PLYMOUTH, MA. (THECOUNT) — The GoFundMe campaign supporting the parents of Lindsay Clancy has surpassed $1.1 million following the mistrial in their daughter’s Massachusetts murder case, with more than 34,000 donations made as the family faces continued financial costs stemming from the three-year legal proceedings.
The Musgrove Family Fund had raised $1,167,727 from approximately 34,400 donations toward a $3 million goal as of Saturday, according to TMZ. The fundraiser was organized by Brandee Mulligan with the knowledge and consent of Clancy’s parents, Mike Musgrove and Paula Musgrove.
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Mulligan said the money is intended to help the Musgroves recover from the financial strain of supporting their daughter throughout her criminal case. The fundraiser says the couple has spent more than three years traveling to court, paying for lodging and living expenses and relocating from Connecticut to Massachusetts to remain close to Lindsay.
The campaign also emphasizes that the fundraiser does not take a position on Clancy’s guilt or innocence and that the money is not intended to pay for her legal defense. Clancy’s attorney, Kevin Reddington, is aware of the fundraiser, according to the organizer.
The surge in donations comes immediately after Clancy’s closely watched murder trial ended in a mistrial Friday after jurors were unable to reach a unanimous verdict following roughly 38 hours of deliberations over seven days. Judge William Sullivan ultimately declared the mistrial after the jury remained deadlocked.
Via GoFundMe:
In January 2023, Lindsay Clancy was accused of killing her three young children in the family’s Duxbury, Massachusetts home.
More than three years later, her case is now being tried in court. Throughout those three years, Lindsay’s parents, Mike and Paula Musgrove, have continued to show up for their daughter.
And that is who this fundraiser is for, Mike and Paula, who have spent years traveling back and forth, staying in hotels, attending court proceedings and ultimately relocating from Connecticut to Massachusetts so they could remain close to Lindsay.
Their lives have largely been put on hold while they have continued doing what parents do: showing up for their child during the unimaginable.
That has come at an enormous financial cost. This fundraiser is not asking anyone to agree on Lindsay, her case, or what the outcome of her trial should be. People will have different feelings about all of those things.
It is simply an opportunity to help two parents who have spent more than three years carrying a financial burden on top of an emotional one most of us cannot begin to imagine.
Mike and Paula are the named beneficiaries of this GoFundMe and receive the funds directly. I do not have access to the money. The fundraiser was established with their knowledge and consent, and Lindsay’s attorney, Kevin Reddington, is aware of it.
The money belongs to Mike and Paula. The purpose of this fundraiser is to give them back some of the financial stability they have lost over the last three years and allow them to decide what they need as they eventually begin figuring out what life looks like after this trial.
At some point, the court proceedings will end. Mike and Paula will still have a life to return to. There will still be bills, a home, lost savings, and years of putting their own lives on hold while they stood beside their daughter.
More than anything, this fundraiser came from a very simple thought: What if thousands of strangers could help carry just one piece of this for them?
And that is exactly what has happened. This fund has grown because thousands of people independently decided that Mike and Paula deserve some support after everything they have carried.
If you feel the same, please consider donating or sharing the Musgrove Family Fund. Every donation—whether it is $5 or $500—is one more person saying: You don’t have to carry all of this alone.
The jury was reportedly divided 11-1, with Reddington saying one juror was holding out against the other members. The precise direction of the vote was not initially made part of the court’s official public record, although Reddington later said the lone holdout was preventing a verdict favorable to his client.
Before the mistrial was formally entered, Reddington sought emergency intervention from the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court, arguing that the apparent holdout juror was refusing to properly apply the reasonable-doubt standard. A single justice rejected the defense request, allowing the mistrial to proceed.
Clancy is charged with three counts of first-degree murder in connection with the January 2023 deaths of her children, Cora, 5, Dawson, 3, and Callan, 8 months.
Clancy has admitted that she killed the children, but pleaded not guilty by reason of lack of criminal responsibility. Her defense argued that she was suffering from severe postpartum psychosis and other mental-health problems at the time of the killings and therefore was not criminally responsible for her actions.
Prosecutors disputed the defense’s account and argued that Clancy understood the wrongfulness of her actions and intentionally killed the children. The trial lasted nearly six weeks before the jury began deliberating.
The mistrial does not resolve the criminal charges. Prosecutors have not yet announced whether they will seek to retry Clancy, leaving the case unresolved following one of the most closely watched criminal trials in Massachusetts in recent years. A hearing is scheduled for September 29 to address the next steps in the case.
The Musgrove Family Fund’s stated purpose is to help Clancy’s parents absorb the financial consequences of remaining involved in their daughter’s case. The campaign says donations go directly to the family and that the fundraising effort is separate from Clancy’s criminal defense.
Plymouth, Massachusetts, is the county seat of Plymouth County and is located south of Boston along Massachusetts Bay. Plymouth Superior Court has been the site of the lengthy proceedings involving Clancy, drawing national attention throughout the trial.
Google Maps: Plymouth, Massachusetts
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