Lucy Letby news – latest: Law to be changed ‘at earliest opportunity’ after serial killer nurse refuses to attend sentencing
The refusal of serial killer nurse Lucy Letby to attend her sentencing has produced widespread support for a change in the law, with the justice secretary vowing to bring forward amendments “at the earliest opportunity”.
Letby was sentenced to spend the rest of her life in prison on Monday after being found guilty of murdering seven infants and attempting to murder six others, but did not appear in the dock to hear the sentence handed down, the judge’s remarks or any of the statements from the victims’ families.
The court has no power to force a defendant to attend a sentencing under current laws.
“Lucy Letby is not just a murderer but a coward, whose failure to face her victims’ families, refusing to hear their impact statements and society’s condemnation, is the final insult,” said Alex Chalk. “We are looking to change the law so offenders can be compelled to attend sentencing hearings.”
Several British newspaper, including The Independent, used today’s editorials to rally in support of change, arguing that the worst offenders like Letby “should be forced to appear in court to witness the impact of their crimes”.
Judge Mr Justice Goss said Letby will be sent written copies of the victim impact statements read out during her sentencing.
Key Points
Serial killer nurse Lucy Letby will die in prison after being sentenced to whole life order
Law change ‘at earliest opportunity’ so offenders can be forced to attend sentencing
Lucy Letby to be sent victim impact statements after refusing to appear in court
Inside the Lucy Letby sentencing
Where will serial killer nurse go to prison?
British nurse Lucy Letby imprisoned for life
04:30 , Namita Singh
A former neonatal nurse convicted of murdering seven babies in her care and trying to kill six others at a hospital in northern England was sentenced on Monday to life in prison with no chance of release by a judge who said she was cruel, cunning and callous, and acted with “malevolence bordering sadism.”
Lucy Letby, who refused to appear in court for sentencing or to face an outpouring of anger and anguish from grieving parents, was given the most severe punishment possible under British law.
Justice James Goss said the number of killings and attempts and the nature of the murders by a nurse entrusted with caring for the most fragile infants provided the “exceptional circumstances” required to impose a rare “whole-life order.”
Only three other women have received such a harsh sentence before in the UK.
“There was a deep malevolence bordering on sadism in your actions,” Justice Goss said, addressing the absent defendant, who will be given a transcript of the proceedings. “During the course of this trial, you have coldly denied any responsibility for your wrongdoing. You have no remorse. There are no mitigating factors.”
Letby to be officially erased as a nurse by regulator six years after first arrest
10:24 , Holly Evans
Andrea Sutcliffe, Chief Executive and Registrar at the Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC), said: “First and foremost, our thoughts and sympathies are with the parents and families whose lives have been so terribly impacted by these heinous and heart-breaking crimes.
“This has been a long, complex criminal investigation. We’ve kept in close contact with the police and the trust throughout, and will continue to do so.
“Ms Letby remains suspended from our register, and we will now move forward with our regulatory action, seeking to strike her off the register.”
Families of victims call for statutory inquiry into Lucy Letby’s crimes
09:48 , Holly Evans
A statutory inquiry into Lucy Letby’s crimes is “exactly” what the families of her victims want, a lawyer has said.
Asked about the possibility of a statutory inquiry, Tamlin Bolton, a solicitor for law firm Switalskis, which is representing the families of seven of Letby’s victims, told BBC Breakfast: “I think that’s exactly what they (the families) want.
“I don’t believe they’re suggesting that the NHS trust wouldn’t comply with an independent inquiry or would refuse to provide documents but you have to have a measure in place to compel them to do so.
“Inquiries are non-adversarial so it doesn’t assign liability to anybody, it’s just an investigation in its purest form and the importance of the statutory version of that is that you can make sure all that important evidence is there.
“The NHS is a public body, it’s publicly funded, and we want transparency and we want this investigated.”
Father of victim said Letby’s non-attendance ‘spits in the face’ of justice system
09:12 , Holly Evans
A father of one of Lucy Letby’s victims believes her non-attendance during the sentencing was a “disgrace” which “spits in the face” of the justice system, a lawyer has said.
Tamlin Bolton, a solicitor for law firm Switalskis, which is representing the families of seven of Letby’s victims, told BBC Breakfast: “For most of the families that I represent, they thought it was a disgrace, absolutely.
“And one of the fathers said to me that it actually spits in the face of the justice system, which is you know, such ugly terminology, but it’s so accurate and his comments were that it was actually a scandal in itself that she wasn’t there.”
New doctor behaviour guidelines include sexual harassment and whistleblowing standards
08:49 , Holly Evans
Guidance on how doctors should behave in work has been revised for the first time in a decade, outlining new standards on sexual harassment, whistleblowing and bullying to ensure staff “feel supported to speak out”.
The General Medical Council (GMC) has published its new good medical practice guidelines, which sets out standards of patient care and professional behaviour expected of all medical professionals.
Its predecessor came into force in April 2013 and the new standards will be implemented from January 2024 after a five-month familiarisation period for staff.
Read more.
New NHS guidelines include sexual harassment and whistleblowing standards
Consultant says concerns being ignored not ‘uncommon’ in NHS
08:43 , Holly Evans
Paediatrician Dr Stephen Brearey, who blew the whistle on killer nurse Lucy Letby in 2015, said that NHS managers need to be held accountable when things go wrong.
He also added that his experience of concerns being ignored by hospital bosses was not “uncommon” within the NHS.
Asked if he would like to see regulation of hospital administrators, like the regulation of clinical staff, so they can be held accountable for “certain forms of behaviours”, he told BBC Radio 4’s Today programme: “Absolutely. Because doctors and nurses all have their regulatory bodies that we have to answer to.
“And quite often, we’ll see senior managers who have no apparent accountability for what they do in our trusts, and they move to other trusts, and you worry about their future actions.
“There doesn’t seem to be any system to make them accountable and for them to justify their actions in a systematic way.”
