Letby was found guilty of murdering seven new born babies and attempting to kill seven others

Lucy Letby(Image: PA)

A new documentary about killer nurse Lucy Letby features claims that ‘deeply disturbing’ and ‘flawed’ evidence was used to convict her.

Letby was found guilty of murdering seven new born babies and attempting to kill seven others following trials at Manchester Crown Court. She was handed 15 whole life sentences and told she would die behind bars.

Since her final court appearance last year, claims have been made by some medical experts that she is not guilty, the Mirror reports. The Court of Appeal previously dismissed Letby’s case on all grounds, rejecting her argument that expert prosecution evidence was flawed.

In ITV’s Lucy Letby: Beyond Reasonable Doubt?, due to be broadcast tonight, her barrister Mark McDonald claims: “There’s no direct evidence, no one saw her do anything wrong.”

He added: “In the trial, they started from the starting point, ‘she has done harm. Now we have to show how she has harmed each child….we’re just going to put together a theory.’ And she was convicted on that theory.”

In February a panel of medical experts, led by Dr Shoo Lee, claimed that Letby did not murder any babies. Her defence team has now submitted an application to the Criminal Cases Review Commission.

Dr Neena Modi, ex-president of the Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health, says: “It’s been deeply disturbing that one can have such a… tremendously important trial that seems to have been conducted with so many flaws.”

One alleged flaw is a shift chart, used to prove Letby was always present when the babies were harmed at the Countess of Chester Hospital from 2015 to 2016. But statistician Professor Jane Hutton claims some incidents, when Letby was not working, were left off, adding: “This is a summary that is so crude it can only be described as grossly misleading.”

It was also claimed Letby must have caused one baby’s death by removing a breathing tube. But several experts say the tubes can be dislodged for a “variety of reasons”.

Notes by Letby, including the phrase “I am evil I did this” were presented as confessional in court. But it is claimed she was encouraged by hospital staff to write down her feelings to help cope with stress.

It is also alleged the prosecution’s lead expert, Dr Dewi Evans, has altered his view about how three babies died since the case. But he denies this, saying his evidence has been agreed by a jury and the Court of Appeal. He also argues the case by Dr Shoo Lee’s panel has not been held to scrutiny in court and contains significant factual errors.

The CPS said: “Lucy Letby was convicted of 15 separate counts following two jury trials. In May 2024, the Court of Appeal dismissed Letby’s leave to appeal on all grounds, rejecting her argument that expert prosecution evidence was flawed.”

It added that it is considering police files on further baby deaths and collapses at the Countess of Chester and Liverpool Women’s Hospital.