An outspoken juror from the Lindsay Clancy murder trial has responded to accusations of bias. Paula Devlin, 65, spoke about her reasons for believing the trial could initiate important discussions on women’s mental health and postpartum-related illnesses.
In an interview, Devlin stated, “We didn’t know what was going on outside of that room, but we knew that we had a chance to get a conversation started that could change something, that could stop this from ever happening again.” She emphasized her hope that no other woman or husband would face similar circumstances.
I think, that’s one of the reasons why we feel — or I feel — so strongly about this is that I hope that no other woman or husband has to go through this.
Devlin’s remarks over the weekend led to claims that the jury approached the case with an agenda. She rejected these allegations on Monday, asserting that the panel examined the evidence thoroughly.
Devlin mentioned, “We looked at the evidence, and the evidence had holes in the prosecution’s case. The whole thing was based on mental health. How can you have bias if only women can go through postpartum depression, postpartum psychosis, and deliver a baby? That’s not biased, that’s just a fact.”
Clancy, a 36-year-old former delivery room nurse, repeatedly sought help but did not receive adequate support, according to Devlin. In January 2023, Clancy strangled her three children — Cora, 5, Dawson, 3, and Callan, 8 months — with exercise bands and attempted to kill herself. She survived a fall from a second-story window but was left paralyzed.
Devlin shared her belief, “I truly, truly in my heart believe that if Lindsay had got the help she really needed, those three children would still be here. Those five people would still be a family.”
A major flaw in the case, according to Devlin, was that the prosecution did not have witnesses who spoke negatively about Clancy. Devlin stated, “Nobody could find one bad thing to say about this person, and I would bet my house that those prosecutors looked everywhere to find somebody to be derogatory and say derogatory things about Lindsay, and nobody could.”
She acknowledged being haunted by the faces of the children, expressing doubts about the jury’s performance. “Those three little faces and just wondering if we missed something, if we didn’t ask the right questions of each other, if we could have done better — it’s hard not to feel like we failed,” she said.