Watch Live: Lindsay Clancy defense rests after psychiatrist testifies she felt "external force" take over body

Watch Live: Lindsay Clancy defense rests after psychiatrist testifies she felt "external force" take over body

The defense rested after forensic psychiatrist Dr. Phillip Resnick, a key witness in the Andrea Yates case after she killed her five children in Texas in 2001, took the stand to testify that Clancy said she felt an "external force" take over her body before the murders.

The prosecution is now offering rebuttal witnesses before the trial goes to closing arguments, as is protocol when an insanity defense is presented.

Defense attorney Kevin Reddington said the prosecution is set to call three rebuttal witnesses. Judge Sullivan said if all testimony concludes Friday, closing arguments could be held Monday. If testimony needs to resume on Monday, closings would likely be held Tuesday.

The first rebuttal witness called by prosecutors was forensic psychiatrist Avram Mack. He interviewed Clancy in April, saying she seemed normal but did tear up at points. He said she wasn't happy with the food at the Tewksbury hospital and wasn't interested in physical therapy.

"She described feeling miserable, not wanting to be alive," Mack said.

He concluded that Clancy probably suffered from a major depressive episode and anxiety. But he said there was no evidence that she was ever bipolar in a manic state, like the defense has argued.

"I can appreciate that she felt side effects and a degree of change from the medications that she took," he said. "I don't know that that feeling or belief is necessary psychotic."

Resnick's testimony over Zoom was delayed by technical difficulties.

Resnick said Clancy appeared "somewhat matter-of-fact" and "muted," but nurses told him she was crying daily about the loss of her children.

He said he reviewed a psychological test that the government had Clancy take and found there was "no evidence of faking psychiatric symptoms."

Resnick said it was his opinion that Clancy was suffering from severe depression, mild mania, and bipolar disorder as she approached the date of the crime.

"She was clearly psychotic on that day," Resnick said, adding that she was under the influence of a "command hallucination."

"Not only did she hear a command, but she felt that her body was taken over by an external force where she was in a dream state and did not have control of her own body," Resnick said. "It was almost like she was a puppet and someone else was pulling the strings."

"She was obsessional about caring for her children," he said. "She believed that she would be doing her children a favor by having them go to heaven with her rather than remain on Earth without her doing the mothering. Her mind was very distorted like that."

During cross-examination, prosecutor Jennifer Sprague noted that in an article Resnick wrote called "Faking It," he said command hallucinations are easy to fabricate and people often ignore the commands if they are dangerous.

"Ms. Clancy heard the voice and immediately acted, is that correct?" Sprague asked.

"No, Ms. Clancy had impulses to harm her children and she did resist until the command hallucination when she was overwhelmed," Resnick replied.

Sprague disputed that records showed Clancy had been crying every day about her children. She also said notes showed Clancy had expressed hope about someday becoming an advocate for postpartum issues and even participating in a wheelchair marathon.

In Clancy's case, the prosecution alleges she planned the murders before faking a suicide attempt.