DeSantis Defends Holdout Juror in Clancy Case
Florida’s Governor Ron DeSantis accused mainstream media on Friday of orchestrating a smear campaign against the only juror who held out in the Lindsay Clancy murder trial. He promised that, should the Massachusetts juror face harassment, he would find refuge in Florida.
DeSantis referenced a report from an NBC affiliate, which claimed that the juror had prior allegations of domestic violence and an active restraining order against him.
He expressed his thoughts on social media, stating, “A man objected to allowing a woman to kill her three young kids and get away with it, so NBC is trying to smear that juror, whose identity should be protected. Another low for legacy media.”
In his posts, DeSantis shared details from NBC10 Boston about the juror, linking to what the outlet termed a “full investigation” of the juror’s background.
The governor asserted that Florida would welcome the juror. “If the juror is being harassed, Florida will provide asylum — I’m sure he’d be welcomed and appreciated,” DeSantis noted.
According to NBC10 Boston, the juror had faced a 2021 criminal charge related to allegedly assaulting his then-wife. A police report indicated that a 13-year-old nephew claimed to have witnessed the incident where the man allegedly grabbed her by the throat and threw her into a dresser.
The charge was later dismissed, resulting in the couple’s divorce.
Furthermore, the same nephew reportedly pursued a restraining order last year, stating that the juror had pushed him down and struck him multiple times. This order was allegedly still active when he was added to the jury for the highly publicized trial.
Questions surfaced about how he was chosen for the jury, as Massachusetts has a standard questionnaire that queries prospective jurors about any arrests or legal orders. NBC10 noted that the juror’s questionnaire isn’t public, leaving uncertainty about his answers.
Legal analyst Michael Coyne remarked on the situation, expressing disbelief that such a person could serve on a jury.
Additionally, the station reported disturbing claims that the juror was facing eviction for not paying rent for several months, with a landlord securing a $12,000 judgment while he was deliberating the case.
In a separate incident this week related to the juror, NBC morning host Gayle King appeared startled when it became known that the juror was a black man, briefly pausing to process the information.
The juror was the lone dissenter in an 11-1 split regarding whether Clancy was criminally responsible at the time of the tragic events involving her children. The trial ended in a mistrial after a week of deliberation.
Clancy is accused of killing her children—Cora, 5; Dawson, 3; and Callan, 8 months—in their Duxbury, Massachusetts home earlier this year. Her defense asserted that she was suffering from postpartum psychosis and was under the influence of several prescribed medications during the alleged offenses.
