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Deseriemördare sjuksköterska Lucy Letbykommer aldrig att släppas från fängelset efter att en domare dömt henne till en sällsynt livstidsdom för det "sadistiska" mordet på sju spädbarn. Letby, 33, är en av endast tre kvinnor i livet som har fått ett sådant fängelsestraff i Storbritannien. Hon dömdes vid Manchester crown court i måndags.
Då han dömde Letby, beskrev Justice Goss hennes brott som en "grym, beräknad och cynisk kampanj för barnmord som involverar de minsta och mest utsatta av barn".
Den tidigare neonatalsjuksköterskan, denvärsta barnseriemördaren i modern brittisk historia,dömdes ocksåför att försöka mörda ytterligare sex spädbarn på sjukhuset Countess of Chester.
Rättegången hade hört hur Letby ofta attackerade spädbarnen bara några ögonblick efter att deras föräldrar eller sköterskor hade lämnat deras sida. Hon injicerade dödligt sju bebisar med luft, försökte döda två andra genom att snöra deras matpåsar med insulin och försökte mörda en genom att trycka ner en nasogastrisk sond i halsen på honom.
Låt förbivägrade att närvara i rättenför domen, där föräldrar till hennes offer i kraftfull detalj beskrev konsekvenserna av hennes brott. Goss beordrade henne att förses med en kopia av straffuttalandena och uttalandena om offrets påverkan i hennes frånvaro.
Den tidigare grevinnan av Chester NHS-sjukhuschefen Alison Kelly har stängts av från sin roll inom NHS-organet Northern Care Alliance.
Familjerna till de bebisar som mördades av Letby talade ut i sitt offerförklaring. Mamman till en bebis som mördades på hans fjärde dag i livet, Child C, sa att hon kände att det var som att se någon annans liv när hennes son dog. Hon höll tillbaka tårarna i rätten och sa: "Vår allas trauma kommer att leva med oss alla tills vi dör. Att få veta att hans mördare tittade på oss [när vi sörjde] är som något ur en skräckhistoria."
Låt förbivägrade att närvara i rättenför domen, där föräldrar till hennes offer i kraftfull detalj beskrev konsekvenserna av hennes brott.
Labourledaren Keir Starmer krävde att utredningen skulle läggas på lagstadgad grund. Han lägger sin röst till det växande antalet som kräver att den oberoende utredning som regeringen har aviserat ska förstärkas.
The serial killer nurse Lucy Letby will never be released from prison after a judge sentenced her to a rare whole-life term for the “sadistic” murder of seven babies. Letby, 33, is one of only three women alive to have been given such a jail term in the UK. She was sentenced at Manchester crown court on Monday. Sentencing Letby, Mr Justice Goss described her crimes as a “cruel, calculated and cynical campaign of child murder involving the smallest and most vulnerable of children”. The former neonatal nurse, the worst child serial killer in modern British history, was also convicted of attempting to murder six more babies at the Countess of Chester hospital. The trial had heard how Letby often attacked the infants just moments after their parents or nurses had left their sides. She fatally injected seven babies with air, tried to kill two others by lacing their feeding bags with insulin and attempted to murder one by thrusting a nasogastric tube down his throat. Letby refused to be present in court for the sentencing, in which parents of her victims described in powerful detail the impact of her crimes. Goss ordered her to be provided with a copy of the sentencing remarks and of the victim impact statements in her absence. The Former Countess of Chester NHS hospital executive Alison Kelly has been suspended from her role within the NHS body Northern Care Alliance. The families of the babies who were murdered by Letby spoke out within their victim statement. The mother of a baby murdered on his fourth day alive, Child C, said she felt it was like watching someone else’s life as her son died. Holding back tears in court, she said: “The trauma of us all will live with us all until we die. Learning that his killer was watching us [as we grieved] is like something out of a horror story.” Letby refused to be present in court for the sentencing, in which parents of her victims described in powerful detail the impact of her crimes. The Labour leader Keir Starmer called for the inquiry to be put on a statutory footing. Adding his voice to the growing number calling for the independent investigation the government has announced to be strengthened. Starmer also calls for the inquiry to be put on a statutory footing. Adding his voice to the growing number calling for the independent investigation the government has announced to be strengthened, he has said: I think it should be a statutory inquiry and I’ll tell you why. One: because that’s what the victims’ family want and after what they’ve been through, I think that is a really important consideration. Secondly: what a statutory inquiry gives you is the power to order documents, to order witnesses to come forward. So we get the fullest, proper, comprehensive analysis of what went wrong here. So I think it has to be a statutory inquiry. I don’t think that needs to hold things up. We could get on with that very quickly. The justice secretary, Alex Chalk, says the government wants to change the law to compel offenders to attend. Writing on Twitter, he has said: Lucy Letby is not just a murderer but a coward, whose failure to face her victims’ families, refusing to hear their impact statements and society’s condemnation, is the final insult. We are looking to change the law so offenders can be compelled to attend sentencing hearings. Keir Starmer, the Labour party leader, says he shares the anger of the victims’ families about not seeing Letby in the dock for her sentencing hearing, as he urged the government to change the law to compel criminals to attend. What I don’t think should be allowed to happen is for the government to say, because there are practical considerations – which of course there are – we’ll do nothing about it. Just think of those victims’ families today not seeing the defendant in the dock facing justice as she properly should. They are angry, they’re frustrated. I share that. I saw for myself just how important it is. So from our position, we’re thinking not about party politics. We’re thinking about the victims, making an absolutely open offer to the government: we’ll work with you, overcome the practical considerations, and let’s get this done, let’s get the law changed. The judge says: There was a deep malevolence bordering on sadism in your actions. During the course of this trial you have coldly denied any responsibility for your wrongdoing and sought to attribute some fault to others. You have no remorse. There are no mitigating factors. Sentencing her to a whole-life order for each offence, he said: You will spend the rest of your life in prison. The judge has told Lucy Letby she will spend the rest of her life in prison for the murders of seven babies and attempted murders of six others. The methods you employed to carry out your murderous intent were only revealed by the later detailed investigation into the events of, and surrounding, the collapses and deaths of the babies, which commenced in 2018. There was premeditation, calculation and cunning in your actions. You specifically targeted twins and, latterly, triplets. Some babies were healthy. Others had medical issues of which you were aware. The great majority of your victims suffered acute pain as as a result of what you did to them. They all fought for survival. Some, sadly, struggled in vain and died. You used a number of different way to try to kill them – thereby misleading clinicians into believing the collapses had, or might have had, a natural cause, or were a consequence of a developing medical condition. You took opportunities to harm babies when staff were on breaks, or away from babies. On some occasions, you falsified records to indicate there were signs of a deterioration before a collapse occurred. You knew that the last thing anyone working in the unit would, or did, think was that someone working in the unit was deliberately harming them. The judge tells the court he will address Letby as if she were present. He tells her: You acted in a way that was completely contrary to the normal human instincts of nurturing and caring for babies – and in gross breach of the trust that all citizens place in those who work in the medical and caring professions. As we wait for sentencing to begin, I’ve just had a statement from the Northern Care Alliance – the NHS body that employed the former Countess of Chester hospital executive Alison Kelly – to say that she has been suspended. Kelly was the first executive to be told of Letby’s connection to the unexplained deaths in June 2015 – a year before she was eventually removed from the neonatal unit. Nicky Clarke, the chief people officer at Northern Care Alliance NHS Foundation Trust, says: I can confirm Alison Kelly has been suspended. We are unable to comment any further at this moment in time. The father of the two murdered triplets is now reading his statement, via a pre-recorded video. He remembers being told how rare it was to have naturally conceived identical triplets. There were risks of complications but, each time they saw professionals, they were told that “everything was perfect”. He says: “Staff told us that their birth was a miracle.” He remembers the caesarian section being “a terrifying event”, but that the boys were born well with no complications. I spent a brief bit of time holding the boys. We were so excited at how well they were doing and we commented at how identical they were. It was almost impossible to tell them apart. The father, choking back tears, describes the first visits of family members and introducing an older son to the boys. Things then started to go downhill. Child O’s deterioration was “horrific to see and an image I will never forget,” he continues. When his son was pronounced dead, he says: “I felt I had been stabbed in the heart.” No one at the hospital was able to give the parents an explanation. They were told not to worry about their two other triplets. They were taken to a small family room, but no one knew what to say. A nurse brought Child O into the room minutes after his death and they took photographs for a memory box. He was then taken to the mortuary. It was so distressing. I didn’t know what to say … I felt useless and blamed myself. The following morning, the parents were told Child O’s triplet brother Child P had declined. I was terrified I was going to lose my little boy. He says it was “very disturbing” to see the resuscitation attempts, and the boys’ mother blamed herself for their decline. Child P was pronounced dead hours later. After that, the parents begged a medical transport team to take the surviving triplet to another hospital. The father is in tears, struggling now to speak, as he says on the video he was “petrified” something was going to happen to final triplet. He says they never had any support from the hospital or other healthcare professionals. There was no contact from the Countess whatsoever … this has made us very upset and angry and we never intend to go there again.\n
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The father says he has been signed off work sick by his GP as he had breakdowns and “started having terrible nightmares”.
