The latest news about Lucy Letby’s case is that her lawyers are asking for an immediate appeal review of all of her convictions. Letby used to work as a neonatal nurse. At the heart of this new disagreement is the credibility of a key expert for the prosecution. Their reevaluation of certain infant deaths has led the defense to ask for full disclosure of all new results.
There are multiple life sentences out for Letby for killing and trying to kill several babies at the Countess of Chester Hospital between 2015 and 2016. Her lawyers have questioned the credibility of expert medical evidence. The defense says that the prosecution’s main medical witness, who was at first seen as a key part of getting the guilty decision, has since changed his mind about how three of the babies died.
The defense says that agents were told about these new points of view but not given them. This makes people worry that the Court of Appeal might have been swayed by old or incomplete expert evidence when turning down earlier appeals. They thought that if the expert’s opinions had changed since Letby was found guilty, it could mean that the original trial result wasn’t valid.
Lucy Letby is serving 15 whole-life jail terms for murdering seven babies and trying to kill seven others at the Countess of Chester Hospital
According to the expert, these claims are false because he has not gotten any official communication from Letby’s legal team, and claims of changed conclusions have been twisted. He also said that the complaints process is the right place to talk about these kinds of problems. The expert stands by what he said in his original testimony and points out that the court has already said that his proof is reliable.
At the same time, Letby’s lawyer has said again that any new expert reports should be made public right away, citing the need for openness. If the expert’s view has changed, they say, it might be important for the Court of Appeal to look over the whole case again with the most up-to-date facts. The defense says that the credibility of the experts’ opinions given in the first trial is now called into question, and they say that any new information that hasn’t been made public could help the court understand what happened in a different way.
As legal options are looked into, two events happening at the same time make things even more complicated. The Thirlwall Inquiry, which is still going on, is looking into the conditions and monitoring that were in place when the babies died. Its results, which are due in 2025, could give us more information about clinical methods and hospital protocols. Second, Cheshire Police have stated that they are still looking into the deaths of two more babies at the same hospital. Letby is being questioned in prison while being held under arrest.
All sides agree that these issues should be settled in the courts and through official investigations. According to the defense, the convictions can’t stand up until there is full and correct expert evidence. However, the prosecution still believes in the original verdict. The request for an appeal review means that all the information that affected the jury’s decision will be looked at more closely.
