Lucy Letby, a former neonatal nurse, was found guilty of murdering seven babies at the Countess of Chester Hospital and attempting to murder six others. Photo / Facebook
Lucy Letby, a former neonatal nurse, was found guilty of murdering seven babies at the Countess of Chester Hospital and attempting to murder six others. Photo / Facebook
A former MP in the UK has called for Lucy Letby’s case to be “urgently” reviewed.
Nadine Dorries, a former nurse and ex-Cabinet minister, urged Shabana Mahmood, the British Justice Secretary, to “become involved” in a growing debate over Letby’s convictions.
Last August, Letby, a former neonatal nurse, was found guilty of murdering seven babies at the Countess of Chester Hospital and attempting to murder six others.
Earlier this year, a retrial found her guilty of the attempted murder of another child, known as Baby K.
Last week, Britain’s Daily Telegraph revealed the Crown Prosecution Service had admitted data revealing which staff had swiped in and out of a security door, shown in the original trial, had been incorrect.
In several cases, it was used as evidence that Letby, now 34, was the only nurse present when babies suffered catastrophic collapses.
Yet during the retrial, prosecutor Nick Johnson KC told the court the data had been “mislabelled”.
The CPS told The Telegraph the discrepancy related to one door in the neonatal intensive care unit, and that it had been corrected for the retrial. However, it refused to confirm that all other door-swipe data shown during the first trial had been correct.
Writing in the Daily Mail, Dorries said she had “growing unease” that the “perilous state of maternity and neonatal care” in hospitals was “a factor too easily dismissed by the court”.
She continued: “It is now time for the Justice Secretary, Shabana Mahmood, to become involved. Letby’s case must urgently be reviewed by the Criminal Cases Review Board, which has the authority to refer it to the Court of Appeal.
“Leading criminal barrister Mark McDonald and others estimate it could take five years and will be extremely costly.
Lucy Letby was so well regarded, her image was even used by the hospital in promotional material. Photo / Supplied
“But if the government can find the cash to award eye-watering pay rises to train drivers and junior doctors, then it can surely find the money to instruct the CCRB to expedite a review and referral (if warranted) to safeguard against what would be one of the biggest miscarriages of justice ever.
“In order to make such an important decision, the Justice Secretary would require a sign off by Number 10, and Sir Keir Starmer is, of course, a former Director of Public Prosecutions.”
A CPS spokesman said: “Two juries and three appeal court judges have reviewed a multitude of evidence against Lucy Letby, and she has been convicted on 15 separate counts following two separate jury trials.
“We can confirm that accurate door-swipe data was presented in the retrial. We have been transparent in clarifying this issue and rectified it for the retrial. We are confident that this issue did not have a meaningful impact on the prosecution, which included multiple strands of evidence.”
Sir David Davis, another former Cabinet minister, has already called for a debate when Parliament returns from recess in September.