NHS managers should be regulated same as doctors and nurses, says whistleblower consultant
07:56 , Holly Evans
Hospital managers should be regulated in a similar way to doctors and nurses, a senior doctor who first raised concerns about Lucy Letby has told BBC Radio 4’s Today programme.
Dr Stephen Brearey said there was “no apparent accountability” for what NHS managers do, and claimed that senior staff at the Countess of Chester Hospital were worried about reputational damage to the trust.
He had been the lead consultant on the neonatal unit where serial killer Letby worked, and had tried to raise the alarm to hospital bosses in October 2015.
He claimed that his warnings were not acted upon, and that he and his colleagues came to feel under attack for voicing their concerns.
The consultant added: “Quite often we’ll see senior managers who have no apparent accountability for what they do in our trusts and then move to other trusts and you worry about their future actions.”
Senior NHS manager ‘who ignored concerns’ over killer nurse
07:43 , Holly Evans
A senior manager accused of “ignoring” concerns and “protecting” Lucy Letby has been suspended from the NHS hospital she works in, it has emerged.
Alison Kelly, who was the chief nurse at the time Letby killed and attacked babies at the Countess of Chester Hospital, has been suspended from Northern Care Alliance NHS Foundation Trust in Salford.
Letby was convicted last week of murdering seven babies and attempting to murder six more in 2015 and 2016 while working at the Countess of Chester. She has now been given a whole life sentence.
Rebecca Thomas has more.
Senior NHS manager ‘who ignored concerns’ over Lucy Letby suspended from new role
Mother of shooting victim expresses sympathy for Letby victims’ families: ‘Heart goes out to them’
07:30 , Namita Singh
The mother of shooting victim Olivia Pratt-Korbel has said her heart goes out to the families of Lucy Letby’s victims after the killer nurse did not appear in court for her sentencing.
Cheryl Korbel has been campaigning for a change in the law to force criminals to appear in court after Thomas Cashman, who shot Olivia, nine, after chasing a fellow drug dealer into her home in Dovecot, Liverpool, refused to come up to the dock when he was sentenced to a minimum of 42 years.
On the first anniversary of Olivia’s death, Ms Korbel said her “heart would go out to the families” of the babies attacked by Letby at the Countess of Chester Hospital.
Read the details here:
Mother of shooting victim Olivia says heart goes out to Letby victims’ families
Newspapers rally behind law change as Letby refuses to attend sentencing
07:15 , Namita Singh
The refusal of serial child killer Lucy Letby to attend her sentencing and hear the testimony of her victims’ families produced widespread support for a change in the law in Tuesday’s newspapers.
Letby’s refusal to leave her cell follows the similar actions of Thomas Cashman earlier this year when he was sentenced for the murder of nine-year-old Olivia Pratt-Korbel in Liverpool in August 2022.
The Times said a “growing number of MPs and ministers” believe those convicted of murders and other horrific crimes should hear the sentences imposed on them in person.
While admitting forcing criminals to attend their sentencing may prove difficult, the newspaper’s leader column said: “Like a number of other murderers in recent years, Letby refused to attend court on the final days of her 10-month trial. To the surprise of many, there is no law to compel her to do so.
“Rishi Sunak called her a coward. It goes far beyond that.
“It matters that the public sees these penalties imposed and hears the judge’s reasoning explained in person to those convicted.”
More on the coverage here:
Newspapers rally behind law change as Letby refuses to attend sentencing
An empty dock and a final act of cowardice: Inside the Lucy Letby sentencing
07:01 , Andy Gregory
Our social affairs correspondent Holly Bancroft reports from Manchester Crown Court:
One by one, the parents stood and described the unimaginable pain that Lucy Letby had inflicted on them. First, they shared the pure joy and outpouring of love they had felt at the birth of their children. Then they spelled out the sheer terror they felt when their babies started to collapse and die - seemingly without explanation.
But Letby, now one of only three women alive to be given a sentence of life in prison without parole, was not there to hear their heartbreaking testimonies, having refused to come to her sentencing at Manchester Crown Court on Monday; a final act of cowardice from the UK’s most prolific child serial killer.
Letby’s parents, who had supported her throughout the ten-month trial, were also absent from court room 7, but more than a dozen relatives of Letby’s victims sat in the packed public gallery. Eight of the jurors, who had sat through ten months of harrowing evidence, also returned, this time looking at an empty dock where the defendant had sat during the trial.
The court heard victim impact statements from the parents of a number of the children Letby killed. Some jurors became visibly upset as they listened. Journalists who had covered the trial week in week out also struggled to hold in their emotions.
An empty dock and a final act of cowardice: inside the Lucy Letby sentencing
Lucy Letby to be sent victim impact statements after refusing to appear in court
06:45 , Namita Singh
Lucy Letby will be sent copies of victim impact statements read out during her sentencing after refusing to appear in court.
The 33-year-old did not appear in the dock at Manchester Crown Court on Monday as she was given a whole-life order after being convicted of the murders of seven babies and the attempted murders of six more.
The judge, Mr Justice Goss, ordered that she be sent a transcript of his sentencing remarks and copies of the statements read out by the families of her victims.
What did he say in his order? Read here:
Lucy Letby to be sent victim impact statements after refusing to appear in court
Why did serial killer nurse murder seven babies?
06:30 , Namita Singh
Nurse Lucy Letby has been found guilty of murdering seven babies at the Countess of Chester Hospital in a rare case that has shocked the nation.
The reasons why Letby, a neonatal nurse, committed the murders may never be fully understood, although prosecutors and other experts told jurors during her trial of several possible motivations.
Here, The Independent takes a look at some of the main theories discussed in court.
Lucy Letby motive: Why did serial killer nurse murder seven babies?
