Letby victims already have the truth, says mother

The mother of one of Lucy Letby's victims has said families "already have the truth" about what happened to their children.

The parent, who cannot be identified for legal reasons, said the claim by a panel of international medical experts that Letby had not murdered any babies at the Countess of Chester Hospital was a "publicity stunt".

Panel chairman Dr Shoo Lee said they had new evidence about her case which was not meant to cause distress but give families "comfort and assurance in knowing the truth about what really happened".

But the mother of a baby boy, who Letby was convicted of attempting to murder, told the Daily Mail "every aspect of what they are doing is so disrespectful, it is very upsetting".

She added: "They said the parents want to know the truth, but we've had the truth. We believe in the British justice system, we believe the jury made the right decision.

"We already have the truth and this panel of so-called experts don't speak for us."

Letby, 35, is serving 15 whole-life orders after she was convicted of murdering seven infants and attempting to murder seven others between June 2015 and June 2016.

She lost two bids last year to challenge her convictions at the Court of Appeal.

The panel told a press conference on Tuesday they had found that deaths or injuries of the babies said to have been harmed by Letby were due either to bad medical care or natural causes.

Dr Lee, who co-authored a 1989 academic paper on air embolism in babies which featured prominently at Letby's first 10-month trial, went on to tell reporters that his team's work was "not meant to cause more distress" to the affected families.

He said: "We know that they want to know the truth and that is why we are here to tell the truth."

But the mother said it was "misleading" to suggest new evidence had been uncovered when such themes had already been examined at length before jurors.

Letby's barrister Mark McDonald denied at the conference he was merely submitting a "rehash" of the original defence case.

Mr McDonald said: "The defence did not call an expert. So as a result all you were left with was the evidence of prosecution experts in relation to neonatology, paediatrics and pathology.

"So yes, this is fresh evidence, this is new evidence. It's compelling evidence because of the nature of the people who are giving that evidence and it wasn't heard by the jury."

He also dismissed "lesser circumstantial" non-medical evidence presented at Letby's trial such as her handwritten note which stated: "I am evil, I did this", her hoarding of mementos of her crimes, and her Facebook searches of parents of her victims.

Mr McDonald said there was a "valid explanation" for each of them as he asserted Letby was convicted solely on the medical evidence which he said had now been "demolished".

Mr McDonald hopes the medical evidence uncovered by the expert panel - working pro bono - will lead to Letby's case being sent back to the Court of Appeal.

The Criminal Cases Review Commission (CCRC), which investigates potential miscarriages of justice, has started to assess her case which is said to involve a "significant volume of complicated evidence".

The independent body said it was not possible at present to determine how long it will take to review the application from Letby's legal team.

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