","elementId":"0dedf348-f87e-414d-a529-5a0da7871e91"},{"_type":"model.dotcomrendering.pageElements.BlockquoteBlockElement","html":"\n","elementId":"2767e15c-3796-450c-a9ef-fda47563d2a8"},{"_type":"model.dotcomrendering.pageElements.TextBlockElement","html":"Everyday life was difficult. Just getting through was a struggle.
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On the first anniversary of the children’s deaths, he turned to alcohol. “I couldn’t stop… I became more dependant on the alcohol”. The father, now sobbing, says he once took the car keys and intended to end his life. He was “out of control”: “I was at rock bottom. I had lost my job, [my partner]”, he adds – referring to his separation from the children’s mother.
","elementId":"09baaeeb-d9a3-4b3b-b4f4-d411dc2787ac"},{"_type":"model.dotcomrendering.pageElements.TextBlockElement","html":"Life started improving but, in 2018, he was informed Letby had been arrested on suspicion of harming their sons. He says he felt the investigation could show medical negligence, but “it never occurred to me that they were murdered on purpose”.
","elementId":"70dff145-322f-48eb-8651-2463f0ad75c9"},{"_type":"model.dotcomrendering.pageElements.TextBlockElement","html":"The father says he tells people he has five children because he can’t forget about his two murdered triplets. He has tried to explained to their brother that a lady is in prison “because she has tried to hurt your brothers”.
","elementId":"a333594c-0dde-41d4-99e3-1ab3ecf5a3e9"},{"_type":"model.dotcomrendering.pageElements.BlockquoteBlockElement","html":"\n","elementId":"59cffc8d-d248-4be5-84dd-7a7c779db3ea"},{"_type":"model.dotcomrendering.pageElements.TextBlockElement","html":"The weight of this has been unbearable.
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The boys’ father says the evidence in the trial “sent shivers down my spine”.
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The court is being shown a video statement by the parents of two triplet boys, Children O and P, who were murdered by Letby in June 2016. They wanted to read the statement in person, but did not feel able to do this in court, the prosecutor Astbury says.
","elementId":"9b68e81d-589e-4a26-b0d0-3aa18fbf3a83"},{"_type":"model.dotcomrendering.pageElements.TextBlockElement","html":"Their mother says she remembers blaming herself, thinking she had passed on an illness or infection that caused her boys to struggle in their first day of life. In fact, they had been targeted by Letby.
","elementId":"0e087c8e-bca4-400a-a093-ea19925007f8"},{"_type":"model.dotcomrendering.pageElements.TextBlockElement","html":"She remembers the images of doctors resuscitating her two boys, saying they “continue to haunt me to this day”. She has only one photograph of her holding all of her triplet boys before two of them died.
","elementId":"1e0aa988-523a-4d49-9b7a-03753cacf42c"},{"_type":"model.dotcomrendering.pageElements.TextBlockElement","html":"The mother, struggling to contain tears, says their funeral was incredibly difficult and has left her with lasting trust issues towards any healthcare professional: “I categorically refuse to go to the Countess of Chester hospital ever again.”
","elementId":"5510b529-364a-48c8-9eae-8f416b7ffc7d"},{"_type":"model.dotcomrendering.pageElements.TextBlockElement","html":"She remembers calling 111 when the surviving triplet, who Letby was not accused of attacking, had an issue. The NHS operator asked about the health of his two brothers. The mother says she found it “incredibly difficult” to find the words to explain what had happened to them.
","elementId":"0d455d37-071e-4f87-b441-373c7e92bb06"},{"_type":"model.dotcomrendering.pageElements.TextBlockElement","html":"The boys’ mother says their surviving triplet, now seven, asks “heartbreaking questions” about what happened to his two murdered brothers.
","elementId":"10c32e37-b04c-43b0-b1c8-05d81191e7a2"},{"_type":"model.dotcomrendering.pageElements.BlockquoteBlockElement","html":"\n","elementId":"e0093772-754b-44c9-b2fb-0e14a788dc15"},{"_type":"model.dotcomrendering.pageElements.TextBlockElement","html":"I genuinely thought I had all the time in the world with all of them.
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She describes the trial as “extremely harrowing” and says she sat in a position in court behind one of the monitors so she was not in view of Letby. It was the first time she had seen the nurse since her triplets were born in June 2016.
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","elementId":"1b1f9197-22fe-40aa-a476-361cae797df9"},{"_type":"model.dotcomrendering.pageElements.BlockquoteBlockElement","html":"\n","elementId":"74395ea0-ad59-415c-8752-fe7d82a23d1b"},{"_type":"model.dotcomrendering.pageElements.TextBlockElement","html":"We often hear about people dying of a broken heart. This is how we feel after this day … not a day goes by without us thinking of that day.
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The mother says she “knew” her child had been deliberately harmed – she doesn’t know if it was common sense or a mother’s instinct. “But I just knew.”
","elementId":"055dde9d-2c33-4e3e-871b-ba70827d4494"},{"_type":"model.dotcomrendering.pageElements.BlockquoteBlockElement","html":"\n","elementId":"ab096859-2040-4d59-b5f0-32379b28ef2a"},{"_type":"model.dotcomrendering.pageElements.TextBlockElement","html":"This caused us massive trust issues which has remained with us to this day and I don’t think will ever leave us.
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The mother says she believes Child N, now aged seven, suffered lasting damage from Letby’s attack and is undergoing investigations to establish this. He gags whenever brushing his teeth, she says, which may be due to the throat trauma he suffered at the hands of Letby, when he was only a day old.
","elementId":"81c76230-c6a5-46e0-a12e-ce8462d0aecb"},{"_type":"model.dotcomrendering.pageElements.TextBlockElement","html":"The little boy is home-schooled “because our trust in other people has been completely broken”, his mother says.
","elementId":"92403692-3220-4c15-95c8-642b8b5279bf"},{"_type":"model.dotcomrendering.pageElements.BlockquoteBlockElement","html":"\n","elementId":"05de9008-e07f-4477-bcf1-49556bcb6b0f"},{"_type":"model.dotcomrendering.pageElements.TextBlockElement","html":"We couldn’t keep him safe in hospital. As a parent it’s your duty … this was taken away from us in a place where he was at his safest … It’s our duty now and if that means wrapping him in cotton wool, then that is what we will do.
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Child N’s mother says she was “happy and relieved” when they were told that they were part of the police investigation. Finally they would receive some answers and be listened to, she adds.