Murderers like Lucy Letby should be forced to appear in court to witness the impact of their crimes
06:15 , Namita Singh
The trial lasted 10 months. Letby gave evidence herself for several weeks. That, having been convicted, she has the power to choose not to listen to what her victims’ families have to say does not feel like natural justice.
Read The Independent’s view in this editorial:
Editorial: Murderers like Lucy Letby should be forced to appear in court
Could Lucy Letby have been stopped sooner? The missed opportunities to catch a killer revealed
06:04 , Andy Gregory
Serial killer nurse Lucy Letby was free to target babies for nearly a year after she murdered her first patient as hospital leaders repeatedly ignored concerns raised by whistleblowers, The Independent has learned.
Staff raised concerns over three “unexplained” baby deaths at the Countess of Chester Hospital in July 2015 but health chiefs failed to investigate the allegations, several hospital insiders have claimed.
An external review into the hospital, set to be published after the trial, is expected to find multiple failures by the trust’s leadership to act on warnings, The Independent understands.
Our health correspondent Rebecca Thomas has more in this article:
Could Lucy Letby have been stopped sooner? The missed opportunities to catch killer
Law change ‘at earliest opportunity’ so offenders can be forced to attend sentencing
05:45 , Namita Singh
The justice secretary has vowed to change the law at the “earliest opportunity” to ensure serious offenders can be forced to attend their sentencing following the refusal by child murderer Lucy Letby to appear in the dock.
The 33-year-old was not present to hear words of condemnation from the judge and victims’ families at Manchester Crown Court on Monday, prompting further outrage.
Earlier this year, Alex Chalk said the government was “committed” to changing the law in a way that would allow criminals to be forced to attend their sentencing, after the killers of Olivia Pratt-Korbel, Zara Aleena and Sabina Nessa also refused to stand in the dock for their own.
Read his latest remarks in this report:
Law change ‘at earliest opportunity’ so offenders can be forced to attend sentencing
‘No one but Letby knows what drove her’
05:30 , Namita Singh
Lucy Letby sickened babies by injecting intravenous lines with air, poisoning some with insulin and force-feeding others milk.
After killing them, she sometimes sobbed in grief, made keepsakes for parents and bathed the little bodies and dressed them for burial.
The victims, who were given anonymity and listed only by letters, such as Child A and Child B, died in the neonatal unit at the Countess of Chester Hospital in northwest England between June 2015 and June 2016.
“I don’t think we will ever get over the fact that our daughter was tortured till she had no fight left in her and everything she went through over her short life was deliberately done by someone who was supposed to protect her and help her come home where she belonged,” the mother of a girl identified as Child I said in a statement read in court.
The judge said no one but Letby knows what drove her, though some parents ventured theories: she wanted to play god; she needed attention, drama and sympathy in her life; or she wanted to be remembered.
Where will Lucy Letby go to prison?
05:15 , Namita Singh
Nurse Lucy Letby, the most prolific child serial killer in modern British history, will die in prison after being sentenced to a whole-life order.
Judge Mr Justice Goss handed the baby murderer the rare sentence, which is life imprisonment with no possibility of release, at Manchester Crown Court on Monday.
While it has not been confirmed, Letby could be placed in HMP Low Newton, a maximum security prison that is home to many of the deadliest female killers in recent history.The jail, which was opened in 1965, has housed Britain’s youngest female murderer Sharon Carr, as well as Baby P’s mother Tracey Connelly.
Dubbed ‘‘The Devil’s Daughter’’, Carr murdered an 18-year-old woman after picking her out at random when she was just 12 years old.
More on the infamous inmates in prison located near Durham:
Inside prison where baby killing nurse Lucy Letby expected to spend rest of her life
Comment | I’m a midwife – what happened with Lucy Letby can never be allowed to happen again
05:02 , Andy Gregory
In a piece for Independent Voices, Lizzie Romain, a midwife of 12 years writes:
“I was at work when I first heard about Lucy Letby’s trial, and I immediately felt a bit sick.
“I’ve never known or worked alongside her, but the thought of anyone knowingly harming a patient under their care just goes completely against the compassion that, I believe, drives people to become healthcare workers in the first place.
“It’s completely against everything that I know, and that I’ve experienced, in my working life.”
You can read her article in full here:
What happened with Lucy Letby can never be allowed to happen again | Lizzie Romain
An empty dock and a final act of cowardice: inside the Lucy Letby sentencing
04:45 , Namita Singh
One by one, the parents stood and described the unimaginable pain that Lucy Letby had inflicted on them. First, they shared the pure joy and outpouring of love they had felt at the birth of their children.
Then they spelled out the sheer terror they felt when their babies started to collapse and die – seemingly without explanation.
But Letby, now one of only three women alive to be given a sentence of life in prison without parole, was not there to hear their heartbreaking testimonies, having refused to come to her sentencing at Manchester Crown Court on Monday: a final act of cowardice from the UK’s most prolific child serial killer.
Letby’s parents, who had supported her throughout the ten-month trial, were also absent from court room 7, but more than a dozen relatives of Letby’s victims sat in the packed public gallery.
Eight of the jurors, who had sat through ten months of harrowing evidence, also returned, this time looking at an empty dock where the defendant had sat during the trial.
Report:
An empty dock and a final act of cowardice: inside the Lucy Letby sentencing
Text messages reveal insights into Letby’s life
04:01 , Andy Gregory
Text messages revealed the high regard in which Lucy Letby was previously held by her friends and colleagues, with one doctor writing “You’re a fab nurse” after a baby suffered two collapses, reports my colleague Holly Evans.
Another doctor wrote that she was one of the few nurses he “would trust with my own children”, when it became clear that her actions were under scrutiny.
One conversation involved a married male registrar. Letby denied he was her boyfriend, despite the two having travelled to London together and exchanged heart emojis in their text messages.
In texts read out by the prosecutor, Letby’s nursing friend teased “[I] think he likes u too” and said that the registrar was “as flirty as u”. She replied: “Shut up ... I don’t flirt with him!”, before adding: “Certainly don’t fancy him haha just nice guy.” When he appeared in the witness box, she attempted to leave the dock in tears.
