Error ridden Lucy Letby door-swipe data was used in cases of eight other babies
11 October 2024, 10:56 | Updated: 11 October 2024, 10:58
Door-swipe evidence used to convict killer nurse Lucy Letby - and was later re-assessed by police after errors were discovered - was used in the cases of eight other babies, it has been revealed.
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The swipe evidence, which mixed up when nurses were present on Letby's neonatal ward at the Countess of Chester Hospital, was used by prosecutors during the trial.
However, the data was later reviewed by police after concerns were raised as to its accuracy, with the incorrect swipe data used in relation to eight other babies.
The news follows comments made by Lady Justice Thirlwall, chairwoman of the Thirlwall inquiry, who previously dismissed concerns about the safety of the convictions as “noise”.
The inquiry, which opened in Liverpool last month, had previously heard how concerns raised by colleagues over the nurse's behaviour were “initially ignored," with accusers "actively bullied” over claims.
It comes as Letby’s barrister revealed that the nurse's application challenging verdicts is being prepared using expert medical evidence
Information obtained by The Guardian has now revealed that a review by Cheshire Constabulary discovered that the door-swipe figures were used as evidence relating to eight other children.
However, they deemed the errors to have no significant impact on the convictions, with the Crime Prosecution Service (CPS) deeming the data had “no meaningful impact” on the trial.
The new information comes as the Thirlwall Inquiry heard last week that another door into the neonatal unit existed, where members of paediatric staff could have entered without the data being recorded.
Read more: Child serial killer Lucy Letby will challenge latest conviction in court next month
The inquiry had previously revealed hospital bosses made a doctor apologise to Lucy Letby over claims he called her a murderer years before she was eventually arrested, an inquiry heard.
The judge had previously warned that questions raised over the killer nurse's conviction were becoming increasingly distressing for the parents whose children had died or been harmed in her care.
Dr Murthy Saledi, a consultant working at the Countess of Chester Hospital at the time of the deaths, told the hearing that neonatal rota data alone was insufficient.
He flagged that a second door into the paediatric unit existed and was regularly used by the killer nurse.
Lucy Letby, widely considered to be Britain’s most prolific killer of children, is currently serving 15 whole-life orders after she was convicted at Manchester Crown Court of murdering seven infants and attempting to murder seven others between June 2015 and June 2016.
It comes as Letby prepares to bring an appeal against her conviction for attempted murder which was handed down in July.
It follows comments from the chairwoman of the Lucy Letby inquiry who said those raising doubts about the former nurse's conviction have caused "enormous additional distress" to the parents.
Lady Justice Thirlwall told the hearing the speculation is coming from people who were not at the trial.
Some claim that Letby's verdict is reliant on faulty evidence and have cast doubt on the safety of her conviction.