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\n
Astbury now reads a statement from the mother of two twin boys, Children L and M, who Letby attempted to murder; one by poisoning him with insulin. They both survived.
","elementId":"0db8898f-57c0-486d-93cf-c96523c2c351"},{"_type":"model.dotcomrendering.pageElements.TextBlockElement","html":"She says there has been an “enormous amount of anxiety” placed on the family – “the boys had to witness their dad suffer a seizure for the first time in his life which was traumatic for them”.
","elementId":"a45855e3-30a2-48b1-b049-5edfe016299c"},{"_type":"model.dotcomrendering.pageElements.TextBlockElement","html":"The twins’ father, in a separate statement, says the image of one of the boys’ collapses will be “forever in my mind”.
","elementId":"680a88cb-6ade-4e4a-a563-db6d0d92dda4"},{"_type":"model.dotcomrendering.pageElements.BlockquoteBlockElement","html":"\n","elementId":"e8b234d7-d767-4548-80ae-729590515c60"},{"_type":"model.dotcomrendering.pageElements.TextBlockElement","html":"Even to this day, I have trouble sleeping as I get flashbacks.
\n
He says the attacks have changed him. It has affected his relationship with his boys, he says, and he loses patience with them more easily than he would if Letby had never attacked them.
","elementId":"3ff373a2-c50d-4a52-92f3-14fe05b42df5"},{"_type":"model.dotcomrendering.pageElements.TextBlockElement","html":"He finishes the statement by saying that, one afternoon, he thought Letby was looking at him, as he sat in the public gallery:
","elementId":"7577d197-40db-47a7-bf41-4e461cc2b014"},{"_type":"model.dotcomrendering.pageElements.BlockquoteBlockElement","html":"\n","elementId":"ebd9730f-0c4a-49a3-bcc5-5256475ba84d"}],"attributes":{"pinned":false,"keyEvent":true,"summary":false},"blockCreatedOn":1692612824000,"blockCreatedOnDisplay":"06.13EDT","blockLastUpdated":1692613125000,"blockLastUpdatedDisplay":"06.18EDT","blockFirstPublished":1692612928000,"blockFirstPublishedDisplay":"06.15EDT","blockFirstPublishedDisplayNoTimezone":"06.15","title":"'Even to this day, I have trouble sleeping as I get flashbacks'","contributors":[{"name":"Josh Halliday","imageUrl":"https://i.guim.co.uk/img/uploads/2023/02/17/Josh_Halliday.jpg?width=300&quality=85&auto=format&fit=max&s=75198ce42adf155c525f140f69bbc715","largeImageUrl":"https://i.guim.co.uk/img/uploads/2023/02/17/Josh_Halliday.png?width=300&quality=85&auto=format&fit=max&s=d3e87335af9aba898c8800e472d75439"}],"primaryDateLine":"Mon 21 Aug 2023 10.07 EDT","secondaryDateLine":"First published on Mon 21 Aug 2023 04.54 EDT"},{"id":"64e3353f8f08111b4b786b6c","elements":[{"_type":"model.dotcomrendering.pageElements.TextBlockElement","html":"That made me feel quite uncomfortable and uneasy and I had to move in the afternoon so I was out of her view.
\n
A statement from the mother of Child I, a baby girl murdered by Letby, is now being read to the court. The parents thought Child I’s first collapse was due to infection, so they stopped family from visiting her at the Countess of Chester hospital.
","elementId":"b2a46e07-5576-40f6-9a31-da296c1968a0"},{"_type":"model.dotcomrendering.pageElements.TextBlockElement","html":"They took this decision “because watching our baby fight for her life and watching what she had been through, nothing was worth the risk of this happening again”, the mother says, in a statement being read by Astbury. Child I’s mother describes her daughter’s final collapse.
","elementId":"518e7832-16a1-416b-9e82-891441087577"},{"_type":"model.dotcomrendering.pageElements.BlockquoteBlockElement","html":"\n","elementId":"01446290-8e5b-42e4-a7e8-80c51610c6fa"},{"_type":"model.dotcomrendering.pageElements.TextBlockElement","html":"I remember standing by the incubator with my hand on her foot because there was only room for us at the bottom. I was shaking, I couldn’t look at the monitors because I knew she was a lot worse than all the other times, I felt absolutely broken.
\n
She says the first year after her daughter’s death was “a blur”. She had to take anti-depressants, sleeping tablets and beta blockers to get through. Her partner “wished he was dead … he wished it was him that died” and they separated for a time.
","elementId":"cb361fca-4495-4bc0-b270-8ed0ad2880c8"},{"_type":"model.dotcomrendering.pageElements.TextBlockElement","html":"Their son “couldn’t be in a classroom” and became really withdrawn. Their other daughter “also gave up on everything they loved”.
","elementId":"add0d61e-d288-4886-a65e-31bec7ef65f8"},{"_type":"model.dotcomrendering.pageElements.TextBlockElement","html":"Child I’s mother says she became pregnant again but she “put a wall up and blocked it out. We were so scared of the same thing happening again even the scans, they weren’t happy moments, they were just filled with fear”.
","elementId":"056f9583-288e-4625-9692-094fe10b12c8"},{"_type":"model.dotcomrendering.pageElements.TextBlockElement","html":"At this point, they did not know their daughter had been murdered, so they decided not to breastfeed their newborn in case that’s what killed Child I. Her partner struggled to connect to their new little girl because “she was the double of our [Child I] when she was born”.
","elementId":"55a1ae95-a37d-4643-9baa-3467ad626b7b"},{"_type":"model.dotcomrendering.pageElements.TextBlockElement","html":"Child I’s mother says she remembers her whole body shaking when she was told that someone had been arrested on suspicion of her murder.
","elementId":"5140b569-3fbc-4a07-bf15-ce1f1450cc9f"},{"_type":"model.dotcomrendering.pageElements.BlockquoteBlockElement","html":"\n","elementId":"c1ee474e-0b94-44cd-a317-13810231384f"}],"attributes":{"pinned":false,"keyEvent":true,"summary":false},"blockCreatedOn":1692611903000,"blockCreatedOnDisplay":"05.58EDT","blockLastUpdated":1692612719000,"blockLastUpdatedDisplay":"06.11EDT","blockFirstPublished":1692612720000,"blockFirstPublishedDisplay":"06.12EDT","blockFirstPublishedDisplayNoTimezone":"06.12","title":"'Our daughter was tortured until she had no fight left in her'","contributors":[{"name":"Josh Halliday","imageUrl":"https://i.guim.co.uk/img/uploads/2023/02/17/Josh_Halliday.jpg?width=300&quality=85&auto=format&fit=max&s=75198ce42adf155c525f140f69bbc715","largeImageUrl":"https://i.guim.co.uk/img/uploads/2023/02/17/Josh_Halliday.png?width=300&quality=85&auto=format&fit=max&s=d3e87335af9aba898c8800e472d75439"}],"primaryDateLine":"Mon 21 Aug 2023 10.07 EDT","secondaryDateLine":"First published on Mon 21 Aug 2023 04.54 EDT"},{"id":"64e334668f0897043a8e0c8e","elements":[{"_type":"model.dotcomrendering.pageElements.TextBlockElement","html":"We dug for years, tried to get answers for what happened. And, over the years, [we] were in some very dark places. I don’t think I will ever get over the fact that our daughter was tortured until she had no fight left in her and everything she went through over her short life was deliberately done by someone who was supposed to protect her and help her come home where she belonged.
\n
Philip Astbury, the prosecutor, is now reading a statement on behalf of the father of Child G, a baby girl who was born through IVF and was “on the margins of viability” because she was so premature. Letby was found guilty of trying to murder the little girl on the 100th day of her life.
