Lucy Letby: Murderous nurse jailed for the rest of her life by a UK court

LONDON, Aug 21 (Reuters) – Nurse Lucy Letby will spend the rest of her life behind bars for killing seven newborn babies after a judge ruled on Monday that Britain’s most prolific serial killer of children modern times should never be released.

Letby, 33, murdered the five boys and two girls in the neonatal unit at the Countess of Chester hospital in the north of England for 13 months from 2015, injecting them with insulin or air, or force-feeding them milk.

Some of those he attacked were twins: in one case, he murdered both brothers, in another, he killed two out of three triplets, and in two cases, he murdered one twin but failed in his attempts to kill the other.

“This was a cruel, calculated and cynical campaign of child murder involving the youngest and most vulnerable children,” said Judge James Goss, who sentenced her to life in prison with no prospect of release.

“There was a deep malevolence bordering on sadism in your actions… You have no remorse. There are no mitigating factors… You will spend the rest of your life in prison,” he said as the babies’ parents sobbed. the courtroom

Lifetime orders are very rare, and only three women in Britain have received such a sentence before, including serial killers Myra Hindley and Rosemary West.

Police have not found a motive for his crimes and Goss said only Letby knew the motives for his actions.

He refused to leave his cells to hear his sentence, leading to demands that criminals should be made to hear the impact of their actions on their victims or their families.

The mother of one of the victims described it as a last act of evil.

FAMILY STATEMENTS

the heartbreaking crimes committed by Letbywho was 20 years old when he carried out his spree of murders in his workplace, horrifying Britain, ruining the lives of the victims’ families and causing lasting damage to his colleagues.

She was found guilty last week of seven counts of murder and seven counts of attempted murder after a 10-month trial at Manchester Crown Court. Jurors could not agree on whether she had attempted to kill six of her own, and acquitted her on two other counts of attempted murder.

Previously, the court heard heartbreaking and emotional statements from each of the parents of the people he murdered and attempted to kill, recounting the trauma and “unbearable agony” he had caused.

“Lucy Letby has destroyed our lives. The anger and hatred I have for her will never go away,” the father of the triplets said in a statement.

A mother of twins, one of whom was killed while the other survived, said she hoped Letby lived a long life, spending every day grieving for what she had done.

“My family will never think of you again. From this day on, you are nothing,” the mother said.

Prime Minister Rishi Sunak said not hearing the impact of his actions firsthand was “cowardly”.

While current law says judges can increase jail terms for no-shows, the government is considering making attendance mandatory.

“That is something we will present in due course,” Sunak said.

The government has also ordered an investigation into the case amid allegations by senior doctors in the neonatal unit that hospital bosses failed to take their concerns about Letby into account, with calls to ensure it is led by a judge who can compel witnesses to testify.

Sunak said it was important that families get the answers they need and that the consultation be carried out as quickly and transparently as possible.

Police are also investigating another 4,000 admissions to the neonatal units where Letby worked to see if there are other victims.

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