It was suggested that, desperate to gain his approval, she had sabotaged Child O deliberately to attract his attention and cause him to return to the hospital to help.
On a scribbled piece of paper found at his address, she had written a declaration of love next to his name, which cannot be published for legal reasons. Scrawled in black ink were the words “I loved you” and “My best friend”.
Lucy Letby ‘cowardly’ for failing to attend sentencing, says Rishi Sunak
03:05 , Andy Gregory
Rishi Sunak has branded serial child murderer Lucy Letby “cowardly” for refusing to appear for her sentencing hearing at Manchester Crown Court.
Asked during a visit to a nursery in Harrogate on Monday whether ministers are moving too slowly on changing the law to compel serious offenders to attend their sentencing hearings, Mr Sunak told broadcasters: “The first thing is to extend my sympathies to everyone affected by this.
“I think, like everyone reading about this, it’s just shocking and harrowing. Now, I think it’s cowardly that people who commit such horrendous crimes do not face their victims and hear first-hand the impact that their crimes have had on them and their families and loved ones.
“We are looking, and have been, at changing the law to make sure that that happens and that’s something that we’ll bring forward in due course.”
Lucy Letby ‘cowardly’ for failing to attend sentencing, says Rishi Sunak
Court hears harrowing statements from families of Lucy Letby’s victims
02:03 , Andy Gregory
The families of Lucy Letby’s victims branded the nurse “evil” as they gave emotional victim impact statements during her sentencing.
Here is what each family said during the sentencing:
Court hears harrowing statements from families of Lucy Letby’s victims
Whole-life orders: The sentence that sees criminals likely to die behind bars
01:01 , Andy Gregory
Lucy Letby is facing the rest of her life behind bars after being handed a whole-life order, the most severe punishment available in the country’s criminal justice system, reports Flora Thompson.
She joins a string of the country’s most dangerous offenders who are likely to die behind bars, including Sarah Everard’s killer Wayne Couzens, necrophiliac David Fuller and homegrown terrorist Ali Harbi Ali who murdered MP Sir David Amess.
A total of 70 criminals are serving a whole-life order, four of which are being held in secure hospitals. They will never be considered for release, unless there are exceptional compassionate grounds to warrant it.
Only three women have previously been handed the sentence: the girlfriend of Moors murderer Ian Brady, Myra Hindley – who died in 2002 – and serial killers Rose West and Joanna Dennehy.
Whole-life orders: The sentence that sees criminals likely to die behind bars
New guidance for NHS staff to tackle toxic workplace cultures
Tuesday 22 August 2023 00:05 , Storm Newton
Guidance on how doctors should behave in work has been revised for the first time in a decade, outlining new standards on sexual harassment, whistleblowing and bullying to ensure staff “feel supported to speak out”.
The General Medical Council (GMC) has published its new good medical practice guidelines, which sets out standards of patient care and professional behaviour expected of all medical professionals.
Its predecessor came into force in April 2013 and the new standards will be implemented from January 2024 after a five-month familiarisation period for staff.
The 2013 guide also placed a duty on all doctors to raise concerns about patient safety, but the 2024 document places emphasis on doctors in leadership and management conditions to create a culture in which staff feel safe to speak out about concerns.
There have been calls to overhaul the NHS whistleblowing system in the wake of the Lucy Letby trial after it emerged senior doctors had raised concerns about the child killer but were ignored by hospital bosses.
Letby’s mother exclaimed that initial guilty verdicts ‘can’t be right’
Monday 21 August 2023 23:26 , Holly Evans
When the first eight guilty verdicts were returned by the jury on Friday 11 August – four of murder and four of attempted murder – Lucy Letby was unmoved, but her mother Susan cried out: “This can’t be right, this can’t be right.”
Sobbing uncontrollably, she was escorted from the courtroom by her husband.
Lucy Letby background: What she did, where she worked and her sentence
Lucy Letby: How the ‘average nurse’ turned into one of Britain’s most notorious serial killers
Monday 21 August 2023 22:55 , Andy Gregory
For a mother whose newborn was gravely ill in the neonatal unit of the Countess of Chester Hospital, she was a ray of light: a calm, comforting nurse who guided her through her most desperate moments as her child lay listless in his cot.
“Trust me, I’m a nurse,” she smiled at her, and the mother did, completely. But within hours, her baby boy was dead, and the nurse in whom she had placed so much trust, who had been by her side through the darkest time of her life, was responsible.
The baby, identified only as Child E, was one of the victims of Lucy Letby, who has been found guilty of seven counts of both murder and six of attempted murder over the course of 12 months, from June 2015 to June 2016. She was found not guilty of two attempted murder charges, and the jury could not reach verdicts on a further six counts of the same charge.
Throughout the trial, what has been notable is just how unremarkable Letby’s life was: a normal nurse who had a normal upbringing. “How I would describe her from my own experience in this investigation is ‘beige’,” deputy senior investigating officer DCI Nicola Evans said. “There isn’t anything outstanding or outrageous that we found about her as a person, in that she was an average nurse.
“She was a normal twentysomething-year-old, doing what she was doing with her career, her friends. But clearly there was another side of that, that nobody saw.”
My colleague Holly Evans has more in this report:
Lucy Letby background: What she did, where she worked and her sentence
Comment | Why was Lucy Letby allowed to inflict one last wound on her victims?
Monday 21 August 2023 22:22 , Andy Gregory
The headline, “Nurse found guilty of murdering seven babies” should have read, “Nurse found guilty of murdering seven babies in her absence” – the whole truth, writes John Wright.
Yes, the waiting public needed to know that an unlikely-looking murderer had been rightly found guilty of her crimes, yet Letby was not in court today to hear her sentencing. Why not? Why was she allowed to inflict one last wound on the families of the babies she murdered?