","elementId":"4fa2a352-4159-4583-8284-4f9e894521aa"},{"_type":"model.dotcomrendering.pageElements.BlockquoteBlockElement","html":"\n","elementId":"6d927eb8-eee2-4e6f-beb5-e9fc9d5f1c17"},{"_type":"model.dotcomrendering.pageElements.TextBlockElement","html":"For me, what happened has damaged my faith because every day I would sit there and pray … He did save her, but the Devil found her.
\n
The father says his daughter only weighed 5lb when they were finally able to take her home. She was incredibly vulnerable and it became more obvious that something was wrong with her, he says.
","elementId":"bd9dfffb-f72a-494b-aa78-1e746d4fe2fa"},{"_type":"model.dotcomrendering.pageElements.TextBlockElement","html":"When she was two years old, she had an MRI scan that showed the extent of her brain damage.
","elementId":"100190a7-37ac-49bb-b796-7dfdf9bd12f9"},{"_type":"model.dotcomrendering.pageElements.TextBlockElement","html":"One Christmas, she stopped breathing and turned blue, he says. The parents tried to resuscitate her and an air ambulance was called to save her. She survived, but this wouldn’t be the last time she stopped breathing.
","elementId":"0f405f6e-a89e-45fa-8598-b0f54d930b64"},{"_type":"model.dotcomrendering.pageElements.TextBlockElement","html":"He says Child G’s mother “finds it very difficult to trust people in hospitals because of what happened”. The child, now aged eight, doesn’t sleep very well so her mother sleeps on a day bed next to her, the father says. The mother survives on about two hours sleep a night.
","elementId":"4157dbaf-00c5-4867-932f-c56e1715ae92"},{"_type":"model.dotcomrendering.pageElements.TextBlockElement","html":"“Our worry is: what if [Child G] outlives us and has no one to care for her,” he says. She is taking so much medication the parents worry about the long-term impact on her body.
","elementId":"a1ce304c-938e-4090-acf9-e72c5de1c56c"},{"_type":"model.dotcomrendering.pageElements.TextBlockElement","html":"Child G’s father is explaining the daily battles they face due to their daughter’s condition, even from the grocery shopping to holidays. She “won’t get to experience the things that other children will. She will never have a sleepover, a first boyfriend, a first kiss, or get married. She will always be in her chair and depend on others”.
","elementId":"34fdc6aa-3e43-4af6-8061-235c6e30f940"},{"_type":"model.dotcomrendering.pageElements.TextBlockElement","html":"Child G is now registered as blind, with quadriplegic cerebral palsy. She is nil-by-mouth and has progressive scoliosis. She is in the process of being put forward for major spinal surgery.
","elementId":"d96413fc-fd8b-4fd1-acc9-7e44f7e2fc41"}],"attributes":{"pinned":false,"keyEvent":true,"summary":false},"blockCreatedOn":1692611686000,"blockCreatedOnDisplay":"05.54EDT","blockLastUpdated":1692612566000,"blockLastUpdatedDisplay":"06.09EDT","blockFirstPublished":1692611884000,"blockFirstPublishedDisplay":"05.58EDT","blockFirstPublishedDisplayNoTimezone":"05.58","title":"'What happened has damaged my faith'","contributors":[],"primaryDateLine":"Mon 21 Aug 2023 10.07 EDT","secondaryDateLine":"First published on Mon 21 Aug 2023 04.54 EDT"},{"id":"64e3318d8f0897043a8e0c7e","elements":[{"_type":"model.dotcomrendering.pageElements.TextBlockElement","html":"Child F has been diagnosed with learning disabilities his mother believes are due to the insulin poisoning. She is holding back tears, her voice trembling with emotion and anger, as she says:
","elementId":"c3336b51-3127-4553-b1ab-67f09cb5385c"},{"_type":"model.dotcomrendering.pageElements.BlockquoteBlockElement","html":"\n","elementId":"02278b50-b99e-4bb2-ae6b-4c289df3e41c"},{"_type":"model.dotcomrendering.pageElements.TextBlockElement","html":"No child deserves what happened in this case, but I still struggle to understand why it happened to us. Lucy presented herself as kind, caring, and soft-spoken. Now I know it was all an act, a sadistic abuse of power that has left me unable to trust anyone.
\n
She says Child F is “non-verbal” and doesn’t have the same opportunities in life because of Letby’s crimes:
","elementId":"5e472e57-8e86-4620-9c4e-2efa68e000f5"},{"_type":"model.dotcomrendering.pageElements.BlockquoteBlockElement","html":"\n","elementId":"4b56f79a-2f64-48d8-903c-188a84df3850"},{"_type":"model.dotcomrendering.pageElements.TextBlockElement","html":"It breaks my heart to know that things could have been so different for him. He is without his best friend, his other half. We have essentially grieved for both of our boys and the future we had planned.
\n
Letby repeatedly said in court that she had a “good relationship” with the mother. But there was no relationship, the mother says in court:
","elementId":"abcc84ef-c5c3-4b3a-8745-b7fe3b3aabbd"},{"_type":"model.dotcomrendering.pageElements.BlockquoteBlockElement","html":"\n","elementId":"1ddcbe77-ffef-4f76-bd3b-0699c8a915d3"},{"_type":"model.dotcomrendering.pageElements.TextBlockElement","html":"I was a vulnerable grieving parent trying to get through each day … The lies she has told fill me with anger.
\n
What Letby has done is “cowardly and sickening,” she says, adding that “my boys were just a pawn in her sick, twisted game”.
","elementId":"dc5fccaf-5d19-4635-95ee-32ff0d4f2260"},{"_type":"model.dotcomrendering.pageElements.TextBlockElement","html":"The boys’ mother attacks Letby for refusing to appear in court for some of the verdicts or her sentencing. She says:
","elementId":"e5de44de-084f-4c16-adb9-de8bb139cb4b"},{"_type":"model.dotcomrendering.pageElements.BlockquoteBlockElement","html":"\n","elementId":"516f2981-2840-4ba8-9767-3b647cb30522"}],"attributes":{"pinned":false,"keyEvent":true,"summary":false},"blockCreatedOn":1692610957000,"blockCreatedOnDisplay":"05.42EDT","blockLastUpdated":1692611101000,"blockLastUpdatedDisplay":"05.45EDT","blockFirstPublished":1692611101000,"blockFirstPublishedDisplay":"05.45EDT","blockFirstPublishedDisplayNoTimezone":"05.45","title":"'My boys were just a pawn in her sick, twisted game'","contributors":[{"name":"Josh Halliday","imageUrl":"https://i.guim.co.uk/img/uploads/2023/02/17/Josh_Halliday.jpg?width=300&quality=85&auto=format&fit=max&s=75198ce42adf155c525f140f69bbc715","largeImageUrl":"https://i.guim.co.uk/img/uploads/2023/02/17/Josh_Halliday.png?width=300&quality=85&auto=format&fit=max&s=d3e87335af9aba898c8800e472d75439"}],"primaryDateLine":"Mon 21 Aug 2023 10.07 EDT","secondaryDateLine":"First published on Mon 21 Aug 2023 04.54 EDT"},{"id":"64e3302d8f08af8aaccf0e82","elements":[{"_type":"model.dotcomrendering.pageElements.TextBlockElement","html":"Even in these final days of the trial she has tried to control things, the disrespect she has shown the families and the court show what type of person she is. We have attended court day in and day out, yet she decides she has had enough, and stays in her cell, just one final act of wickedness from a coward.
\n
The mother of twin boys, Children E and F, now reads her statement. Child E was murdered and Child F survived an insulin poisoning the following day. She says:
","elementId":"3a6d6122-59a7-43bc-a4ee-c4f65521960f"},{"_type":"model.dotcomrendering.pageElements.BlockquoteBlockElement","html":"\n","elementId":"61fd4f60-36ce-401e-84c7-b38a8e38c7d8"},{"_type":"model.dotcomrendering.pageElements.TextBlockElement","html":"Our world shattered when we encountered evil disguised as a caring nurse. The heartbreak and shock left me feeling confused and numb. How could [Child E] collapse so suddenly after spending the day cuddling with us?
