Mother, allegedly 'invested' in Clancy trial, charged with murdering 2-year-old child
As a Massachusetts jury deliberated in the Lindsay Clancy trial, prosecutors in Illinois say a mother described by witnesses as recently being "very invested" in the case allegedly murdered her 2-year-old son and tried to take her own life, according to a petition to deny pre-trial release obtained by ABC Chicago station WLS.
According to a court document, Corie Walsh was "actively discussing" the Clancy case on text messages up to three-and-a-half hours before the child was discovered.
Walsh, 40, is now charged with murder.
According to a court document, officers arrived at the home in Frankfort, Illinois, on the afternoon of Sept. 1, where they say they found a neighbor performing CPR on two-year-old Barrett Walsh. The neighbor found the boy in the basement and called 911, according to the filing.
Walsh was found upstairs and allegedly told officers, according to the filing, that she did this to her child because he was the "devil" and the "anti-Christ."
The neighbor, according to the document, told officers she had found Walsh "actively harming herself" and that she had "taken a knife" from Walsh and thrown it into the sink. The neighbor further alleged that Walsh said "she was trying to kill herself."
Another infant was home at the time and was unharmed, the court document said.
Witnesses in the case, according to the document, allegedly told officers that Walsh had "recently become very invested" in the Clancy trial.
"The defendant had been actively discussing the case via group text message with her friends up until 12:30 PM on September 1, 2026, three and a half hours before the scene was discovered," a court document said.
Prosecutors are asking for Walsh to remain detained pending trial, claiming that she also made statements about harming her other three children, and that she intended to harm her husband when he returned home, according to the petition. He was out of state at the time of the alleged crime, the document said.
Walsh was treated at Silver Cross Hospital, the document said, where she remained as of Sept. 3. Her next court date is scheduled for as Sept. 8 at 9 a.m., according to detention center data.
In a statement to ABC News, Walsh's attorney, Andrea Lyon, said her client was suffering from a "psychotic episode at the time this happened."
"This is a tragedy for the Walsh family, all of whom are mourning the loss of this child," Lyon's statement said. "It is also a tragedy in that Corie herself was experiencing a psychotic episode at the time this happened. It is our hope that through a thorough presentation and investigation of the facts, that all of us will come to see this heartbreak for what it is."
Lindsay Clancy's defense attorney, Kevin Reddington, argued during her trial that Clancy was suffering from postpartum psychosis when she killed her three children in January 2023 and attempted to take her own life.
Prosecutors Jennifer Sprague and Shanan Buckingham, argued that Clancy, who pleaded not guilty to three counts of first-degree murder, is criminally responsible for her children's deaths.
Clancy's trial ended in a mistrial on Sept. 4, after a jury failed to reach a verdict following over a week of deliberations.
Widespread attention on the trial turned a national spotlight on maternal mental health.
If you or someone you know is struggling with thoughts of suicide, call or text 988 or chat 988lifeline.org. Free, confidential help is available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.
