Lucy Letby: Baby was heard screaming before collapse, jury told

A baby boy was heard "screaming" after he was allegedly injected with air by nurse Lucy Letby, a court has heard.

Ms Letby is accused of trying to kill the boy, referred to as Child N, on three occasions at the Countess of Chester Hospital in June 2016.

The nurse is charged with murdering seven babies and attempting to murder 10 others between 2015 and 2016.

The 33-year-old, originally from Hereford, denies 22 charges at Manchester Crown Court.

The jury was told that in the early hours of 3 June, Child N experienced a "sudden deterioration" and was heard "screaming" and then crying for 30 minutes.

Medical expert Dr Dewi Evans, who was asked to review the case by Cheshire Police in 2017, said: "It's very unusual for babies to cry other than when [something is] causing them some sort of discomfort like inserting an intravenous line.

"Once you stop the procedure, they usually stop crying quickly."

"Something had been done to this baby to cause this episode of screaming," he added.

He told the court that while reviewing scientific papers he came across cases of "babies who had accidentally received an intravenous injection of air into the blood stream that screamed, collapsed and died."

Dr Evans told jurors that what he saw in previous babies in this case had been "repeated" with Child N.

Dr Sarah Bohin, who reviewed Dr Evans' findings, put Child N's screaming and crying down to an "inflicted painful stimulus".

The court has previously heard that on 15 June, Child N suffered further collapses and bleeding was noted at the back of his throat.

The Crown allege that the bleed could have been the result of an "inflicted injury".

Defending Ben Myers KC said there was no evidence of an injection of air.

Mr Myers accused Dr Evans of using his review to "fit the allegation not the facts" which the medic denied.

Mr Myers went on to question Dr Evans' motives for taking on the case and showed the court an email the medic had sent to the National Crime Agency in 2017, in which he said the baby deaths at Chester "sounds like my kind of case".

Mr Myers accused the medic of "touting for work" and asked whether he was asked "to give them what they wanted".

Dr Evans rejected the suggestion, telling the court he was an independent expert and accused Mr Myers of "going on a wild goose chase".

The trial continues.

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