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Between 2015 and 2016, unusually high [[infant mortality]] rates occurred at the [[neonatal intensive care unit]] of the [[Countess of Chester Hospital]] in [[Chester]], England. A series of investigations was initiated to ascertain the reasons for the sharp rise in mortalities.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Corbishley |first=Sam |date=2023-05-17 |title=Nurse Lucy Letby says deaths of two triplet boys in as many days was 'harrowing' |url=https://metro.co.uk/2023/05/17/lucy-letby-trial-nurse-says-deaths-of-triplet-boys-was-harrowing-18799922/ |access-date=2023-05-17 |website=Metro |language=en}}</ref>
Between 2015 and 2016, unusually high [[infant mortality]] rates occurred at the [[neonatal intensive care unit]] of the [[Countess of Chester Hospital]] in [[Chester]], England. A series of investigations was initiated to ascertain the reasons for the sharp rise in mortalities.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Corbishley |first=Sam |date=2023-05-17 |title=Nurse Lucy Letby says deaths of two triplet boys in as many days was 'harrowing' |url=https://metro.co.uk/2023/05/17/lucy-letby-trial-nurse-says-deaths-of-triplet-boys-was-harrowing-18799922/ |access-date=2023-05-17 |website=Metro |language=en}}</ref>


After a lengthy set of investigations, [[Lucy Letby]], a nurse originally from [[Hereford]] working at the hospital at the time, was arrested in 2018 on suspicion of eight counts of suspected murder and six counts of suspected attempted murder. She was released on bail pending further enquiries. Letby was arrested for a second time in 2019 with eight alleged murders and nine alleged attempted murders; again she was bailed pending further enquiries. Letby's final arrest came in November 2020 following which she was charged with eight counts of murder and ten counts of attempted murder.
After a lengthy set of investigations, [[Lucy Letby]], a nurse originally from [[Hereford]] working at the hospital at the time, was arrested in 2018 on suspicion of eight counts of suspected murder and six counts of suspected attempted murder. She was released on bail pending further enquiries. Letby was arrested a second time in 2019 for eight alleged murders and nine alleged attempted murders; again she was bailed pending further enquiries. Letby's final arrest came in November 2020 following which she was charged with eight counts of murder and ten counts of attempted murder.


Letby's trial began in October 2022, and is due to conclude in May 2023, after six months.
Letby's trial began in October 2022, and is due to conclude in May 2023, after six months.

Revision as of 20:25, 2 June 2023

Entrance to the Countess of Chester Hospital, where the high infant mortality rates took place between 2015 and 2016

Between 2015 and 2016, unusually high infant mortality rates occurred at the neonatal intensive care unit of the Countess of Chester Hospital in Chester, England. A series of investigations was initiated to ascertain the reasons for the sharp rise in mortalities.[1]

After a lengthy set of investigations, Lucy Letby, a nurse originally from Hereford working at the hospital at the time, was arrested in 2018 on suspicion of eight counts of suspected murder and six counts of suspected attempted murder. She was released on bail pending further enquiries. Letby was arrested a second time in 2019 for eight alleged murders and nine alleged attempted murders; again she was bailed pending further enquiries. Letby's final arrest came in November 2020 following which she was charged with eight counts of murder and ten counts of attempted murder.

Letby's trial began in October 2022, and is due to conclude in May 2023, after six months.

Initial investigation

In July 2016, the neonatal unit at the Countess of Chester Hospital stopped accepting premature infants born before 32 weeks, partially due to an unexplained high mortality rate in 2015 and 2016, instead diverting them to other hospitals in the North West of England, such as Alder Hey.[2] The MBRRACE-UK (Mothers and Babies: Reducing Risk through Audits and Confidential Enquires across the UK) report had found a neonatal death rate at least 10% higher than expected in the period June 2015 – June 2016.[3][4]

A series of investigations was initiated to ascertain the reasons for the sharp rise in mortalities, with an independent review being carried out by the Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health and the Royal College of Nursing.[5] Despite this report finding some staffing levels "inadequate", the Foundation Trust were unable to identify the fundamental cause(s) of the high mortality rate, with the independent report similarly finding "no single cause or factor identified to explain the increase.. seen in [the] mortality numbers".[6][7]

In May 2017, the Foundation Trust brought in Cheshire Police to assist with the ongoing review, stating this was to "seek assurances that enable us to rule out unnatural causes of death."[8]

Arrest and trial of Lucy Letby

Lucy Letby
Born (1990-01-04) 4 January 1990 (age 34)
Hereford, England
EducationUniversity of Chester
Occupation(s)Registered nurse who formerly worked in the neonatal unit at The Countess of Chester Hospital, later moved to clerical duties
Known forAlleged involvement in the baby deaths at the Countess of Chester Hospital

