Speaker 5>theories and at times quite harmful misinformation. Loads of other

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<v Speaker 5>people related to the case are being targeted. The ex-husband

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<v Speaker 5>of Lindsay Clancy has found himself one of the main

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<v Speaker 5>focuses of a lot of the speculation and then misinformation online. Again, apart,

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<v Speaker 5>you know, different from valid concerns that people have. And

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<v Speaker 5>a lot of the people getting involved in this are

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<v Speaker 5>what we might call sleuths, TikTok sleuths, people who pour

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<v Speaker 5>over the case. They're watching the clips from the court

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<v Speaker 5>or live stream feeds every single day and trying to

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<v Speaker 5>make sense of what's going on from their bedrooms and

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<v Speaker 5>from their homes. And while there's some valid commentary, a

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<v Speaker 5>lot of this can get quite toxic. I mean, we've

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<v Speaker 5>even seen people basically recreating videos the murder scene with

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<v Speaker 5>Bratz dolls, it's what we would often call as sleuthing

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<v Speaker 5>gone a bit wrong.

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<v Speaker 1>Well, at the heart of this trial is a single question.

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<v Speaker 1>Was Lindsay Clancy legally responsible for what she did? Let's

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<v Speaker 1>take a look at the possible outcomes of the trial

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<v Speaker 1>and what the future might look like for the accused.

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<v Speaker 1>Back to our reporter, Anna Fagey.

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<v Speaker 4>When the jury reaches their conclusion, if they find that

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<v Speaker 4>Clancy is guilty of those first-degree murder charges, she'll face

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<v Speaker 4>a mandatory conviction life sentence without the possibility of parole.

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<v Speaker 4>And that's mandatory in the state of Massachusetts. If she's

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<v Speaker 4>found not guilty, she'll have to undergo a mental evaluation

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<v Speaker 4>and then she'll likely be committed to hospital.

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<v Speaker 1>That is all you need to know about the Lindsay

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<v Speaker 1>Clancy trial.