\n
She says the psychological impact of his death was “unimaginable and devastating”. They spent the night of Child E’s death watching over his surviving twin brother.
","elementId":"d4521300-cc78-4752-babe-1bed4d831ee8"},{"_type":"model.dotcomrendering.pageElements.BlockquoteBlockElement","html":"\n","elementId":"c5ed465d-d4a7-4bd8-953d-f44aac95b528"},{"_type":"model.dotcomrendering.pageElements.TextBlockElement","html":"It was a living nightmare. Little did I know that the nightmare of pain and hurt would continue, emotionally battering me throughout my children’s lives.
\n
In July 2018, the family was told a nurse had been arrested on suspicion of murdering Child E and attempting to kill his twin brother.
","elementId":"ab8e5e71-b8a2-4be8-9a20-656cc32ec0d0"},{"_type":"model.dotcomrendering.pageElements.BlockquoteBlockElement","html":"\n","elementId":"d062ae48-e0f6-44f6-aa09-452abe1cc819"},{"_type":"model.dotcomrendering.pageElements.TextBlockElement","html":"We felt cheated, deceived, and utterly heartbroken once more.
\n
The boys’ mother says Letby bathed Child E after his death – “an action I deeply regret, and dressed him in a woollen gown”. She adds:
","elementId":"3eb9536c-e2c4-4f4e-b3e9-116cc347bc8f"},{"_type":"model.dotcomrendering.pageElements.BlockquoteBlockElement","html":"\n","elementId":"a196e8cb-45ee-43fe-b3da-1dfb3c9c14e4"}],"attributes":{"pinned":false,"keyEvent":true,"summary":false},"blockCreatedOn":1692610605000,"blockCreatedOnDisplay":"05.36EDT","blockLastUpdated":1692610994000,"blockLastUpdatedDisplay":"05.43EDT","blockFirstPublished":1692610727000,"blockFirstPublishedDisplay":"05.38EDT","blockFirstPublishedDisplayNoTimezone":"05.38","title":"'Cheated, deceived, and utterly heartbroken,' says mother of twins","contributors":[{"name":"Josh Halliday","imageUrl":"https://i.guim.co.uk/img/uploads/2023/02/17/Josh_Halliday.jpg?width=300&quality=85&auto=format&fit=max&s=75198ce42adf155c525f140f69bbc715","largeImageUrl":"https://i.guim.co.uk/img/uploads/2023/02/17/Josh_Halliday.png?width=300&quality=85&auto=format&fit=max&s=d3e87335af9aba898c8800e472d75439"}],"primaryDateLine":"Mon 21 Aug 2023 10.07 EDT","secondaryDateLine":"First published on Mon 21 Aug 2023 04.54 EDT"},{"id":"64e32f258f08111b4b786b43","elements":[{"_type":"model.dotcomrendering.pageElements.TextBlockElement","html":"He was buried in that gown, a gift from the unit chosen by Lucy. I feel sickened by the choice we made. Not a single day passes without distress over this decision.
\n
The mother of Child D, a two-day-old girl who was murdered by Letby, is giving evidence now. She says she hopes after today to be “freed from this constant limbo state” she has lived in since her daughter died.
","elementId":"953230a9-2937-4124-97e4-e8407cec0103"},{"_type":"model.dotcomrendering.pageElements.TextBlockElement","html":"“All hell broke loose for us,” when Letby was arrested. “I cannot forgive you. There is no forgiving. Not now, not ever.”
","elementId":"29ce5898-84c7-4f34-af0d-7b9f97eed3c8"},{"_type":"model.dotcomrendering.pageElements.TextBlockElement","html":"Child D’s mother says that, after her daughter died, they were asked if the little girl wanted to be an organ donor. The parents said yes, but this was a very difficult decision. They were then told that, due to complications with her organs, she could not be a donor. This had a traumatic effect on the family, the mother says.
","elementId":"a252d646-b692-4192-8723-4bec91c1aa31"},{"_type":"model.dotcomrendering.pageElements.BlockquoteBlockElement","html":"\n","elementId":"262e074a-86da-44d6-8883-beb44039053c"},{"_type":"model.dotcomrendering.pageElements.TextBlockElement","html":"We had to organise her funeral. The service took place the day before her due date. Her ashes were buried in a tiny box on her actual due date. Those weeks were particularly difficult… my arms, my heart, my life felt so painfully empty.
\nI needed to be her mum in every way … I questioned if I missed something. Did I do something wrong? I missed my daughter.
\n
Child D’s mother says:
","elementId":"eb9504bc-f29f-4dfd-832a-9b7114537884"},{"_type":"model.dotcomrendering.pageElements.BlockquoteBlockElement","html":"\n","elementId":"28fd13cf-2470-4261-aa19-e7ff96e04c76"},{"_type":"model.dotcomrendering.pageElements.TextBlockElement","html":"I love being a mum but, at the same time, live with grief and depression … I never feel good enough. I feel I have let myself go. My marriage is also scarred by all the hurdles we went through ... I feel not only that I lost [Child D] but I lost all those years of my life too.
\n
She has had multiple therapies, panic attacks and “dark thoughts,” she says.
","elementId":"6279e8c9-56ec-479d-ab71-bc082e54a353"},{"_type":"model.dotcomrendering.pageElements.BlockquoteBlockElement","html":"\n","elementId":"cc6bf779-cef3-4c52-b245-b5bb18a8248c"},{"_type":"model.dotcomrendering.pageElements.TextBlockElement","html":"I had a car crash after a nervous breakdown. I considered ending it all. I couldn’t continue and I didn’t want to. I was hoping that if I went to the other side I would see and be with my daughter.
\n
The trial was a “long time coming,” she adds. “It was clearly overwhelming,” she adds,” but it helped them to get answers. Her statement ends with the line:
","elementId":"2059d1d6-5204-45c2-be80-f2415dbfd36d"},{"_type":"model.dotcomrendering.pageElements.BlockquoteBlockElement","html":"\n","elementId":"0d583375-68f2-4f64-b4dd-f343eca37d1f"}],"attributes":{"pinned":false,"keyEvent":true,"summary":false},"blockCreatedOn":1692610341000,"blockCreatedOnDisplay":"05.32EDT","blockLastUpdated":1692610763000,"blockLastUpdatedDisplay":"05.39EDT","blockFirstPublished":1692610581000,"blockFirstPublishedDisplay":"05.36EDT","blockFirstPublishedDisplayNoTimezone":"05.36","title":"'We wanted justice for [Child D] and that day has come'","contributors":[{"name":"Josh Halliday","imageUrl":"https://i.guim.co.uk/img/uploads/2023/02/17/Josh_Halliday.jpg?width=300&quality=85&auto=format&fit=max&s=75198ce42adf155c525f140f69bbc715","largeImageUrl":"https://i.guim.co.uk/img/uploads/2023/02/17/Josh_Halliday.png?width=300&quality=85&auto=format&fit=max&s=d3e87335af9aba898c8800e472d75439"}],"primaryDateLine":"Mon 21 Aug 2023 10.07 EDT","secondaryDateLine":"First published on Mon 21 Aug 2023 04.54 EDT"},{"id":"64e32ce08f0897043a8e0c4e","elements":[{"_type":"model.dotcomrendering.pageElements.TextBlockElement","html":"We wanted justice for [Child D] and that day has come.
\n
The mother of Child C, who was murdered, now reads her statement in person to the court. She says she will always remember the “overwhelming weight of emotion” she felt when she first held her newborn son.
","elementId":"6b347242-cf8f-43b5-b161-007673be7838"},{"_type":"model.dotcomrendering.pageElements.BlockquoteBlockElement","html":"\n","elementId":"ee7681b5-3c3a-4dea-9172-01f118f0f01c"},{"_type":"model.dotcomrendering.pageElements.TextBlockElement","html":"It was like nothing I’d experienced before … the way he smelled … my tiny firstborn son.
