An emotional courtroom scene unfolded Monday as Lindsay Clancy faced her former husband, Patrick Clancy, during the opening of her trial in connection with the deaths of their three children in January 2023.

Jurors were shown family videos and photos from a vacation just days before the tragedy, capturing what appeared to be happier moments for the family of five. In one video recorded during a January 15, 2023, trip to an indoor water park, Lindsay was seen enjoying a waterslide with her young daughter, Cora, while Patrick later took the witness stand.

Clancy, who now uses a wheelchair after surviving a suicide attempt following the children’s deaths, is accused of killing 5-year-old Cora, 3-year-old Dawson, and 8-month-old Callan. Her defense team argues that she was experiencing postpartum psychosis and was not legally responsible for her actions at the time.

Her attorneys are pursuing an insanity defense, pointing to her worsening mental health and extensive psychiatric treatment in the months leading up to the deaths.

Patrick testified that Lindsay had always been able to interact with their children and appeared to be doing better during the family vacation, despite having been hospitalized twice for suicidal thoughts in the previous month.

He described how her mental health had reportedly deteriorated after she returned to work and struggled with the idea of being separated from her children following her maternity leave. According to his testimony, she began taking medication for anxiety and depression in September 2022, but her condition continued to worsen.

By December, Patrick said Lindsay had entered what he described as a serious downward spiral. She reportedly expressed suicidal thoughts and spoke about fears involving harm coming to the children, although Patrick said she told him she had no plan to hurt them.

The court heard that Patrick took her to an emergency room on December 15, 2022, after she told her father she wanted to die. Doctors offered different recommendations, including inpatient treatment and a specialized day program.

After another hospitalization around New Year’s Eve, Patrick said he believed it was time for Lindsay to receive more intensive care. He told jurors that the family still did not have a clear diagnosis and that they did not fully understand what was happening to her.

The defense argued that Lindsay had repeatedly sought help for her mental health in the months before the children’s deaths and had received prescriptions from multiple doctors. Her attorneys also presented evidence from her hospitalization following the suicide attempt that left her with permanent paralysis.

The prosecution, however, offered a very different account.

Prosecutors argued that Lindsay was not experiencing psychosis at the time of the deaths and that her actions were intentional. They told jurors that the case should focus on her state of mind on January 24, 2023, and argued that her actions demonstrated planning and purpose.

Throughout the opening proceedings, Clancy became visibly emotional as jurors viewed photos and videos of her children and their family life. Patrick remained largely composed during his testimony, though he became emotional when prosecutors presented a photograph of Cora smiling.

The trial is expected to continue for up to two months and could include testimony from as many as 200 witnesses.

At the center of the case is a difficult legal question: whether Lindsay Clancy was experiencing a severe mental health crisis that affected her ability to understand or control her actions—or whether prosecutors can prove that she acted knowingly and intentionally.

The court will ultimately have to weigh the evidence from both sides before reaching a verdict.