The incidents occurred between 2015 and 2016 during her employment at the hospital.
Letby faced charges of murder in connection with the deaths of five boys and two girls, as well as attempted murder of six other children.
The prosecution accused her of deliberately harming the newborns through various methods, including injecting air into their bloodstreams and introducing air or milk into their stomachs using nasogastric tubes.
Prosecutor Pascale Jones revealed that Letby deceived her colleagues by masking the harm she inflicted as exacerbations of the infants' pre-existing vulnerabilities. Innocuous substances like air, milk, and even medications like insulin became lethal tools in her hands. Jones emphasized that Letby manipulated her medical knowledge and skills to cause harm, sorrow, and death.
“Time and again, she harmed infants in an environment that was supposed to be safe for them and their families,” Jones stated in a statement released after the verdict was reached on Friday.
Letby was additionally accused of poisoning infants by adding insulin to intravenous feeds and interfering with breathing tubes. Throughout the trial, she vehemently denied all charges. Legal restrictions prevented the disclosure of the names of the alleged victims.
After 22 days of deliberation, a mixed-gender jury composed of seven women and four men reached their verdict. One juror was excused for personal reasons during deliberations, leading to the remaining 11 jurors being offered the option to reach a verdict with a majority agreement instead of a unanimous decision.
One charge of attempted murder against Letby resulted in acquittal, and the jury was unable to reach a decision on several other charges. The trial, which began in October of the previous year, presented evidence from prosecutors indicating an unusual rise in infant deaths and sudden health declines at the hospital in 2015. While some infants were saved through medical intervention, others experienced critical collapses.
Prosecutors contended that Letby was present during all these incidents and described her as a "persistent malevolent presence" in the neonatal unit when the events occurred. They argued that her methods of harming the babies left minimal traces, and she convinced her colleagues that the deaths and collapses were routine.
The first reported incident involving Letby was the death of a premature boy a day after his birth in June 2015. Prosecutors asserted that she injected air into his bloodstream.
The investigation into the infant deaths at the hospital was initiated in May 2017, leading to Letby's arrest on three occasions before she was formally charged in November 2020.
Prosecutors highlighted a significant piece of evidence – a Post-It note found at Letby's residence in 2018, bearing the words "I am evil, I did this," which they regarded as a direct confession.
In her defense, Letby's lawyer argued that she was a dedicated and compassionate nurse who enjoyed her work. The defense maintained that there was insufficient evidence to prove her involvement in any harmful actions. The defense proposed that the babies' sudden health crises might have been caused by natural factors, potentially exacerbated by staffing shortages or lapses in care by others at the hospital.
Furthermore, the defense asserted that four senior doctors had shifted blame onto Letby to conceal deficiencies within the neonatal unit. Over a span of 14 days, Letby testified, refuting all allegations of intentionally causing harm to the infants. She expressed her commitment to providing care, saying, "I only ever did my best to care for them... I am there to care, not to harm."*
Throughout her testimony, Letby exhibited moments of emotional distress and defended the collection of medical records she maintained at home for the infants under her care.
A green Post-It note she wrote was presented in court, stating: "I don't deserve to live. I killed them on purpose because I'm not good enough to care for them." Her lawyer interpreted these notes as reflections of a woman grappling with lost self-assurance and self-blame for the events that unfolded. (ILKHA)