A public inquiry into Lucy Letby’s murder of seven newborn babies was due to publish its final report on Tuesday, amid growing questions about whether the former British nurse’s convictions were based on flawed medical evidence.
Letby was convicted in 2023 of seven counts of murder and seven counts of attempted murder between June 2015 and June 2016 while working in the neonatal unit of the Countess of Chester Hospital in northern England, making her Britain’s most prolific serial child killer of modern times.
Letby, who was convicted after a retrial of a further attempted murder, was sentenced to life without parole and the government ordered a public inquiry into her case, seeking to learn the lessons from her crimes.
The inquiry has focused on how the killings went undetected, and looked at the hospital’s response to concerns raised about Letby before her arrest.
Some medical experts and specialists, though, have publicly questioned elements of the prosecution’s evidence, even after Letby has lost an attempt to overturn her convictions, which has prompted an angry response from police.
Letby’s only remaining route to try to challenge her convictions is via the Criminal Cases Review Commission, an independent body that reviews potential miscarriages of justice and is considering an application from Letby’s legal team.
In the meantime, however, the public inquiry has continued and its chair last year rejected a request to pause its work.
The inquiry’s chair, Kathryn Thirlwall, said criticism of Letby’s convictions was beyond her work, and said “noise” around the case had caused additional distress to the babies’ families.
Her report will likely be seized upon by those who assert Letby’s innocence – particularly any findings about conditions at the Countess of Chester Hospital.
Earlier this year, the Crown Prosecution Service said there was insufficient evidence to bring any further charges relating to Letby’s time working at the Countess of Chester Hospital and Liverpool Women’s Hospital.
Three senior managers at the Countess of Chester Hospital were arrested last year on suspicion of gross negligence manslaughter and remain under investigation, police said.
(Reporting by Sam Tobin）