Some 110 hours, the jury deliberated. Letting the killer nurse hide in her cell rather than face bereaved families in court was a disgrace – and a final act of wickedness.
Opinion: Why was Lucy Letby allowed to inflict one last wound on her victims?
Other cowardly killers who refused to face their victims’ families in court
Monday 21 August 2023 21:50 , Andy Gregory
Lucy Letby has been branded a coward for refusing to turn up to her sentencing, but she isn’t the first killer who has refused to face up to their crimes.
My colleague Matt Drake takes a look at previous such cases here:
The cowardly killers who refused to face their victims’ families in court
Government discussing whether to hand independent inquiry statutory powers
Monday 21 August 2023 21:12 , Andy Gregory
Our social affairs correspondent Holly Bancroft reports:
The government has ordered an independent inquiry into the circumstances behind the murders.
Some of the grieving families of Letby’s victims have said that the investigation should be upgraded to one with statutory powers that would compel witnesses to attend by law.
The Independent understands the government is discussing whether to upgrade the inquiry, weighing up whether the speed a non-statutory review may offer was outweighed by the benefits of a full public inquiry – including compelling more witnesses to give evidence.
Lucy Letby motive: Why did serial killer nurse murder seven babies?
Monday 21 August 2023 20:42 , Andy Gregory
Nurse Lucy Letby has been found guilty of murdering seven babies at the Countess of Chester Hospital in a rare case that has shocked the nation.
The reasons why Letby, a neonatal nurse, committed the murders may never be fully understood, although prosecutors and other experts told jurors during her trial of several possible motivations.
Here, my colleague Matt Mathers takes a look at some of the main theories discussed in court:
Lucy Letby motive: Why did serial killer nurse murder seven babies?
Video report: Lucy Letby handed whole life sentence after being found guilty of murdering seven babies
Monday 21 August 2023 20:14 , Andy Gregory
Father of two murdered triplets describes death as a ‘stab in the heart'
Monday 21 August 2023 19:47 , Andy Gregory
The parents of two triplet boys murdered by Lucy Letby on successive days have said the nurse has “destroyed their lives”.
Letby, who became their designated nurse Letby on her first shift back at work on 23 June 2016, after a break in Ibiza, injected air into the bloodstream of Child O and also into his stomach through a nasogastric tube. She also administered air into the stomach of his brother, Child P, and inflicted physical trauma of some kind to the livers of both boys.
The triplets’ parents had begged medics to transfer the surviving triplet from the hospital after the unexplained and unexpected collapses of his brothers. He was treated at another hospital and was later discharged in good health.
The deaths in June 2016 were the “tipping point” for consultants who suspected Letby was to blame and demanded she be removed from the unit at the Countess of Chester Hospital.
The boys’ parents felt unable to give their victim personal statements at Manchester Crown and their comments were pre-recorded on film.
“I was present in the NNU (neonatal unit) and was informed that (Child O) had collapsed and to be patient and to give the staff some space,” the boys’ father said.
“(Child O) was visibly struggling, it was very distressing to watch his deterioration. I noticed the colour of (Child O’s) skin was changing rapidly, it didn’t appear normal to the naked eye, it was horrific to see, and it is an image that I’ll never forget.
“Deep down I knew it was not going to end well. (Child O) received a blessing from the priest and was quickly christened. Moments later, (Child O) was gone.
“I felt like I had been stabbed in the heart. No words could describe how I was feeling. I kept wishing it had happened to me and at that time would have gladly taken his place.
“From that point I spent some time on the unit with (the surviving triplet) and (Child P). I did not know how I should be feeling, and was worried about other complications. Every beep on that unit caused me anxiety and additional stress.”
He said that the next morning he and his wife were informed that Child P was poorly.
He told the court: “I did not know what was happening. We were still waiting for an explanation for (Child O). The situation escalated and I was worried at the drama and panic unfolding in the room. I knew it was serious when doctors arrived.
“The whole ordeal was a repeat of the previous day, I knew it was not going to end well.”
‘No point’ in changing sentencing law, says expert
Monday 21 August 2023 19:19 , Andy Gregory
Legal commentator Joshua Rozenberg KC said there was “no point” in trying to impose an additional prison sentence on a defendant who is already going to receive a whole-life order, our political correspondent Adam Forrest reports.
“Of course, defendants should attend court to hear victim impact statements and the judge’s sentencing remarks. That may bring some comfort to victims and their families,” he said in a blogpost.
“But, as I wrote yesterday, there is no point in punishing non-attendance by imposing an additional prison sentence on a defendant who is going to receive a whole-life order.”
What concerns were raised prior to Letby’s arrest?
Monday 21 August 2023 18:50 , Andy Gregory
Lucy Letby targeted the babies between June 2015 and June 2016, when they were dying or suddenly collapsing at five times the normal annual rate, reports my colleague Holly Evans.
The neonatal unit’s lead consultant Dr Stephen Brearey was prompted to investigate when three babies died within the space of two weeks in June 2015. An initial staffing analysis revealed that Letby had been on duty for all three deaths.
When two more baby deaths followed in October of that year, with Letby on shift for both of them, Dr Brearey started to suspect foul play. He raised his concerns with the director of nursing, he said, but didn’t hear anything back.
Other babies suffered non-fatal collapses with apparently no explanation and Dr Brearey decided to request an urgent meeting. No action was taken against Letby, who was allowed to continue work. Then in June 2016 another baby collapsed and two others died. Dr Brearey told the BBC it was then that he demanded Letby be taken off duty. This eventually happened and the suspicious deaths stopped.
However senior management was not convinced that Letby was behind the deaths. In 2017, consultants within the neonatal unit were reportedly told they must apologise to Letby and told to attend mediation sessions with her.
In a letter published by the BBC doctors were forced to tell Letby they were “very sorry for the stress and upset that you have experienced in the last year”.