\n
Child C’s mother says she felt it was like watching someone else’s life as her son died just days after he was born.
","elementId":"ba4fb1f3-e6d7-4b47-8d9c-34cca1e63a74"},{"_type":"model.dotcomrendering.pageElements.BlockquoteBlockElement","html":"\n","elementId":"54e4212c-da63-43c8-8f7e-7ee7ed529a76"},{"_type":"model.dotcomrendering.pageElements.TextBlockElement","html":"The trauma will live with us all until we die. Learning that his killer was watching us [as we grieved] is like something out of a horror story.
\n
She says she will “live forever with the guilt of his life” because she wasn’t able to protect him.
","elementId":"605858a2-4a78-4f53-87e7-b8af4a7c013a"},{"_type":"model.dotcomrendering.pageElements.BlockquoteBlockElement","html":"\n","elementId":"4b6e70da-5cb0-49b1-b937-9237ab1ef461"},{"_type":"model.dotcomrendering.pageElements.TextBlockElement","html":"I think about what his voice would have sounded like. What he would have looked like now. Who he would have been.
\n
She says the precious memories of her son were tainted on 3 July 2018, when Letby was first arrested. Starting to cry as she delivers her statement, she says:
","elementId":"898f71a2-315c-459e-9115-0b8d85508bb9"},{"_type":"model.dotcomrendering.pageElements.BlockquoteBlockElement","html":"\n","elementId":"cd064aa5-39b8-401f-88ee-a3ad1e862ef8"},{"_type":"model.dotcomrendering.pageElements.TextBlockElement","html":"I feel able to wear his hand and footprints for the first time in five years. I know now they represent the love that I have for my son. I will not allow evil to take that. They represent justice and the truth.
\n
Directing her words towards Letby, she says her son’s life was “collateral damage in your persistent desire for drama and attention”.
","elementId":"9a7a8869-78c3-4062-a4b0-5ef021154349"},{"_type":"model.dotcomrendering.pageElements.BlockquoteBlockElement","html":"\n","elementId":"6ceb684f-80e0-4823-8b01-18d84799f297"},{"_type":"model.dotcomrendering.pageElements.TextBlockElement","html":"There is no sentence that will ever compare to the excruciating agony that we have experienced since the death of our son … You killed them on purpose. You are evil. You did this.
\n
This is incredibly emotional for those of us in court. Police officers are in tears. The relatives of victims are in tears. Journalists are in tears.
","elementId":"15b7de12-afad-4a39-a1f3-91a2378ced4e"}],"attributes":{"pinned":false,"keyEvent":true,"summary":false},"blockCreatedOn":1692609760000,"blockCreatedOnDisplay":"05.22EDT","blockLastUpdated":1692610530000,"blockLastUpdatedDisplay":"05.35EDT","blockFirstPublished":1692609985000,"blockFirstPublishedDisplay":"05.26EDT","blockFirstPublishedDisplayNoTimezone":"05.26","title":"'I think about what his voice would have sounded like. What he would have looked like now. Who he would have been'","contributors":[{"name":"Josh Halliday","imageUrl":"https://i.guim.co.uk/img/uploads/2023/02/17/Josh_Halliday.jpg?width=300&quality=85&auto=format&fit=max&s=75198ce42adf155c525f140f69bbc715","largeImageUrl":"https://i.guim.co.uk/img/uploads/2023/02/17/Josh_Halliday.png?width=300&quality=85&auto=format&fit=max&s=d3e87335af9aba898c8800e472d75439"}],"primaryDateLine":"Mon 21 Aug 2023 10.07 EDT","secondaryDateLine":"First published on Mon 21 Aug 2023 04.54 EDT"},{"id":"64e32b098f0897043a8e0c44","elements":[{"_type":"model.dotcomrendering.pageElements.TextBlockElement","html":"We are now hearing victim impact statements on behalf of the families. They are being read out by Philip Astbury KC, one of the prosecutors. The mother of Child A, who was murdered, and her twin sister, Child B, who Letby tried to kill, says 2015 was “going to be the best year of our lives … everything was perfect”. She adds:
","elementId":"71204e2d-a420-4044-8800-b12c1513dae6"},{"_type":"model.dotcomrendering.pageElements.BlockquoteBlockElement","html":"\n","elementId":"dbd6aad6-2d2c-46b2-9f1e-37cb7ebbd161"},{"_type":"model.dotcomrendering.pageElements.TextBlockElement","html":"Never could we have imagined that the most precious things in our lives would be placed in such harm in the care of a nurse.
\nOur minds are so traumatised that it won’t let us remember the night you killed our child. What should have been the happiest night of our lives became our worst.
\n
The statement is addressed to Letby directly, despite the killer refusing to appear in court.
","elementId":"a7dd18e3-e2c2-4caf-9e4a-43b4f1f08c8d"},{"_type":"model.dotcomrendering.pageElements.BlockquoteBlockElement","html":"\n","elementId":"2d52454c-665c-4524-8ce4-c318662fda98"},{"_type":"model.dotcomrendering.pageElements.TextBlockElement","html":"After losing Child A, we made sure that there was always a member of their family at the side of his twin sister Child B. However, we made a mistake.
\n
Child B, who survived, is a “shining light in our lives”, she tells the court.
","elementId":"593034ab-9c8e-4440-8d34-2e5212b68505"},{"_type":"model.dotcomrendering.pageElements.BlockquoteBlockElement","html":"\n","elementId":"840b726d-b98c-4d3c-bc16-0bb9027deb56"}],"attributes":{"pinned":false,"keyEvent":true,"summary":false},"blockCreatedOn":1692609289000,"blockCreatedOnDisplay":"05.14EDT","blockLastUpdated":1692611072000,"blockLastUpdatedDisplay":"05.44EDT","blockFirstPublished":1692609464000,"blockFirstPublishedDisplay":"05.17EDT","blockFirstPublishedDisplayNoTimezone":"05.17","title":"'What should have been the happiest night of our lives became our worst,' says grieving mother","contributors":[{"name":"Josh Halliday","imageUrl":"https://i.guim.co.uk/img/uploads/2023/02/17/Josh_Halliday.jpg?width=300&quality=85&auto=format&fit=max&s=75198ce42adf155c525f140f69bbc715","largeImageUrl":"https://i.guim.co.uk/img/uploads/2023/02/17/Josh_Halliday.png?width=300&quality=85&auto=format&fit=max&s=d3e87335af9aba898c8800e472d75439"}],"primaryDateLine":"Mon 21 Aug 2023 10.07 EDT","secondaryDateLine":"First published on Mon 21 Aug 2023 04.54 EDT"},{"id":"64e328bc8f08af8aaccf0e47","elements":[{"_type":"model.dotcomrendering.pageElements.TextBlockElement","html":"You thought it was your right to play God with our lives. Our lives are tough. We struggle with depression, anxiety and PTSD. We sometimes want to give up but we never will … we have a duty to give [Child B] the best life possible and we will spend our lives doing that.
\nWe hope you live a very long life and spend every day suffering forever … We will never think of you again from this day. You are nothing.
\n
The judge, Justice James Goss KC, has come into court.
","elementId":"02821880-eae6-495e-8573-5f5b3d1495fa"},{"_type":"model.dotcomrendering.pageElements.TextBlockElement","html":"He makes clear at the outset that there are reporting restrictions in place banning the identification of the victims or their families – and that these apply to members of the public, as well as the press.
","elementId":"931d30a1-5546-4ae3-9352-e974849f6922"},{"_type":"model.dotcomrendering.pageElements.TextBlockElement","html":"The prosecutor Nick Johnson KC says Letby has “refused to come into court”.