Lucy Letby (born 4 January 1990) is a registered nurse from Chester, originally from Hereford, who had originally worked in the neonatal unit at Countess of Chester Hospital from 2011 to 2016, later being moved to clerical duties from 2016 to 2018. She had worked at the hospital since 2011 after graduating with a nursing degree from the University of Chester earlier that year. She had also worked on the unit as a student nurse during her three years of training. Letby was working in the neonatal unit at the time the high infant mortality rates occurred there from 2015 to 2016, having been appointed as the designated nurse for several of the babies.[9]

On 6 February 2012, Letby appeared in a photo holding a baby as part of a story on a resident who had donated money to the hospital's appeal. On 28 March 2013, Letby was the subject of a short interview about her job, in which she stated that her role at the hospital involves "caring for a wide range of babies requiring various levels of support" and that she enjoys "seeing them progress and supporting their families." She also revealed that she had recently completed a placement at Liverpool Women’s Hospital. A photo of Letby holding a babygrow was featured alongside the interview in an article published in The Standard newspaper.[10][11]

In 2013, Letby was part of a campaign to raise 3 million pounds in three years to create a new neonatal unit for the hospital, which she hoped would "provide a greater degree of privacy and space for parents and siblings."[12] Letby was still working at the hospital at the time of her arrest in July 2018, though she had been moved from the neonatal ward in June 2016 to clerical duties where she would not come into contact with children, after consultants from the hospital suspected the high infant mortality rates between 2015 and 2016 were "not medically explicable” and were "the result of the actions of Lucy Letby.”[13]

Arrest and charges

On 3 July 2018, Letby was arrested by police on suspicion of eight counts of suspected murder and six counts of attempted murder, following a year-long investigation into the high infant mortality rates at the Countess of Chester Hospital.[14] Letby's home at Arran Avenue, Hereford was searched by police following her arrest.[15] After the arrest of Letby, the investigation was subsequently widened to include Liverpool Women's Hospital, another location at which Letby had worked, though no evidence that patients at the hospital came to any harm was found during the investigation.[7][16]

Letby was bailed on 6 July 2018 as the police continued their enquiries.[17] She was rearrested on 10 June 2019 in connection with eight alleged murders and nine alleged attempted murders of babies,[18] and again on 10 November 2020.[19][20] On 11 November 2020, Letby was charged with eight counts of murder and ten counts of attempted murder.[20] She was denied bail and remained in police custody.[21]

Trial

There are no words. I am an awful person. I pay everyday for that. No hope. I can't breathe. I can't focus. I'll never have children or marry I'll never know what it's like to have a family. Kill myself right now. Overwhelming fear. I haven't done anything wrong. Police investigation. Forget. Slander discrimination victimisation. Despair, panic, fear, lost, HATE. Hate myself so much. All getting to much everything taking over my life. I feel very alone and scared. What does the future hold. How can I get through it. How will things ever be like they were. They won't. I don't deserve to live. I DID THIS WHY ME. I killed them on purpose because I'm not good enough to care for them, and I am horrible and evil person. I don't deserve mum and dad. The world is better off without me. I AM EVIL I DID THIS.

One of Lucy Letby's post-it notes was shown in court

Letby's trial began at Manchester Crown Court on 10 October 2022, before Mr Justice Goss, and is due to conclude after six months.[22][23] She pleaded not guilty to seven counts of murder, and fifteen counts of attempted murder relating to ten babies.[24] The alleged victims could not be named in reports and were referred to as Child A to Child Q.[25] The families of the alleged victims and Letby's parents attended the trial.[26][27]

The prosecutor Nick Johnson KC said that Letby was a "constant malevolent presence" in the hospital's neonatal unit,[24] and that Letby had searched for the parents of several babies on Facebook – two of which were the parents of an alleged victim – as well as sending one family a sympathy card.[28] It was alleged by the prosecutor that Letby had injected air into the bloodstream of two of the alleged victims and had used insulin to murder others. A mother of one of the alleged victims said she had walked in on Letby trying to kill her baby, with Letby allegedly saying "Trust me, I'm a nurse" when interrupted.[29] It was also revealed during the trial that Letby had to be told more than once not to go into a room where the parents of one of the babies she is accused of murdering were grieving.[30]

