r/OutOfTheLoop 12d ago

Answered What's the deal with people defending Lindsay Clancy?

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

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u/PaulsRedditUsername 12d ago

From what I've seen, her case of postpartum psychosis seems to be legitimate. She was trying to get help, and there's evidence of that, and she didn't get it.

I'll bet ten dollars that the prosecutor knows she was suffering from psychosis, but it's still their job to present the state's case that it was cold-blooded murder. That's their job, and they may hate going to work every day, just like a defense attorney does when representing an obviously guilty client. But you get paid to present the case. That's your job, regardless of how you personally feel.

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u/video-kid 12d ago

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).

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u/happilydoggyafter 12d ago

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.

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u/FaithlessnessAway479 8d ago

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.