Defense Attorney Makes Unprecedented Plea to Trump for Pardon of Massachusetts Mother After Mistrial

In a dramatic turn, Kevin Reddington asks President to "consider this young lady" despite legal hurdles, as state prosecutors weigh retrial for Lindsay Clancy.

By [Your News Organization Name]

September 8, 2026

The legal defense for Lindsay Clancy, the Massachusetts mother whose high-profile murder trial ended in a mistrial last week, has made a direct and extraordinary public appeal to President Donald Trump for a presidential pardon .

In an interview on ABC's "Good Morning America" on Tuesday, defense attorney Kevin Reddington addressed the President directly. "Mr. President, I would hope that you would consider this young lady, the type of person she is, what she's been through, and consider a pardon," Reddington said .

The appeal comes days after a Plymouth Superior Court judge declared a mistrial on September 4th when a jury, after more than 38 hours of deliberation, failed to reach a unanimous verdict . Court documents and reports indicate the jury was split 11 to 1, with a single holdout preventing a verdict .

A Legal Hurdle and a Strategic Move

Clancy, 36, is charged in state court with the 2023 murders of her three children—5-year-old Cora, 3-year-old Dawson, and 8-month-old Callan . Under the U.S. Constitution, a president's pardon power applies only to federal offenses, a fact widely noted in the coverage of this request .

However, Reddington, in a later interview with WBZ-TV, explained the strategy behind the public plea. He acknowledged the legal limitation but framed the request as a way to leverage the president's political influence. "The goal is pretty simple. It's to seek help from Trump," Reddington stated. He suggested that if the president were to "hypothetically" reach out to Plymouth County District Attorney Tim Cruz, a Republican, it might influence the prosecutor's decision on whether to pursue a retrial or accept a plea deal .

The White House has not issued a formal response to the pardon request, instead referring to President Trump's previous comments on the case. Last week, the President described the case as a "terrible situation" and a "horrible tragedy," adding that Clancy will have to "pay a price" which will "be a mental institution or jail or something" .

The Case and the Defense

Clancy admitted to strangling her children with exercise bands in January 2023 before attempting to take her own life, a fall that left her paralyzed . Her legal team does not dispute her actions but argues she was suffering from severe postpartum psychosis at the time, a condition they say rendered her unable to understand the wrongfulness of her actions .

Prosecutors argued the killings were premeditated and calculated, pointing to evidence that Clancy had planned for her husband to be out of the house .

Next Steps

Currently, Clancy remains committed to the state-run Tewksbury Hospital . With the mistrial declared, the decision now rests solely with District Attorney Tim Cruz, who has stated that his office has not decided whether to seek a retrial . The next hearing in the case is scheduled for September 29th .

Reddington has expressed openness to negotiations but stated he would not plead his client to "a day in jail," maintaining her actions were the result of a mental health crisis