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The holdout juror who sparked a mistrial in Lindsay Clancy’s Massachusetts murder trial has spoken out publicly for the first time to defend himself following intense backlash from online detractors.
Michael P. Desronvil, 48, clapped back at accusations from fellow jurors that he refused to budge on his belief Clancy was guilty of murdering her three kids despite expressing doubts.
“I didn’t have any doubts. As I tried to explain different possible theories during deliberation, I kept getting cut off as if I had doubts based on the evidence present,” Desronvil said in a statement to News Nation. “Based on all the physical evidence, key witnesses, and what the prosecution presents, I thought it was enough proof that she [Clancy] knew exactly what she was doing and planned.”
Desronvil — a father from a Haitian immigrant family and a devout Christian with a history of abuse allegations — was the lone juror who refused to find Clancy not guilty of murder by reason of insanity, a decision which turned the six-week trial on its head and dragged him to the center of the explosive case.
The Bridgewater resident comes from a large family of Haitian immigrants who moved to the US and settled in Massachusetts in 1982, meaning he would have been about 4 years old when he arrived in America.
Family, friends and neighbors of Desronvil told The Post his family are an upstanding and educated group, and that he had recently worked in pest control.
People also described Desronvil as a strong Catholic, sparking speculation that his faith may have driven him to avoid evidence in the case and refuse to release Clancy of criminal responsibility for the 2023 murder of her three young kids.
Clancy, 36, admitted to killing her children then attempting to take her own life in her Duxbury home, but insisted she was out of her mind in a severe bout of post-partum depression — which she said was dangerously exacerbated by the cocktail of drugs doctors gave her while she desperately sought help.
Prosecutors and their witnesses twice brought up the Catholic idea of “mortal sin” surrounding murder and suicide during the trial, leading to speculation that religion may have been behind Desronvil’s verdict stance.
His brother, however, previously refuted that idea while telling The Post, “I don’t think religion had anything to do with it.”
Desronvil’s identity became the subject of public frenzy when his 11 co-jurors put the blame on him for the Sept. 3 mistrial — with his life getting splashed across headlines after the controversial true-crime blogger known as “Turtleboy” exposed his name, and NBC Boston reported on domestic violence allegations that have dogged him for years.
Those allegations stemmed from a 2021 arrest when he allegedly choked out his then-wife over their crying infant, with his 13-year-old nephew frantically calling police after Desronvil allegedly threw his wife into furniture.
Desronvil’s own mother even shouted “You’re evil” at her son as he was hauled to jail, police records showed.
Charges over that incident were dismissed — with NBC Boston reporting his now ex-wife wouldn’t testify for fear of losing child-custody — but in 2025 he was accused of battering the same nephew while shouting, “You ruined my [expletive] life,” and “You’ve had this coming your way for a long time.”
The alleged attack on his nephew resulted in a restraining order, which was active when he was sitting on the Clancy jury.
All of those allegations of domestic violence left many wondering how Desronvil ended up making it into a domestic violence trial, as the jury questionnaire would likely have asked about previous criminal allegations.
Desronvil’s finances were even dragged into the spotlight — he was under eviction proceedings after supposedly failing to pay about $12,000 in rent for months, NBC Boston reported.
His family also ended up on blast — siblings and cousins have both complained about being harassed by reporters and true-crime fanatics for any shreds of information they could shake out.
“Everyone thinks I’m Michael, I’m not Michael,” Desronvil’s brother said — adding that the family was completely blindsided by the attention, because nobody had talked to Desronvil since the alleged 2025 nephew attack.
The sideshow prompted Clancy case judge William Sullivan to block the public release of the trial’s juror names Monday in an apparent attempt to keep Desronvil’s name under wraps.
But Desronvil was a step ahead of the judge — his local mechanic said the juror skipped town with his new wife days ago.
“His wife — they just got married — came by yesterday and asked me to put new wheels on her car,” the owner said. “She said the media has been crazy and they’re gonna lay low for a while.”
English (US)