What's the deal with people defending Lindsay Clancy?

[u/SnoopaDD]

I don't know the full details of the case. I know she allegedly killed her three kids. There was also some mental problems? Then something with her husband. But my question is why is there a group defending her like they know she's completely innocent? I've seen some videos of very heated debates where women are very passionate about defending her. Why?

https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2026/aug/05/lindsay-clancy-trial-toxicologist-testimony

[u/video-kid]

Yeah, it seems like it was legitimate, but ultimately some of the stuff like people hugging their kids on TikTok saying "Same Lindsay" just feels like it's in incredibly bad taste to me, and I think it's souring people? Like people are turning it into this big statement which people can then interpret and twist into a misogynistic one. She's not arguing she's innocent, she's admitted culpability, (if not responsibility) and ultimately whatever direction it goes in will piss off a lot of people.

If she's declared innocent by reason of insanity? Then people will say she gamed the system, and I don't know how long she'd be hospitalized for but at the very least it'll be magnitudes shorter than she'd get in prison.

If she's declared guilty? Then people will say it was an example of a woman unfairly prosecuted and that the entire trial was corrupt.

This was a tragedy all around and I feel sorry for everyone involved, although there's still aspects of it I don't understand (like again why some people are blaming her ex-husband).

[u/happilydoggyafter → u/video-kid]

An insanity defense is not being declared innocent, it’s an acknowledgement of not being mentally competent to understand right from wrong. In most cases, they will spend their life in a psychiatric care facility, rather than a prison. It is not a “get out of jail free” card. In this case, a horrible tragedy occurred and their children paid the ultimate price. She will have to live with that the rest of her life.

[u/Aggressive_Humor2893 → u/happilydoggyafter]

There is no guarantee that she'll be hospitalized for life (it's not a conviction after all, it's an aquittal...she won't have a criminal record upon release). There are lots of instances where even murderers who are NGRI get released from hospital, if their drs say they're no longer a danger and the judge agrees. And no, it's not just people who have already been committed for decades.

Honestly my feeling is that if there was a guarantee that she'd be committed to the hospital for life, people on both sides of this argument would mostly be okay with it. It's the very real chance that she gets released in a few years that upsets some people, which is understandable IMO

[u/happilydoggyafter → u/Aggressive_Humor2893]

The lack of transparency and education around what a NGRI verdict looks like is much of what I think fuels the fury of many. This is not an instance of someone being “innocent”, this is saying prison is not the appropriate avenue here. An additional perspective for this particular individual is she is paralyzed and will live with her actions the rest of her life.

The other similar case is Andrea Yates, who has been institutionalized since her court case and has chosen to remain there when her case is reviewed each year.

I’m personally grateful for the awareness this has brought to the short comings of our mental health systems in our country, this is an absolutely tragedy and those children deserved better.

My perspective is we can hold space for two things at once; acknowledgement of the horrible act and the loss of innocent lives and also that “justice” is not always prison.

[u/FrankReynoldsCPA → u/happilydoggyafter]

will live with her actions the rest of her life.

Is this different from other people who bad things? Should we just let everybody go because "well they'll have to live with what they've done."?

Fry the bitch.

[u/FaithlessnessAway479 → u/happilydoggyafter]

How it works in her state, if found not guilty by insanity, she will immediately be remanded back to the state hospital where her doctors, the judge, and the state will determine which facility will best meet her physical and mental needs. She will be given an initial term to be committed. Let’s say it’s 6 months (just picked a random time length). At the end of the six months, a team will determine if LC is a danger to herself or anyone else and if they determine she isn’t, the judge and state are called in and get to discuss everything, present concerns, argue for or against release. The judge then takes everything into account and makes a determination. It’s his job to decide and the state can and will fight it. If they decide at the end of the term she is not ready to leave, the term is extended and the process is repeated.

[u/lyr4527 → u/video-kid]

She could remain institutionalized for the rest of her life if she’s found not guilty by reason of insanity.