In the ongoing trial that has been dominating headlines in recent weeks, Lindsay Clancy is charged with murdering her three children in Duxbury, Massachusetts, in 2023. The legal proceedings have become a flashpoint for intense public scrutiny, particularly on platforms like TikTok, where users are dissecting every moment of the courtroom livestream.
Prosecutors allege that Clancy methodically plotted to get her husband, Patrick Clancy, out of the house before committing the acts. Conversely, the defense acknowledges that she committed the acts but argues she is not criminally responsible, asserting she was experiencing severe postpartum psychosis and a deadly, out-of-character break from reality.
When Clancy was first charged, many mothers shared their own stories of postpartum struggles and acute psychotic episodes, offering sympathy. However, since the trial began on July 20, the discourse has shifted significantly. Social media users are now spinning conspiracy theories, analyzing a “hot mic” controversy, and even posting “thirst trap” edits of defense attorney Kevin Reddington.
Many are closely watching the livestream for clues and creating videos to back up their theories, a conspiratorial fascination in line with the current cultural obsession with true crime. Some users have even suggested that Patrick Clancy, who was cleared by police and is not on trial, was involved in a frame-up, despite his testimony that he was at a CVS at the time of the incident.
On August 11, Reddington attempted to leverage this digital interest by arguing in court to allow TikToker Emily Thorndike to testify. He discovered Thorndike through a viral video she shared regarding her employment at McLean Hospital, the psychiatric facility where Lindsay Clancy admitted herself on New Year’s Eve. Thorndike was critical of the hospital in her video, which Reddington argued countered the prosecutor’s portrayal of the facility as “some kind of a five-star institution.”
“I hardly know what TikTok is,” Reddington stated during the proceedings. However, his attempt to introduce the influencer was blocked by Plymouth Superior Court Judge William Sullivan. The judge sided with Prosecutor Jennifer Sprague, who argued, “This isn’t someone who’s proposed to be an expert… She’s been following the trial.”
The intersection of the legal case and social media has sparked intense debate. One comment on a video by @glennbostontv, which has garnered over 15,000 likes, reads: “I’d bet $1000 Reddington has a Gen Z legal aide with a burner TikTok account combing through edits and comment sections.”
Matty Addison, a TikToker who shared a viral video about Patrick Clancy, said he had forgotten about the case until a friend experiencing postpartum side effects reminded him. Addison, who does not identify as a true crime fan, said he became invested because he perceived an “injustice” and felt compelled to piece together a theory to argue that Clancy could not have been responsible.
“I have been up for the past three nights until 2 am, trying to put this together like a puzzle because of my ADHD; and I can’t, like, not solve a puzzle,” Addison said in his video. He noted that he posted his content to find a “sense of community” among other digital sleuths.
Katy Coduto, an assistant professor of media science at Boston University, describes this phenomenon as “forensic fandom.” She explains, “It refers to this idea that not only are you invested in a story, but you think you can solve it.” In 2025, Coduto conducted research on true crime followers and found that many exhibit compulsive posting behaviors, form parasocial relationships, and experience negative emotions related to the cases they follow.
Coduto noted that while the success rate of these amateur sleuths is low, she stops short of suggesting people should disengage entirely. “There are certain cases that should have public attention that will have ramifications for other cases, for laws in our country, things like that,” she said. “I just think it could be very rare.”
Meanwhile, the trial continues to address the core facts of the case. Clancy’s former nanny testified, describing her as a “loving mother” before she began experiencing symptoms. This testimony aligns with the defense’s narrative, though it remains distinct from the wilder theories circulating online regarding Patrick Clancy. In a 2024 interview with The New Yorker, Patrick Clancy stated he does not believe his wife is a monster, but rather that she was profoundly sick.
The September 2021 disappearance of Gabby Petito is one example.
The “van life” influencer was traveling with her fiancé Brian Laundrie, but was reported missing when he returned to his family’s home without her.
The Clancy trial has shed light on postpartum psychosis, which affects between 1 and 2 per 1,000 women, according to one study.
Has reached out to reps from both Reddington and Sprague’s legal teams for comment.
Internet users then scoured Petito’s social media, looking for signs of abuse, largely sparked by body cam footage from before the couple disappeared.
He then fled, a manhunt ensued and his remains were found a month later with a notebook containing his confession.
Many writers opined at the time that engaging with Petito’s case to try to solve the crime ended up being therapeutic and educational, and opened up a discussion about relationship violence.
Reddington, the defense attorney, has called Clancy’s psychiatrists to testify, and they said that she had experienced suicidal thoughts and exhibited symptoms of depression and anxiety since her third child was born.
Online sleuths think his alibi that he was at CVS picking up medications is too perfect; they’ve gone so far as to say that a body double walked into the pharmacy that night.
Others have tried to paint a motive by baselessly drawing conclusions from his later remarriage and move to New York City.
The profile paints a grieving man who had to distance himself from his painful Massachusetts past and the woman who murdered his children.
“I don’t want to rule out that there could be a benefit [to true crime sleuthing].