Documents seen by The Sunday Times reportedly reveal that the hospital also apologised to the nurse for her treatment and offered to support her with a master’s degree or an advanced neonatal course.
The police were eventually brought in to investigate in March 2017, arresting Letby at her home in Chester on July 3.
Lucy Letby: The childish killer
Monday 21 August 2023 18:23 , Andy Gregory
Described as “beige” by a deputy senior investigating officer on the case, Lucy Letby did not come across as someone capable of her horrific crimes, my colleague Holly Evans reports.
“There isn’t anything outstanding or outrageous that we found about her as a person. And I think that has come across during the trial in that she was an average nurse,” officer Nicola Evans said.
Letby was born in Hereford in January 1990, the only child of John and Susan Letby. She attended the local comprehensive school before enrolling in nursing at the University of Chester.
Images of her bedroom, shown to the jury during the trial, paint a picture of a normal, if childish, twenty-something. Two teddy bears are shown placed on a duvet cover bearing the motif ‘Sweet Dreams’.
Framed pictures containing the slogans ‘Shine Bright Like A Diamond’ and ‘Leave Sparkles Wherever You Go’ were hung on her bedroom walls, while a pink and white dressing gown lay on the floor.
It was in her unassuming 2016 diary – the cover of which pictured a cute toy dog clutching a flower – that the police made a crucial discovery. A Post-it note covered in Letby’s handwritten thoughts, which read: “I killed them on purpose because I’m not good enough”, “I can’t do this any more”, “I am evil I did this”.
The defence insisted the notes merely showed Letby’s “anguish not guilt” but detective superintendent Paul Hughes of Cheshire Police speculated: “Did she want it [the note] found? Did she just want to write it down or did she want to tell the world that she was evil, and she did this? Did she want the notoriety that she’s got?”
Lucy Letby jailed for life: Nurse refuses to face court in ‘final act of wickedness’
Starmer ‘shares victims’ families anger over Letby’s refusal to attend sentencing’
Monday 21 August 2023 18:21 , Andy Gregory
Sir Keir Starmer said he shared the victims’ families anger about not seeing Lucy Letby in the dock for her sentencing hearing, as he urged the government to change the law to compel criminals to attend.
The Labour leader told reporters: “What I don’t think should be allowed to happen is for the Government to say because there are practical considerations, which of course there are, we’ll do nothing about it.
“Just think of those victims’ families today not seeing the defendant in the dock facing justice as she properly should. They are angry, they’re frustrated. I share that.
“I saw for myself just how important it is. So from our position, we’re thinking not about party politics. We’re thinking about the victims, making an absolutely open offer to the government, we’ll work with you, overcome the practical considerations, and let’s get this done, let’s get the law changed.”
Former nursing chief ‘wasn’t given enough information to remove Lucy Letby’
Monday 21 August 2023 18:02 , Andy Gregory
A former nursing chief has said she was not given enough information to be able to remove nurse Lucy Letby from a neonatal unit after it was claimed she refused to so.
Karen Rees was the head of nursing at the Countess of Chester Hospital’s urgent care division before she retired in March 2018. The hospital’s neonatal unit head consultant, Dr Stephen Brearey, told Manchester Crown Court he had informed Ms Rees that he and his colleagues were “not happy” with Letby because of the number of baby deaths and collapses during her shifts.
In a statement to Sky News, Ms Rees said she was not given enough information to justify removing Letby from her duties, adding: “At no point did he say that he suspected she had been purposely harming babies. If he had said that there had been 16 deaths, and that she was present for all of them, then my actions may well have differed.”
In reference to another claim she described as “completely untrue” and an “outrageous allegation to make”, Ms Rees said she was “currently taking legal advice about the untrue allegations”.
Former nursing chief ‘wasn’t given enough information to remove Lucy Letby’
Father of baby targeted by Letby says daughter was ‘found by the Devil'
Monday 21 August 2023 17:40 , Andy Gregory
The father of a child who requires constant care after being attacked by Lucy Letby, referred to as Child G by the court, said in a victim impact statement that his premature baby was saved by God – but was then found by the Devil.
The start of her life was a “bumpy road” because she was so premature, Child G’s father said in his statement, adding: “Every day I would sit there and pray. I would pray for God to save her. He did. He saved her, but the Devil found her.”
Letby was found guilty of attacking Child G twice in September 2015, first by injecting milk and air into her naso-gastric tube and then by over-feeding her.
When Child G was two an MRI scan showed the extent of her brain damage and she went on to have a number of hospital stays, including one period of three months. She is registered blind, has quadriplegic cerebral palsy and is fed by a tube through her stomach, he said.
The court also heard she will need spinal surgery. He said his daughter’s condition affects all aspects of her life and she will not get to experience things other children will. He added: “She will always be in her chair and always dependent on adults.”
Sentencing Letby, Mr Justice Goss said: “[Child G] suffered a severe and profound injury to her brain from the first event on September 7, which may have been added to by your actions on September 21, and from which she will not recover.
“She requires constant nursing care and attention and will require surgery and support throughout her life.”
Where will Lucy Letby go to prison? Inside jail where killer nurse expected to spend rest of her days
Monday 21 August 2023 17:18 , Andy Gregory
While it has not been confirmed, Lucy Letby could be placed in HMP Low Newton, a maximum security prison that is home to many of the deadliest female killers in recent history.
The jail, which was opened in 1965, has housed Britain’s youngest female murderer Sharon Carr, as well as Baby P’s mother Tracey Connelly. Dubbed ‘The Devil’s Daughter’, Carr murdered an 18-year-old woman after picking her out at random when she was just 12 years old.
The prison’s most infamous inmate was ‘House of Horrors’ killer Rosemary West, who sexually abused and murdered 10 women and children alongside her husband Fred West.
She was eventually moved from HMP Low Newton in 2019, after another vicious killer, Joanna Dennehy, allegedly threatened to kill her.