Letby's defence lawyer, Benjamin Myers KC, alleged that Letby was "a dedicated nurse in a system which has failed", claimed that the prosecution case was "driven by the assumption that someone was doing deliberate harm combined with the coincidence on certain occasions of Miss Letby's presence", and alleged there had been a "massive failure of care in a busy hospital neonatal unit – far too great to blame on one person".[31] It was alleged that "extraordinary bleeding" in a baby boy allegedly murdered by Letby could have been caused by a rigid wire or tube, and that one of the babies who survived had an "extremely high" dose of insulin.[32][33] The use of insulin at the hospital was denied by Letby's colleagues.[34]

The court was shown texts sent by Letby to her friends, one of which discussed the baby deaths, which Letby described as "sad and cruel" and "heartbreaking", later adding "It's not about me or anyone else, it's those poor parents who have to walk away without their baby. It's so unbelievably sad." Letby had also told a colleague that taking Child A to the mortuary was "the hardest thing she ever had to do".[35] Ravi Jayaram, a paediatrician at the Countess of Chester Hospital, revealed during the trial that he and other clinicians had previously raised concerns over Letby, but were told by hospital bosses that they "really should not really be saying such things" and "not to make a fuss". Another doctor attending the trial said that Letby, in relation to one of the premature babies, told the doctor "he's not leaving here alive, is he?" an hour before the child died.[36]

On the fourth day of the trial, the prosecution showed the court an alleged confession on a post-it note from Letby, which said "I am evil, I did this" and that she "killed them on purpose" because she "couldn't take care of them".[37] The defence argued that the note was "the anguished outpouring of a young woman in fear and despair when she realises the enormity of what's being said about her, in the moment to herself", and said that Letby had written it when she was dealing with employment issues, including a grievance procedure with the NHS trust. Several other post-it notes from Letby were shown in court, two of which respectively said "Why/how has this happened – what process has led to this current situation? What allegations have been made and by who? Do they have written evidence to support their comments?" and "I haven't done anything wrong and they have no evidence so why have I had to hide away?", both of which were Letby expressing frustration at the fact that she was not being allowed back on the neonatal unit.[38]

Letby herself gave evidence to the court in May 2023, and claimed she was incompetent but "meant no harm".[39] When asked why she wrote the "I am evil, I did this" note, Letby said "I felt at the time that if I'd done something wrong I must be such an evil, awful person. I'd somehow been incompetent and had done something wrong which had affected those babies."[40] Letby said that the allegations had negatively impacted her mental health, saying "I don't think you can be accused of anything worse than that. I just changed as a person, my mental health deteriorated, I felt isolated from my friends on the unit. From a self-confidence point of view, it made me question everything about myself." Letby also broke down in tears during her testimony.[41]

See also

  • Colin Norris – UK nurse convicted of murdering four patients with insulin in 2008
  • Beverley Allitt – UK nurse convicted of murdering, attempting to murder and grievous bodily harm of infants and children in 1993

