Explained: The Lucy Letby Case and Why It Remains So Controversial in the UK
By Michael Holden
The Lucy Letby Case: Background, Convictions, and Ongoing Controversy
LONDON, Sept 15 (Reuters) - A British public inquiry concluded on Tuesday that hospital managers could have prevented nurse Lucy Letby killing more babies in her care had they taken action against her sooner.
Letby is serving life in jail after being found guilty of murdering seven newborns and attempting to murder eight more between June 2015 and June 2016 while working at the Countess of Chester Hospital (CoCH) in northern England.
The convictions made her Britain's worst serial child killer of modern times. She has always maintained her innocence and in recent years there has been a growing campaign arguing she was a victim of a miscarriage of justice.
Here are details about her, the controversy around her convictions and the public inquiry.
Who is Lucy Letby?
Letby, 36, was born in Hereford in central England. She completed a nursing degree at Chester University in northwest England and after qualifying, she began to work in the neonatal unit of the city's Countess of Chester Hospital.
The Case Against Lucy Letby
What is the Lucy Letby Case About?
Over 18 months from January 2015, there was a significant rise in the number of babies dying and suffering serious collapses at the neonatal unit.
Senior doctors became worried as many of the babies had deteriorated suddenly and unexpectedly, and then did not respond to appropriate resuscitation. Other babies, who suddenly collapsed and did not die, recovered, with both their collapse and recovery defying usual medical norms.
The police and medical experts were called in and as they looked for a cause, they eventually focused on one common factor - Lucy Letby.
She was first arrested in July 2018, and then again in June 2019 and November 2020 when she was charged with murdering seven babies and attempting to kill another 10 between June 2015 and July 2016.
What Was Letby Convicted of Doing?
Prosecutors said Letby attacked 17 babies who had been on the ward. Some she was said to have poisoned with insulin. Mostly she was accused of injecting air into their bloodstream or stomachs, or giving them excessive milk.
The victims included twins and triplets, and in one case, she killed two siblings on consecutive days. The youngest baby she murdered was just a day old. The oldest was 11 weeks old, a baby girl who she attacked four times before she died.
Although the babies had been born prematurely, some were regarded as being in reasonable or good condition before they suddenly deteriorated, mainly during night shifts when Letby was working.
Letby attacked a number of the babies shortly after their parents had left their bedside, prosecutors said.
Police said she had kept medical records at her home with reference to some of the babies involved and had also carried out social media searches for their parents and families.
She denied any wrongdoing and blamed poor conditions on the hospital unit and doctors working there.
She was convicted in August 2023 of seven murders and seven attempted killings and acquitted of two charges of attempted murder while jurors could not agree on six other suspected attacks.
The following year she was convicted of trying to murder another newborn baby following a re-trial. Police said they had been unable to find a motive for the attacks.
The Thirlwall Inquiry
Background and Findings
Amid shock at her convictions, the British government set up an inquiry to examine how the killings went undetected, and review the hospital's response to concerns raised about Letby before her arrest.
Its chair, Kathryn Thirlwall, concluded that there had been "complete failure" to protect babies at the hospital and some of the deaths could have been avoided if the dysfunctional management had acted sooner on concerns. She had said its remit was not to examine Letby's culpability.
Is Lucy Letby Innocent?
Appeals and Public Debate
Letby has always maintained her innocence, saying she never harmed or intended to harm any child in her care.
She has launched a series of appeals against her convictions but these have all been rejected by the courts.
However in the three years since she was found guilty there has been a growing campaign, particularly online, arguing that she was the victim of a miscarriage of justice.
Expert Opinions and Evidence
Some medical specialists have queried the evidence given at her trial with one, neonatal doctor Professor Shoo Lee, saying his research had been misused and that he and other international experts did not believe any babies had been attacked.
They said there had been medical mistakes and failures at the hospital.
The case has now been referred to the Criminal Cases Review Commission which is considering whether her convictions are safe. There is no timescale for it to conclude its work.
More Victims, More Police Investigations?
Ongoing Investigations and Legal Actions
Since her convictions police carried out a review of Letby's career at the Countess of Chester Hospital and at the Liverpool Women's Hospital where she had spent part of her training to see if there was evidence other babies had been attacked.
In January, prosecutors said they would not bring any new charges, a decision which police said was disappointing.
However, an investigation into the Countess of Chester Hospital's managers remains ongoing with three senior members of the leadership team arrested last July on suspicion of gross negligence manslaughter.
(Reporting by Michael HoldenEditing by Alexandra Hudson)
