Lindsay Clancy’s lawsuit against doctors hits roadblock after they make under-the-radar move during her murder trial

LINDSAY Clancy’s psychiatrist – who faced a brutal grilling on the stand during her murder trial – is fighting back against a civil lawsuit filed by the mom who killed her three children. Dr. Jennifer Tufts, who treated Clancy for severe mental health issues before she strangled her kids, is demanding a medical malpractice tribunal to decide whether the negligence case against her stacks up. Psychiatrist Dr. Jennifer Tufts sits on the witness stand during Lindsay Clancy’s murder trial at Plymouth Superior Court Credit: AP Lindsay Clancy listens to Judge William F. Sullivan addressing the court after pleading not guilty to murder Credit: Reuters The move would see a panel including medical and legal experts scrutinize Tufts’ treatment of Clancy and decide whether there is evidence she failed her patient in the months before the horrific killings. Documents obtained by The U.S. Sun reveal the legal move was made in Norfolk Superior Court in Massachusetts as Clancy’s blockbuster criminal trial plays out around 40 miles away in Plymouth. Sign up for The Sun newsletter Thank you! Clancy filed the medical malpractice lawsuit in January 2026, accusing Tufts and other healthcare professionals and organizations involved in her care of failing to properly recognize and treat her deteriorating psychiatric condition before the killings. Tufts began treating Clancy in September 2022 and saw her 14 times over nearly five months, with her final appointment taking place on January 23, 2023 – the day before the violence. She never met the mom in person and all of their appointments were conducted virtually. Clancy is accused of strangling Cora, five, Dawson, three, and eight-month-old Callan with exercise bands and leaving them in the basement of the family’s Duxbury home. She then jumped from a second-story window in a failed suicide attempt that left her paralyzed. The horrific scene was discovered by her husband at the time, Patrick, who had been out running errands. Most read in The Sun Clancy’s defense argues she was suffering from severe postpartum psychosis, while prosecutors maintain she planned the murders and committed them in cold blood. Tufts has since emerged as a key figure in the case that has gripped the nation, with her treatment of Clancy coming under intense scrutiny during the trial. But while attention has been focused on the dramatic scenes unfolding in the courtroom, the psychiatrist has quietly been fighting a parallel legal battle behind the scenes. If Tufts’ request is granted, the tribunal would bring in experts to look at her treatment of Clancy and decide whether there is enough evidence to back up Clancy’s claims. Tufts insists there isn’t – and is hitting back hard at the psychiatrist Clancy has brought in to make her case. Dr. Whaley claims Tufts should have spotted signs that Clancy may have been suffering from bipolar disorder with psychotic features before the killings. Lindsay Clancy and Patrick Clancy seen with their three young children before they were tragically killed in 2023 Credit: Plymouth Superior Court Defense attorney Kevin Reddington questions psychiatrist Dr. Jennifer Tufts about her handwritten notes during the trial Credit: Reuters But Tufts’ lawyers argue there were no clear warning signs at the time, pointing out that Clancy repeatedly denied wanting to kill herself or anyone else and said she was not experiencing hallucinations. They accuse Whaley of looking back at her behavior through the lens of what later happened to the children, dismissing his conclusions as “speculation and retrospective analysis.” Whaley has also criticized the medication Clancy was given, claiming she should have been treated with a mood stabilizer or antipsychotic. Tufts’ lawyers hit back that she did prescribe lamotrigine, which is used as a mood stabilizer, and say overlooking that key detail leaves his opinion “fatally flawed.” The filing comes after defense attorney Kevin Reddington spent hours grilling Tufts at Clancy’s murder trial over many of the same issues now being fought over in civil court. Tufts had an impressive academic background but was still early in her career as a psychiatrist when Clancy landed in her care. She studied psychology at Cornell University, went to medical school at the University of Vermont and completed her psychiatry residency at Boston Medical Center. But she had only finished her residency in July 2022 and was just starting out in private practice when she began treating Clancy – something Reddington seized on during his blistering cross-examination. He grilled Tufts over her experience with serious postpartum conditions and at one point likened her approach to that of a box-checking “robot.” Reddington also hammered home that Tufts never once met Clancy face-to-face. A list of medications that attorney Kevin Reddington posted next to his lectern during Lindsay Clancy’s murder trial Credit: Reuters Rebecca Jollotta, a psychiatric Nurse practitioner, who was involved in Lindsay Clancy’s treatment Credit: Reuters He questioned why she had not obtained complete records from her other doctors and highlighted that the mom had called a suicide hotline twice – something Tufts admitted she did not know. Reddington then picked apart her prescribing decisions, including increasing Clancy’s Amitriptyline shortly before the killings, suggesting the change had “pushed her over the edge.” Tufts fired back, “I don’t think so.” And in another striking exchange, she told the court, “I do not believe that I’ve been negligent.” The psychiatrist is one of 11 defendants – seven individual medical or mental health professionals and four healthcare organizations – named in Clancy’s civil lawsuit. Her ex-husband Patrick, who has also taken the stand during her criminal trial, separately filed a wrongful death lawsuit in January on behalf of himself and the estates of their three children. His case names four defendants – Tufts, nurse practitioner Rebecca Jollotta, Aster Mental Health and South Shore Health System – all of whom also face claims in Lindsay’s case. Patrick alleges those responsible for Lindsay’s care failed the family through allegedly uncoordinated prescribing and failures to respond appropriately as her mental health deteriorated. Tufts has also asked a judge to dismiss Patrick’s case, leaving her fighting civil claims from both sides of the shattered Clancy family as the murder trial continues to unfold. Her requests in both civil cases remain pending. If you or someone you know is affected by any of the issues raised in this story, call or text the 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline at 988, chat on 988lifeline.org, or text Crisis Text Line at 741741. Comment now