My colleague Holly Evans has more details here:
Inside prison where baby killing nurse Lucy Letby expected to spend rest of her life
Boy was buried wearing gown chosen as gift by Letby, says mother
Monday 21 August 2023 16:55 , Andy Gregory
A twin baby boy, referred to as Child E in the trial, was buried wearing a woollen gown chosen as a gift by his murderer Lucy Letby, his mother said in her victim impact statement.
The mother of Child E told Manchester Crown Court she felt “sickened” by that decision and also “deeply regrets” allowing Letby to bathe him as part of the bereavement service at the Countess of Chester Hospital’s neonatal unit.
Letby administered air into her son’s bloodstream in August 2015 and then attempted to kill his brother, Child F, on the following shift by poisoning him with insulin.
The twins’ mother said: “On the 3rd of August 2015 our world shattered when we encountered evil disguised as a caring nurse.”
She added: “In the neo-natal environment, vulnerability prevails as you rely on the expertise and knowledge of others to make decisions for your babies, especially as a first-time parent. We followed the instructions given to us diligently, even asking for permission to touch our babies during visitation. It was a tense and unnatural environment, and we were afraid that deviating from the instructions would hinder our boys’ progress.
“We were robbed of precious time with our baby boy after he died. We were denied the opportunity to spend private moments with him, having to grieve openly in the presence of Lucy and the neo-natal unit staff in nursery one.
“Lucy bathed (Child E), an action I deeply regret, and dressed him in a woollen gown. He was buried in that gown, a gift from the unit chosen by Lucy. I feel sickened by the choice we made. Not a single day passes without distress over this decision.”
Mother of shooting victim Olivia says heart goes out to Letby victims’ families
Monday 21 August 2023 16:33 , Andy Gregory
The mother of shooting victim Olivia Pratt-Korbel has said “her heart would go out to the families” of Lucy Letby’s victims after the killer nurse did not appear in court for her sentencing.
Cheryl Korbel has been campaigning for a change in the law to force criminals to appear in court after Thomas Cashman, who fatally shot the nine-year-old on 22 August 2022 while pursuing a fellow drug dealer, refused to come to the dock when he was sentenced to a minimum of 42 years.
Speaking ahead of the first anniversary of Olivia’s death, Ms Korbel said: “Going to prison is supposed to be a rehabilitation. That first port of call of rehabilitation should be in that courtroom and standing there listening to the judge and listening to the families’ impact statements.”
Mother of shooting victim Olivia says heart goes out to Letby victims’ families
Judge orders Letby to be sent transcripts of sentencing remarks and victim statements
Monday 21 August 2023 16:11 , Andy Gregory
Lucy Letby will be sent copies of the victim impact statements read out during her sentencing after refusing to appear in court, Judge Mr Justice Goss has said.
Noting that she had refused to attend the hearing, the judge said: “I shall deliver the sentencing remarks as if she was present to hear them. And I direct that she is provided with a transcript of my remarks and copies of the victim personal statements read to the court.”
In a victim impact statement, the mother of twin boys Child E and Child F, who Letby was convicted of murdering and attempting to murder respectively, said Letby’s absence was “one final act of wickedness from a coward”.
‘Fashion’ of criminals not facing victims in court is ‘growing problem’, says justice committee chair
Monday 21 August 2023 15:53 , Andy Gregory
My colleague Tara Cobham reports:
Criminals like nurse Lucy Letby not appearing in court to face their victims is seen as a “growing problem” by the chair of the House of Commons justice committee, in that it has become a “fashion” among serial killers.
Asked about Letby’s refusal to attend her sentencing, Sir Robert Neill MP told The Independent: “Serial killers have a mentality of ‘you can’t beat me’. It’s part of prison culture. While there are no statistics, you do get fashions, even of people held in custody – and as far as I can see, it is a growing problem.”
He condemned the baby murderer’s decision to not appear in court as “absolute cowardice” and “despicable, dreadful behaviour”. He said: “They’re not prepared to face up to the consequences of what they’ve done. Everyone’s rightly repulsed by it.”
However, while he said there is a “strong case for looking at the law again” when it comes to prisoners attending hearings, the MP advised caution against a “knee-jerk reaction”.
He suggested the best course of action could be to set up a livestream link in the prisoner’s cell, which would ensure they are forced to hear of the impact of their crimes – important for the victims, their families, and the wider public – but would avoid the “sad truth” of the potential for courtroom proceedings to descend into a “circus”.
Sir Neill warned forcing a “really evil, arrogant, cynical” criminal to court against their wishes could, for example, lead them to cause disruption during the victim impact statements or even get violent towards prison officers.
In considering a change to the law, he said the government has to find a “proportionate way of dealing with the understandable outrage of victims’ families and the public at appalling crimes of this kind, without risking harm to staff and turning courtroom proceedings into a circus”.
Watch: Lucy Letby handed whole-life sentence
Monday 21 August 2023 15:51 , Andy Gregory
Lawyer calls Letby’s refusal to attend sentencing ‘the final insult'
Monday 21 August 2023 15:34 , Andy Gregory
Tamlin Bolton, a solicitor for law firm Switalskis, which is representing the families of seven of Letby’s victims, said: “The fact that Letby refused to attend her sentencing hearing is the final insult.
“By not facing the consequences of her actions, it speaks of her complete disregard not only for the damage she’s caused, but also to our judicial system.
“These verdicts don’t deliver answers to the further questions people have about what happened at The Countess of Chester NHS Hospital Trust and we’re looking to support our families and others who may be affected by the ongoing investigation through the inquiry and through any private civil claims they wish to bring.”
Mother says she will not allow Letby’s ‘evil’ to taint her own love for her son
Monday 21 August 2023 15:21 , Andy Gregory
The mother of one of Lucy Letby’s “defenceless” victims has described how she has resumed wearing mementos of her child, saying “they represent the love that I have for my son and I will not allow evil to taint that”.
