A jury is to determine whether Lindsay Clancy is criminally responsible for killing her three children in 2023 in Duxbury, Massachusetts. She was being treated for postpartum mental health issues when she killed the children: Cora, 5, Dawson, 3, and Callan, who was 8 months old. Plymouth County Superior Court Judge William Sullivan is presiding over the jury trial, which began on July 27 and is expected to last six to eight weeks.
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Rebecca Jollotta is a psychiatric nurse practitioner who took over Lindsay Clancy's care from Julie Paul when Paul left South Shore Hospital's perinatal behavioral health program in Weymouth, Massachusetts, in November 2022. Jollotta saw Clancy three times; the final visit was on Dec. 13 before she went on vacation. Jollotta said she discussed Clancy's problems related to the prescription drug Ativan, generic name lorazepam, which she testified "usually typically has to do with half life of a medication." "So for Ativan, that's usually between eight and 24 hours. So if she's taking it in the middle of the night, the next morning she would feel more anxious. She was concerned about that. She also feels she was concerned about getting physically dependent on it because she had needed to take it for a number of nights," Jollotta said. Jollotta said Clancy didn’t want to try Ambien. She discussed with her "hydroxazine because it it's an as-needed medication for anxiety, but it's not a benzodiazepine. Doesn't really carry that risk of rebound anxiety or tolerance or dependence, and it could help her sleep. So I offered that as an alternative as well." "Were you aware that she was offered hydroxazine before?" asked Shanan Buckingham, an assistant district attorney in Plymouth County, Massachusetts. "I was not aware of that," Jollotta answered. "Was she willing to try the hydroxazine?" Buckingham asked. "No," Jollotta answered. "And so, what was her preference?" Buckingham asked. "Her preference was to continue with the mirtazpine, the Remaron, 15 milligrams, and with the as-needed lorazepam" aka ativan, Jollotta answered. "Now, when you're dealing with a patient, and obviously this is your first interaction with her, right? Do you take into account your contact and communication with them in assessing whether they have the ability to make these choices or make informed decisions?" Buckingham asked. "Absolutely," Jollotta answered. "And so, your conversation with her about her medication treatment that she had received and what you were proposing as a plan, was she able to engage with you in that conversation?" Buckingham asked. "Yes ... it was collaborative," Jollotta answered. "And so when she declined the options that you first offered, did you then present her with alternatives?" Buckingham asked. "I did," Jollotta answered. "And ultimately, at the end of the day, whose choice is it as to what medication regimen person would be on?" Buckingham asked. "The patient," Jollotta answered. "And why is that?" Buckingham asked. "Because they have autonomy in their decisions. I'm only making recommendations based on my education, experience, training, what I'm seeing in terms of symptoms. The patient has the autonomy," Jollotta answered. #law #crime #pharma