","elementId":"8f342b9c-00f8-432c-9320-1274d40d40e6"},{"_type":"model.dotcomrendering.pageElements.TextBlockElement","html":"Johnson will now read a summary of the counts on which Letby has been convicted – seven of murder and seven of attempted murder, relating to six other babies, spanning from June 2015 to June 2016. He names the babies she murdered and those she tried to kill.
","elementId":"075afc73-7adb-4993-bdbb-80f40c164cc5"}],"attributes":{"pinned":false,"keyEvent":true,"summary":false},"blockCreatedOn":1692608700000,"blockCreatedOnDisplay":"05.05EDT","blockLastUpdated":1692609825000,"blockLastUpdatedDisplay":"05.23EDT","blockFirstPublished":1692608774000,"blockFirstPublishedDisplay":"05.06EDT","blockFirstPublishedDisplayNoTimezone":"05.06","title":"Letby has 'refused to come into court', says prosecutor","contributors":[{"name":"Josh Halliday","imageUrl":"https://i.guim.co.uk/img/uploads/2023/02/17/Josh_Halliday.jpg?width=300&quality=85&auto=format&fit=max&s=75198ce42adf155c525f140f69bbc715","largeImageUrl":"https://i.guim.co.uk/img/uploads/2023/02/17/Josh_Halliday.png?width=300&quality=85&auto=format&fit=max&s=d3e87335af9aba898c8800e472d75439"}],"primaryDateLine":"Mon 21 Aug 2023 10.07 EDT","secondaryDateLine":"First published on Mon 21 Aug 2023 04.54 EDT"},{"id":"64e324248f08af8aaccf0e21","elements":[{"_type":"model.dotcomrendering.pageElements.TextBlockElement","html":"Lucy Letby, the worst child serial killer in modern British history, faces spending the rest of her days in prison when she is sentenced later today for murdering seven babies and making seven more attempts to murder children at the Countess of Chester hospital.
","elementId":"fc222632-e69c-447c-9040-df6c384e497b"},{"_type":"model.dotcomrendering.pageElements.TextBlockElement","html":"The former neonatal nurse would become only the third woman to be given a whole-life order should the judge pass such a sentence, as has been suggested, at the hearing at Manchester crown court.
","elementId":"0c96fbe6-f297-47a2-887a-9179bd77d022"},{"_type":"model.dotcomrendering.pageElements.TextBlockElement","html":"But, before that, the court expects to hear heartrending impact statements from the many victims of Letby’s crimes. The now convicted murderer has previously indicated she does not intend to return to court to hear her them – nor to hear sentence passed.
","elementId":"fb1e4eb2-d3ad-4d78-8bec-1383d5c2d197"},{"_type":"model.dotcomrendering.pageElements.TextBlockElement","html":"This has led to many calls to begin compelling convicts to face their sentencing hearings in person.
","elementId":"95a517a4-80bd-45b9-b82c-de0d3074537a"},{"_type":"model.dotcomrendering.pageElements.TextBlockElement","html":"The judge, Mr Justice Goss, has said the court has no power to force Letby to attend. But the former justice secretary Robert Buckland called for proceedings to be broadcast into Letby’s cell, regardless of her wishes. And he has called on the government to change the law if necessary.
","elementId":"08671efd-282d-41b6-af20-c68de14ddde1"}],"attributes":{"pinned":false,"keyEvent":true,"summary":false},"blockCreatedOn":1692608048000,"blockCreatedOnDisplay":"04.54EDT","blockLastUpdated":1692608794000,"blockLastUpdatedDisplay":"05.06EDT","blockFirstPublished":1692608048000,"blockFirstPublishedDisplay":"04.54EDT","blockFirstPublishedDisplayNoTimezone":"04.54","title":"Neonatal nurse faces life behind bars for baby murders","contributors":[],"primaryDateLine":"Mon 21 Aug 2023 10.07 EDT","secondaryDateLine":"First published on Mon 21 Aug 2023 04.54 EDT"}],"filterKeyEvents":false,"format":{"display":0,"theme":0,"design":12},"id":"key-events-carousel-mobile"}">Nyckelhändelser
- 5d sedan Sammanfattning
- 5d agoStarmer kräver att utredningen sätts på lagstadgad grund
- 5d sedan Justitieminister säger att regeringen vill ändra lag för att tvinga brottslingar att närvara vid domen
- 5d sedanKeir Starmer uppmanar regeringen att ändra lag för att tvinga brottslingar att närvara vid domförhör
- För fem dagar sedan "Du kommer att tillbringa resten av ditt liv i fängelse", säger domaren till Letby
- 5d sedanLåttav given ordning för hela livet
- För 5 dagar sedan "Det fanns överlag, uträkning och list i dina handlingar", säger domaren till Letby
- 5d sedanLetby "agerade på ett sätt som strider mot mänskliga instinkter att vårda och ta hand om spädbarn", säger domaren
- 5d sedan Tidigare grevinnan av Chester NHS sjukhuschef avstängd
- 5d sedan'Det var så jobbigt. Jag visste inte vad jag skulle säga ... jag kände mig värdelös och skyllde på mig själv.'
- 5d sedan'Jag trodde verkligen att jag hade all tid i världen med dem alla'
- 5d sedan'Vi hör ofta om människor som dör av ett brustet hjärta. Så här känner vi efter denna dag'
- 5d sedan'Ännu i dag har jag svårt att sova eftersom jag får flashbacks'
- 5d sedan'Vår dotter torterades tills hon inte hade något slagsmål kvar i sig'
- 5d sedan'Det som hände har skadat min tro'
- 5d sedan'Mina pojkar var bara en bricka i hennes sjuka, skruvade spel'
- För 5 dagar sedan "Lurad, lurad och fullständigt hjärtkrossad", säger tvillingmor
- 5d sedan'Vi ville ha rättvisa för [barn D] och den dagen har kommit'
- För sex dagar sedan tänker jag på hur hans röst skulle ha låtit. Hur han skulle ha sett ut nu. Vem han skulle ha varit'
- För sex dagar sedan "Vad som borde ha varit den lyckligaste natten i våra liv blev vår värsta", säger sörjande mamma
- 6d sedanLetby har "vägrat att komma in i domstol", säger åklagaren
- 6d sedanNeonatal sjuksköterska möter livet bakom galler för babymord
5d sedan09.07EDT
Haroon Siddique
Efter Letbys dom, kanslern och justitieministern,Alex Chalk KC, sa:
"Ingenting kunde börja ångra skadan som Lucy Letby har gjort. Rättvisa har skipats, men det var en förolämpning mot familjerna till hennes offer att Letby misslyckades med att infinna sig i bryggan för att höra sin dom avkunnad. Hon tog den fega inställningen och förolämpade sina offer en sista gång genom att beröva deras familjer chansen att se henne i ögonen när domaren avgjorde hennes öde.
"Fall som dessa gör mig ännu mer beslutsam att se till att de värsta lagöverträdarna kommer till domstol för att ställas inför rätta, när domaren beordrar det.
"Det är därför vi tittar på alternativ för att ändra lagen så snart som möjligt för att säkerställa att i tystnaden som följer klanget från fängelseporten kommer samhällets fördömande att ringa i fångars öron."
5d sedan08.43EDT
Efter domen,DCI Nicola Evanshar sagt:
Domen återspeglar den verkliga omfattningen och allvaret av hennes fruktansvärda brott och säkerställer att en beräknad och farlig individ är bakom lås och bom under mycket lång tid.
Ingenting kommer att ta tillbaka de barn som dog eller ta bort den smärta och lidande som alla familjer upplevt under åren, men jag hoppas att den betydande domen kommer att ge lite tröst i denna mörka tid.
Offrets uttalanden som läses upp i rätten i dag på uppdrag av föräldrarna är en skrämmande påminnelse om smärtan och lidandet som varje familj har fått utstå genom åren. Att höra sina egna erfarenheter med sina egna ord har verkligen varit hjärtskärande.
