Elyse M. Hershon, Esq

Elyse M. Hershon, Esq Boston Criminal Defense Attorney and TV Legal Analyst
(1)

09/04/2026

Sat at the anchor news desk doing live coverage of Boston 25 for an hour and a half with Kerry Kavanaugh- analyzing what was happening as things unfolded in court in the Lindsay Clancy trial.
Wow.
When the attorneys went to sidebar, it was clear that it was not a verdict or a declaration of a hung jury - because neither of those would happen at sidebar. Verdicts are announced to the entire courtroom at once; a jury note simply to deadlock would likely have been declared a mistrial as is required post-Tuey, without the strong reactions we saw in court.
It was clear to me that there was a bigger problem in the juror room, with a juror. The note was not read aloud to us, but going off of my experience of a trial lawyer including homicides, this was not the typical course of things.
To ask to swap out a juror for an alternate, after a week of deliberations? Rare.
Due to the defense request to swap out the juror, and the DA satisfied with the reasonable doubt instruction read, indicates to me that this juror wants to convict and the rest of the jury does not.
I explain that the issue is not just that there is a holdout - because that would lead to a hung jury and a mistrial without removal. A holdout is not grounds for dismissal of that juror.
Those are 2 very different issues.
We know now that the judge is going to do further inquiry tomorrow first thing , which signals to me that the Judge is reconsidering his ruling today.
I’ll be back at the news desk tomorrow morning at Boston 25 News studios for live coverage.

09/03/2026

Morning coverage with NewsNation about the jury entering day 6 of deliberations in the Lindsay Clancy trial.
What is the jury disagreeing on? Why is it taking so long? Is it a long time? And what happens to Lindsay Clancy herself if this case is declared a mistrial? We discuss above.

09/03/2026

Boston 25 News morning news with Ray Villeda as the jury continues to deliberate on the Lindsay Clancy case.
If this case were to result in a mistrial, defense attorney Reddington is ready to try this again. Only the Plymouth County district attorney has the authority to drop the charges, reduce the charges, or proceed with a retrial.
There has been a lot of discussion as to what happens if there’s another note that the jury is not unanimous, but what happens if they return a partial verdict?

09/03/2026

How did I end up on a phone call with Wolf Blitzer and Pamela Brown on CNN’s The Situation Room while driving down the highway?
Breaking news is breaking news. And this is why you only hear my voice, but do not see me on screen with them. News happened when I was en route to a different news studio, and I was patched into The Situation room without a moment to spare .
I explain the procedural path to a hung jury/mistrial, and the specific instructions of Tuey-Rodriguez, and what it all means. Also, what happens if they’re agreed on some of the verdict options and not others? Remember there are five options on that verdict slip. And remember what happened in Karen Read.
Thank you CNN Situation Room Wolf Blitzer Pamela Brown CNN

09/02/2026

The Lindsay Clancy jury has come back with a second note, that they are not able to come to a unanimous decision.
The Court, and the parties, decided that it was time the Tuey-Rodriguez instruction be given to the jury, which can only happen once the jury signals that they are at a deadlock. The jury spent a day and a half since the last note undoubtedly working towards trying to agree.
The instruction is a formal instruction that must be read verbatim, Word for Word. It states it is desirable that the case be decided. It reminds the jury that the burden of proof is on the prosecution, and that the defendant is entitled to the benefit of any doubt.
Note that the Judge does not tell the jury that this is their last instruction regarding further deliberations.
It is clear that this case has put a lot of pressure on this jury but the last thing anyone wants is to push a hold out or multiple holdouts to concede to the majority.
At this point, the jury will have unlimited time to come back and report that they’re deadlocked, that they have a verdict, or perhaps have a question.

Quoted in BBC News discussing the complicated Lindsay Clancy verdict slip, what the jury’s options are and what they eac...
09/02/2026

Quoted in BBC News discussing the complicated Lindsay Clancy verdict slip, what the jury’s options are and what they each mean.
Jury continues to deliberate on day 5.

09/02/2026

On Chief Legal Analyst and Anchor Laura Coates show on CNN to discuss the verdict slip in the Lindsay Clancy trial. It is important to understand why Atty Reddington strategically advocated to add manslaughter to the slip.
Pure strategy and totally optional. Remember what happened in the Louise Woodward case - the infamous “shaken baby” murder case? The defense team decided not to ask for manslaughter to be on the verdict slip… the jury ended up convicting her of second-degree murder.
But that’s not the end of what happened there. See my explanation above.

09/02/2026

Lindsay Clancy verdict watch: Discussing with Ray Villeda in Boston 25 News News studio what happened with the person arrested for witness intimidation yesterday outside the courthouse. Does this affect the jury? What was the judge asking the jury could this mean? What was the purpose of asking the jury about it?

09/02/2026

On CBS News last night to discuss the options of what could happen in court today for Lindsay Clancy.
We discuss the formal “last” charge called Tuey- Rodriguez, when that can be given and what happens if they still can’t agree.

09/01/2026

Last night on NBC’s show “Commonwealth Confidential: The Lindsay Clancy Trial”, we answer viewer questions:
1. Was Lindsay Clancy required to meet with the Commonwealth’s psychologist experts?
2. Why is there a “not guilty” verdict option when she’s admitted or conceded that she’s done this?
3. How, as a defense attorney, can we keep up with and control all of the social media coverage of a case?
Interesting questions that I know many are also asking about. If you have a question - Send me a message and I will try to get it answered on air.

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