▶ Watch Video: Extended interview: Patrick Clancy
More than three years after the tragic deaths of his three children, Patrick Clancy continues to navigate unimaginable grief as the case thrusts him into the spotlight, bringing public scrutiny and speculation.
Lindsay Clancy’s lawyers never denied that she killed her three children. Their argument was that she was suffering from postpartum psychosis at the time and was not criminally responsible. But that didn’t stop online sleuths from scrutinizing Patrick’s actions, dissecting his testimony and questioning his character.
The 5-week trial became a national obsession, sparking conversations about mental health, criminal fault and how the medical system fails mothers. The case ended in a mistrial, and prosecutors have yet to determine whether Lindsay Clancy will be retried. Her lawyers have asked a judge to investigate the conduct of the lone juror who sought to convict Clancy and, in another motion, to dismiss the case.
We met Patrick in New York City for a conversation about his grief, his ex-wife’s struggles with mental illness, and the social media frenzy surrounding him. Here are some emotional moments from our interview.
Patrick’s final moments with son Callan
While 5-year-old Cora, 3-year-old Dawson, tragically died at the scene, Patrick’s infant son Callan somehow survived and was airlifted to Boston Children’s Hospital.
At first, Patrick didn’t have any details about Callan’s condition other than learning that doctors were able to get a heartbeat back.
“I really thought there was a chance that Callan would live. And I remember just thinking, ‘Just give me one. Just give me one kid, and I would raise him as best I could, and I would give him the best life I possibly could. I’d tell him about his brother and sister.’ And I was holding out hope for that. And then when I got to the hospital, I saw the doctor. I saw the look on her face, and I knew that it wasn’t going to be a good prognosis,” he said.
Callan’s heart kept beating for four days.
“I’m so grateful for those four days that I had with him. And I’m so grateful he hung on,” Patrick said.
During those four days, Patrick said he was able to talk to Callan and hold him.
“I said, ‘I’m so sorry.’ And I got to hold him. I got to lay down next to him. And he died in my arms.”
During those hours with Callan, Patrick sat and wrote tributes to each of his three children, typing with one hand while he held his baby’s hand with the other. He said he was afraid if he didn’t write about them they’d be forgotten.
A panic attack the day the 911 call was played in court
Patrick was the prosecution’s first witness. As he took the stand, online influencers quickly began dissecting his testimony and pushing theories questioning his character.
“It’s deeply harmful to the legacy of my children. It is a huge distraction from what really matters here, which is perinatal mental health. And it’s done real harm to real people, myself included but also others,” Patrick said of the viral speculation surrounding the case.
He said the attention has made everyday life more difficult.
“It’s painful to see. And it makes it difficult to be in public and it’s possible that some of those people after seeing lie after lie after lie, they start to believe it and that’s what we’re left with,” he added.
One of the catalysts for these theories was Patrick’s apparent stoicism on the stand.
“Testifying is very difficult,” he said, recounting the day his 911 call played in court. He remembered taking a break in the back room right before the call was going to be presented.
“And I went to a back room, and I started having this massive traumatic panic attack. My heart was pounding,” he said.
He recalled being put in an ambulance and being offered medication, which he refused.
“I said, “I don’t want it, ’cause I want to go back and I want to finish this so I can be done with this.” And I went back and I finished the testimony,” he said.
“The grief is just so heavy that it makes me quiet”
Patrick said he finds “little reminders” of his children in his daily life, but he also said he makes a conscious effort to keep their memories alive.
“And it’s hard sometimes. I’ve had people say to me, you know, ‘Pat, you were really quiet today.’ But they don’t know the things that are playing over and over and over again in my head. They don’t know that the scenes are playing over and over again from that night or that the grief is just so heavy that it makes me quiet,” he said.
He tries to hang onto the good memories — like Cora’s first plane ride, watching Dawson grab his tool belt to work on a project and sitting in the play pen with Callan.
“When you think about them this way, is it good or is it painful or is it both?” Ross Douthat asked.
“It’s both. But I love, I love the memories. I don’t avoid the good memories. I really never do. The bad ones I avoid. I really try not to think about them. I mean, it’s traumatic and that can be overwhelming. I’ve never felt like the good memories are overwhelming. I hang onto those,” he said.
The treatment that helped him the most
Patrick said he found a treatment that’s a “little unusual” called EMDR (Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing) that has helped him heal the most.
The therapy, commonly used to treat PTSD, involves guided eye movements while processing traumatic memories.
“They put you right back in that place that you’ve been trying to avoid for years. And you face it head-on. And it’s unpleasant, but they get you used to dealing with that. And eventually you’re better at processing it,” Patrick explained.
After several sessions, Patrick said the “waking up screaming” and the “horrible dreams” mostly stopped.
“I mean, it was like a miracle,” he said.
How he met his wife, Dr. Rachel Danis
Dr. Rachel Danis, a fertility doctor, says they met in January of 2024 at a run club in New York. They got to know each other over coffee.
At the time, Rachel said she hoped it would simply lead to a good friendship. And that’s how it remained for the next few months until Patrick came to one of her races and met her sister, who has Down syndrome.
“There must have been a moment, maybe it was a different moment for each of you, right, where the switch flipped, and you were, like, this is something we’re doing,” Ross Douthat said.
Rachel said it was the day of a half marathon. After the race, she met Patrick and some other run club friends to celebrate.
“And I think you can tell a lot about someone when they’re interacting with a person with special needs,” said Rachel, describing Patrick as “really friendly” and “really warm.”
“I didn’t know at the time, but Pat had taken a candid photo of me with [my sister] Lauren and we were just hugging,” she continued, adding, “I just love her so much, and Pat really saw what matters to me.”
Rachel and Patrick got married in April of this year in Central Park.
The video above was published on September 22, 2026. It was produced by Will Croxton and Jane Greeley. It was edited by Scott Rosann and Nelson Ryland.
Photos courtesy of Greg Derr / The Patriot Ledger via AP & Getty Images & John Tlumacki and David L. Ryan / The Boston Globe via AP, Pool