Child C’s mother told Manchester Crown Court how she had her son’s hand and footprint made into a pendant after he died in 2015 and she wore this round her neck as it “made me feel closer to him”.
She said: “On July 3 2018, when Lucy Letby was first arrested, these few tangible memories I had of my son felt tainted. She took those hand and footprints. I felt so conflicted as to what that meant, so I stopped wearing them.
“I needed to understand what part Lucy Letby had played in the death of my defenceless baby boy.”
She added: “Now we know as much about [my son’s] death as I believe we ever will, I feel able to wear his hand and footprints for the first time in five years. I know now that they represent the love that I have for my son and I will not allow evil to taint that ... They represent justice and the truth.”
Senior NHS manager ‘who ignored concerns’ over killer nurse suspended from new role
Monday 21 August 2023 15:03 , Andy Gregory
A senior manager accused of “ignoring” colleagues’ concerns and being “protective” of Lucy Letby has been suspended from the NHS hospital she works in, it has emerged.
Alison Kelly, who was the chief nurse at the time Letby killed and attacked babies at the Countess of Chester Hospital, has been suspended from Northern Care Alliance NHS Foundation Trust in Salford.
She is one of three directors from the Countess of Chester who have been publicly criticised, alongside former medical director Ian Harvey who is retired and living in France, and former chief executive Tony Chamber. Mr Chambers up until this summer worked at a Queen Victoria Hospital in West Sussex.
Nicky Clarke, chief people officer at Northern Care Alliance NHS Foundation Trust, said: “I can confirm Alison Kelly has been suspended. We are unable to comment any further at this moment in time.”
Our health correspondent Rebecca Thomas has the full report here:
Senior NHS manager ‘who ignored concerns’ over Lucy Letby suspended from new role
Letby ‘relished being in the intensive care nursery’, judge says
Monday 21 August 2023 14:42 , Andy Gregory
Here are some further details from Mr Justice Goss’s sentencing remarks. Addressing Letby in her absence, he told the court:
“There is no doubt that you are intelligent and, outwardly, were a very conscientious, hard working, knowledgeable, confident and professional nurse, which enabled you repeatedly to harm babies on the unit without arousing suspicion for some time. You prided yourself in your competence.
“Your fellow neonatal nurses spoke very highly of you, and several of them became your close friends. Having started as a Band 5 nurse at the Countess of Chester in 2012, you became a mentor to student nurses and, in the Spring of 2015, gained the qualification that enabled you to care for the sickest babies on the unit or those requiring the most intensive care.
“You relished being in the intensive care nursery. Your messages to colleagues revealed an interest in babies that were on or were coming to the unit who had uncommon medical conditions.
“The methods you employed to carry out your murderous intent were only revealed by the later detailed investigation into the events of and surrounding the collapses and deaths of the babies which commenced in 2018. There was pre-meditation, calculation and cunning in your actions.
“You specifically targeted twins and, latterly, triplets. Some babies were healthy, others had medical issues of which you were aware. The great majority of your victims suffered acute pain as a result of what you did to them. They all fought for survival; some, sadly, struggled in vain and died.
“You used a number of different ways to try to kill them, thereby misleading clinicians into believing the collapses had, or might have had a natural cause or were a consequence of a developing medical condition. You took opportunities to harm babies when staff were on breaks or away from babies.
“On some occasions you falsified records to indicate there were signs of a deterioration before a collapse occurred. You knew that the last thing anyone working in the unit would or did think was that someone caring for the babies was deliberately harming them.”
Mother of baby murdered by Letby says family ‘will never think of you again'
Monday 21 August 2023 14:27 , Andy Gregory
In a statement read to the court, the mother of Child A, who was murdered by Letby, and Child B, who she attempted to kill, said: “You thought it was your right to play God with our children’s lives.”
She said after the death of Child A, a boy, they feared for his twin sister and made sure a member of the family was always with her, but “made a mistake” and started to believe what happened to the first child was a “tragic event that couldn’t be stopped”.
She added: “Little did we know you were waiting for us to leave so you could attack the one thing that gave us a reason to carry on in life.”
In the statement, made on behalf of her and her partner, she said: “Maybe you thought by doing this you would be remembered forever but I want you to know my family will never think of you again.
“From this day you are nothing.”
Letby’s refusal to attend sentencing an ‘insult to her victims’ families’, says justice secretary
Monday 21 August 2023 14:16 , Andy Gregory
Lucy Letby’s refusal to appear in the dock for her sentencing hearing was an “insult to the families of her victims”, the justice secretary has said.
In his statement, Alex Chalk said: “She took the coward’s approach, insulting her victims one last time by robbing their families of the chance to look her in the eye as the judge decided her fate.
“Cases like these make me even more determined to make sure the worst offenders attend court to face justice, when ordered by the judge.
“That’s why we are looking at options to change the law at the earliest opportunity to ensure that in the silence that follows the clang of the prison gate, society’s condemnation will be ringing in prisoners’ ears.”
His predecessor Dominic Raab had also previously pledged similar action in the wake of high profile cases, such as the murders of law graduate Zara Aleena, primary teacher Sabina Nessa, and schoolgirl Olivia Pratt-Korbel.
Mr Chalk assumed the post of justice secretary in April, just days after Thomas Cashman was jailed for life with a minimum term of 42 years for fatally shooting nine-year-old Olivia at her home in Dovecot, Liverpool.
Full report: Nurse who murdered babies in ‘cruel and calculated campaign’ given whole life order
Monday 21 August 2023 14:09 , Andy Gregory
Our social affairs correspondent Holly Bancroft has been at Manchester Crown Court today, where serial killer nurse Lucy Letby was sentenced to spend the rest of her life in prison after being found guilty of murdering seven newborn babies.
Here is her full report on the sentencing:
Serial killer nurse Lucy Letby to spend rest of life in prison for murdering babies