5d sedan08.42EDT
Starmer kräver att utredningen ställs på lagstadgad grund
Starmer kräver också att utredningen ställs på lagstadgad grund. Han har lagt till sin röst till det växande antalet som kräver att den oberoende utredning som regeringen har tillkännagett ska stärkas, har han sagt:
Jag tycker att det borde vara en lagstadgad undersökning och jag ska berätta varför. Ett: eftersom det är vad offrens familj vill ha och efter vad de har gått igenom, tror jag att det är en väldigt viktig övervägande.
För det andra: vad en lagstadgad utredning ger dig är befogenhet att beställa handlingar, att beordra vittnen att träda fram. Så vi får den fullständigaste, korrekta, heltäckande analysen av vad som gick fel här.
Så jag tror att det måste vara en lagstadgad utredning. Jag tror inte att det behöver hålla uppe saker. Vi kunde komma vidare med det väldigt snabbt.
5d sedan08.41EDT
Justitieminister säger att regeringen vill ändra lagen för att tvinga brottslingar att närvara vid domen
Justitieministern,Alex Chalk, säger att regeringen vill ändra lagen för att tvinga brottslingar att delta. Han har skrivit på Twitter och sagt:
Lucy Letby är inte bara en mördare utan en fegis, vars underlåtenhet att möta sina offers familjer, vägran att höra deras konsekvenser och samhällets fördömande, är den sista förolämpningen. Vi vill ändra lagen så att lagöverträdare kan tvingas att närvara vid domförhör.
5d sedan08.40EDT
Keir Starmer uppmanar regeringen att ändra lag för att tvinga brottslingar att närvara vid domförhör
Keir Starmer, Labour-partiets ledare, säger att han delar ilskan hos offrens familjer över att inte se Letby i bryggan för hennes straffförhandling, eftersom han uppmanade regeringen att ändra lagen för att tvinga brottslingar att närvara.
Vad jag inte tycker ska tillåtas hända är att regeringen säger, för det finns praktiska överväganden – vilket det såklart finns – vi kommer inte att göra något åt det.
Tänk bara på att offrens familjer i dag inte ser den tilltalade i bryggan ställas inför rätta som hon borde. De är arga, de är frustrerade. Jag delar det.
Jag såg själv hur viktigt det är. Så utifrån vår position tänker vi inte på partipolitik. Vi tänker på offren och ger ett helt öppet erbjudande till regeringen: vi kommer att arbeta med dig, övervinna de praktiska övervägandena, och låt oss få det här gjort, låt oss ändra lagen.
5d sedan08.37EDT
Ayse Hussein, som har kampanjat i frågan sedan mordet på sin kusin Jan Mustafa 2018 av en man som redan hade dödat en annan kvinna, har sagt:
I vårt fall handlade det om ett dubbelmord och att veta att gärningsmannen fick sitta bekvämt i sin cell medan domaren läste upp slagutlåtandena var ett hugg i ryggen.
Gärningsmannen borde vara i bryggan med ansiktet mot familjen och lyssna på vad han har utsatt oss för och för att se smärtan och tårarna eftersom han har orsakat detta genom att döda våra nära och kära. Men på grund av lagen behöver han inte se eller höra någonting. Detta är fel och måste ändras.
Förövare har så många rättigheter och privilegier gentemot familjer, vi lider och måste lyssna i domstol, det har de inte.
Att bryta islam, vars syster Sabina Nessa mördades 2021, har sagt:
Det är fantastiskt att detta faktiskt händer. Tanken på att dessa rovdjur valde att komma till domstol var verkligen upprörande och orättvist för offret och deras familjer – och nu har vi satt stopp för detta.
Jag är över månen över att denna förändring sker och tackar alla för deras stöd och kärlek.
5d sedan08.31EDT
Mer ilska har uttryckts över Letbys förmåga att undvika att närvara vid hennes dom, såväl som de sista dagarna av hennes rättegång. Londons offerkommissionär,Claire Waxman, har sagt:
Det är helt enkelt oacceptabelt att Lucy Letby har kunnat undvika att närvara vid sin dom idag och inte möta sina onda handlingar inför sörjande familjer som har utsatts för ofattbar smärta, som har förvärrats av detta extra trauma.
Det här fallet är ytterligare ett exempel på en loop i det straffrättsliga systemet som gör det möjligt för dömda brottslingar att regelbundet dra nytta av. Brottsförövare måste tvingas ställas inför sin dom i domstol och höra konsekvenserna av sina brott, eller möta konsekvenser om de vägrar.
De senaste 18 månaderna har jag arbetat med familjerna tillSabina Nessa, Zara AleenaochJan Mustafa, som har haft liknande upplevelser och vi har drivit regeringen att lägga fram lagstiftning som kommer att förhindra förövare att fortsätta att ha makten över familjer under domen.
Jag har haft många möten med många rättsliga partner i denna fråga och har föreslagit ett antal förslag till regeringen. Och även om vi välkomnar åtagandet att göra de nödvändiga förändringarna, behöver vi att regeringen snabbt följer upp för att säkerställa att offren och deras nära och kära kan känna att rättvisa har levererats och påbörja sin resa mot en känsla av avslutning.
5d sedan08.27EDT
Josh Halliday
Goss tackar de som varit inblandade i fallet – inklusive juryn, polisen och media.
Jag vill tacka dem alla för deras förståelse, tålamod och samarbete. Detta fall har visat att ansvarsfull och korrekt rapportering – en grundläggande plan för demokrati – kan uppnås.
Till familjerna framför han sina "allvarliga kondoleanser" till dem vars barn mördades. Han ser känslomässig ut när han säger att familjerna till alla offer kommer att finnas kvar i hans tankar.
5d sedan08.18EDT
Domaren avslutar sitt straffuttalande och säger:
Lucy Letby, för vart och ett av de sju mordbrotten och de sju mordförsöken, dömer jag dig till livstids fängelse.
Eftersom allvaret i dina överträdelser är exceptionellt högt, säger jag att bestämmelserna om förtida frigivning inte gäller. Domstolens beslut är därför en livstidsbeslut om varje brott. Och du kommer att tillbringa resten av ditt liv i fängelse.
5d sedan08.15EDT
Detta var en grym, beräknad och cynisk kampanj av barnmord som involverade de minsta och mest utsatta av barn, med vetskapen om att dina handlingar orsakade betydande fysiskt lidande – och skulle orsaka ett otalligt psykiskt lidande.
5d sedan08.11EDT
"Du kommer att tillbringa resten av ditt liv i fängelse", säger domaren till Letby
Domaren säger:
Det fanns en djup illvilja på gränsen till sadism i dina handlingar. Under loppet av denna rättegång har du kallt förnekat allt ansvar för dina förseelser och försökt tillskriva andra något fel. Du har ingen ånger. Det finns inga förmildrande faktorer.
Han dömde henne till en livstidsdom för varje brott och sa:
Du kommer att tillbringa resten av ditt liv i fängelse.
5d sedan08.10EDT
Mr Justice Goss säger till Letby:
Grymheten och beräkningen av dina handlingar var verkligen fruktansvärda.
Han fortsätter med att säga:
Till sin natur och antal är sådana mord och mordförsök av en neonatal sjuksköterska som har anförtrotts att ta hand om dem ett fall av mycket exceptionella omständigheter... Detta var en grym, beräknad och cynisk kampanj för barnmord.
Du dödade sju ömtåliga spädbarn och försökte döda sex andra. Några av dina offer var bara en dag eller några dagar gamla. Alla var extremt sårbara.
5d sedan08.07EDT
Letby gett hela livets ordning
Domaren har sagt till Lucy Letby att hon kommer att tillbringa resten av sitt liv i fängelse för morden på sju spädbarn och mordförsök på sex andra.