The lawyer representing child serial killer Lucy Letby is set to hand over ‘fresh’ medical evidence to an independent body to try and clear her name.
Mark McDonald is set to deliver the full findings of a 14-strong international panel of neonatologists and paediatric specialists, who say poor medical care and natural causes were the reasons for babies collapsing at the Countess of Chester Hospital neonatal unit.
Dr Shoo Lee, leader of the panel, said there was ‘no evidence’ Letby murdered any babies, blaming death and injuries on ‘natural causes or just bad medical care’.
He will hand those findings, as well as a separate report from seven medics which claims the results of insulin tests on two infants, which a jury concluded Letby poisoned, were unreliable to the Criminal Cases Review Commission (CCRC).
Letby, 35, from Hereford, is serving 15 whole-life orders after she was convicted across two trials at Manchester crown court of murdering seven babies and attempting to murder seven others, with two attempts on one of her victims.
Speaking of both reports, Mr McDonald said: ‘The fresh evidence totally undermines the prosecution case at trial.
‘This is the largest international review of neonatal medicine ever undertaken, the results of which show Lucy Letby’s convictions are no longer safe.
‘The conclusions of the report on Babies F and L clearly demonstrate that the case must go back to the Court of Appeal as a matter of urgency.
‘I hope the CCRC will realise this and refer the case without undue delay.
‘Lucy Letby is currently serving 15 whole-life terms in prison, when overwhelming independent expert evidence indicates that no babies were murdered.’
Letby lost two bids last year to challenge her convictions at the Court of Appeal, in May for seven murders and seven attempted murders, and in October for the attempted murder of a baby girl which she was convicted of by a different jury at a retrial.
This is despite a key witness, Dr Dewi Evans, ‘remarkably’ changing his mind about the cause of death of three babies, and the Crown Prosecution Service admitting some of the evidence used to convict Letby was ‘flawed’.
Last month, lawyers for the families of Letby’s victims rubbished the international panel’s findings as ‘full of analytical holes’ and ‘a rehash’ of the defence case heard at trial.
Cheshire police are reviewing deaths and non-fatal collapses at the Countess of Chester and Liverpool Women’s Hospital during Letby’s time as a nurse between 2012 and 2016.
The force is also investigating her former hospital bosses for manslaughter over their decision-making.
Detective Superintendent Paul Hughes said: ‘The investigation into the actions of Lucy Letby, the trial process and medical experts continues to face scrutiny and criticism, much of it ill-informed and based on a very partial knowledge of the facts and totality of evidence presented at court and at the Court of Appeal.
‘This case has been rigorously and fairly tested through two juries and subsequently scrutinised by two sets of appeal court judges.
‘Lucy Letby’s trial was one of the longest running murder trials in British criminal history with the jury diligently carrying out their deliberations for more than 100 hours.
‘As the case unfolded, multiple medical experts, specialising in areas of paediatric radiology, paediatric pathology, haematology, paediatric neurology and paediatric endocrinology and two main medical experts (consultant paediatricians), were enlisted to ensure that we carried out as thorough an investigation as possible.
‘All are highly regarded in their area of expertise and were cross-examined whilst giving their evidence in court.
‘The details of the case are clear and have been widely reported on.
‘It is out of a deep sense of respect for the parents of the babies that we have not and will not get drawn into the widespread commentary and speculation online and in the media.
‘They have suffered greatly and continue to do so as this case plays out in a very public forum.
‘Cheshire Constabulary is ready to support the CCRC and any appropriate review processes in order to inform any questions that may arise.’
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