References

  1. ^ Corbishley, Sam (17 May 2023). "Nurse Lucy Letby says deaths of two triplet boys in as many days was 'harrowing'". Metro. Retrieved 17 May 2023.
  2. ^ "Information about neonatal services at The Countess | Countess of Chester Hospital". web.archive.org. 12 October 2016. Retrieved 28 October 2022.
  3. ^ Gleeson, Bill (25 June 2017). "Death rate at Countess of Chester maternity unit among highest in country". Cheshirechronicle.co.uk. Retrieved 27 January 2023.
  4. ^ "Countess of Chester Hospital: Woman held in baby deaths probe". Bbc.com. 3 July 2018. Retrieved 27 January 2023.
  5. ^ Thomas, Justin (8 July 2018). "All health organisations collect data, but failing to analyse it can put lives at risk". The National. Retrieved 13 July 2018.
  6. ^ "Annual Report & Accounts 2016/17" (PDF). coch.nhs.uk. Countess of Chester NHS Foundation Trust. 23 May 2017. Archived (PDF) from the original on 22 October 2021. Retrieved 5 March 2021.
  7. ^ a b Parveen, Nazia; Halliday, Josh (4 July 2018). "Cheshire baby deaths: police widen inquiry to second hospital". The Guardian. Retrieved 5 July 2018.
  8. ^ "Neonatal Update - Thursday 18 May". coch.nhs.uk. Countess of Chester NHS Foundation Trust. 18 May 2017. Archived from the original on 17 June 2017. Retrieved 5 July 2018.
  9. ^ "Hospital nurse accused of murdering seven babies and attempting to kill 10 others". BreakingNews.ie. Retrieved 31 October 2022.
  10. ^ "Staff Profile – Lucy Letby" (PDF). 28 March 2013.
  11. ^ "Home searched after baby murder arrest belongs to Chester children's nurse". Chester and District Standard. Retrieved 1 November 2022.
  12. ^ "Home searched after baby murder arrest belongs to Chester children's nurse". Chester and District Standard. Retrieved 27 October 2022.
  13. ^ "Lucy Letby: police found note saying 'I killed them on purpose', court hears". the Guardian. 13 October 2022. Retrieved 28 October 2022.
  14. ^ "Nurse Lucy Letby arrested over Chester Hospital baby deaths". BBC News. 4 July 2018. Retrieved 5 July 2018.
  15. ^ Powell, Tom (4 July 2018). "Nurse's home searched by police following baby murder arrests". Evening Standard. Retrieved 28 October 2022.
  16. ^ Humphries, Jonathan (4 July 2018). "Lucy Letby's training hospital helping police with baby death probe". CheshireLive. Retrieved 30 October 2022.
  17. ^ "Update on Countess of Chester Hospital neonatal unit investigation". cheshire.police.uk. Cheshire Constabulary. 6 July 2018. Archived from the original on 26 February 2019. Retrieved 13 July 2018.
  18. ^ Halliday, Josh (10 June 2019). "Police investigating baby deaths at Chester hospital rearrest nurse". The Guardian.
  19. ^ "Chester hospital baby deaths probe: Nurse Lucy Letby rearrested". BBC News. 10 November 2020.
  20. ^ a b "Nurse Lucy Letby charged with murder after Chester hospital baby deaths". The Guardian. PA Media. 11 November 2020.
  21. ^ Goddard, Ben (13 November 2020). "Hereford nurse Lucy Letby refused bail". Hereford Times. Retrieved 18 November 2022.
  22. ^ McIntyre, Alex (30 September 2022). "Lucy Letby trial to begin as nurse denies murdering babies at Chester Hospital". CheshireLive. Retrieved 28 October 2022.
  23. ^ Halliday, Josh (12 October 2022). "Doctor interrupted nurse Lucy Letby's attempt to kill newborn baby, court told". The Guardian. Retrieved 13 October 2022.
  24. ^ a b Halliday, Josh (10 October 2022). "Lucy Letby was 'constant malevolent' presence on neonatal ward, court hears". The Guardian. Retrieved 13 October 2022.
  25. ^ "Who are the children alleged to have been murdered by Lucy Letby?". ITV News. 14 October 2022. Retrieved 28 October 2022.
  26. ^ "Lucy Letby's parents arrive at court". ITN. Retrieved 28 October 2022 – via uk.news.yahoo.com.
  27. ^ "Latest updates: Hereford nurse Lucy Letby goes on trial accused of baby murders". Hereford Times. Retrieved 28 October 2022.
  28. ^ "Lucy Letby: Nurse searched for parents on Facebook, jury told". BBC News. 19 October 2022. Retrieved 28 October 2022.
  29. ^ "Mother walked in on nurse Lucy Letby trying to kill baby, court told". The Guardian. 11 October 2022. Retrieved 28 October 2022.
  30. ^ "Lucy Letby asked to leave baby's grieving family, trial hears". BBC News. 31 October 2022. Retrieved 31 October 2022.
  31. ^ —
  32. ^ "Lucy Letby trial: Rigid wire or tube could have caused baby's 'extraordinary bleeding', court told". Sky News. Retrieved 19 November 2022.
  33. ^ "Lucy Letby: 'Extremely high' dose of insulin found in baby allegedly poisoned". ITV News. 24 November 2022. Retrieved 24 November 2022.
  34. ^ "Lucy Letby colleagues tell murder trial they did not give baby insulin". BBC News. 23 November 2022. Retrieved 24 November 2022.
  35. ^ —
  36. ^ —
  37. ^ "Lucy Letby trial - 'I am evil, I did this': Read the 'confession note' written by nurse accused of murdering seven babies". Sky News. Retrieved 27 October 2022.
  38. ^ "Revealed: The 'I AM EVIL' handwritten note by Lucy Letby found at her Chester home". The Leader. Retrieved 28 October 2022.
  39. ^ "Nurse Lucy Letby Sobs on Witness Stand, Claims She Was 'Incompetent' But Meant No Harm". Peoplemag. Retrieved 3 May 2023.
  40. ^ Jolly, Bradley (2 May 2023). "Nurse Lucy Letby explains 'I am evil' note found after she 'murdered 7 babies'". mirror. Retrieved 3 May 2023.
  41. ^ Jolly, Bradley (2 May 2023). "Nurse Lucy Letby explains 'I am evil' note found after she 'murdered 7 babies'". mirror. Retrieved 3 May 2023.
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