Speculation over evil baby killer Lucy Letby’s convictions has caused victims’ families ‘enormous emotional distress’

An inquiry into the murders of seven babies at the hands of a malevolent nurse is now underway, revealing alarming developments.

Speculation over baby killer Lucy Letby has caused “enormous additional distress” to the parents of her victims, a public inquiry heard.

The evil nurse is serving 15 whole-life orders for murdering seven babies in a year-long reign of terror.

Letby, 34, also tried to kill seven others – including one baby twice – at Countess of Chester Hospital.

Her evil crimes are now the focus of a long-awaited public inquiry chaired by Lady Justice Thirlwall, The Sun reports.

Opening the probe today, she referred to Letby losing a Court of Appeal bid to challenge her convictions from the first trial.

Lucy Letby is facing a public inquiry into her horrific crimes.

The chairwoman said: “That judgment marked a watershed. At last the parents had finality, or so it seemed. But it was not to be.

“In the months that followed … there has been a huge outpouring of comment from a variety of quarters on the validity of the convictions.

“As far as I am aware it has come entirely from people who were not at the trial. Parts of the evidence has been selected and there has been criticism of the defence at the trial.

“All of this noise has caused enormous additional distress to the parents who have already suffered far too much.

“It is not for me to set about reviewing the convictions. The Court of Appeal has done that with a very clear result.”

Chair of the inquiry Lady Justice Thirlwall. Picture: Getty Images

Her comments come as questions continue to be raised over Letby’s trial and subsequent conviction.

Doctors, experts and scientists have publicly challenged how the evidence was presented to jurors.

Solicitor Tamlin Bolton who is representing the families of six victims, said the speculation has been “upsetting”.

The investigation at Liverpool Town Hall will explore how Letby was able to attack babies on the neonatal unit between 2015 and 2016.

Letby murdered seven babies in a year-long rampage.

It will also examine the experiences of the parents of the tragic tots and why it took so long for the nurse to be removed from the ward before her arrest.

Lady Justice Thirlwall previously compared the case to Angel of Death Beverley Allitt, who murdered four children and attempted to kill nine others in Lincolnshire in 1991.

She said: “Everyone was determined that it would not happen again. It has happened again. This is utterly unacceptable.”

Letby declared “I’m innocent” as she was handed another life order in July after being found guilty of attempted murder on a baby girl following a retrial.

In May, Letby lost a Court of Appeal bid to challenge her convictions from the first trial.

But her new legal team is planning to apply to the Criminal Cases Review Commission (CCRC) to ask it to return the case to the court.

She maintains her innocence.

A handout image released by Cheshire Constabulary police force in Manchester on August 17, 2023, shows the November 2020 custody photograph of nurse Lucy Letby. Picture: AFP

Lawyer Mark McDonald claims new medical evidence and expert opinion had revealed “flaws” in the prosecution case.

Letby became only the fourth woman ever to be handed whole life tariff after Rose West, Joanna Dennehy and Myra Hindley when she was sentenced last August.

She had been convicted of seven counts of murder following a nine-month trial and 22 days of jury deliberation.

Letby was also found guilty of attempting to murder a further six babies during her year-long killing spree.

At a retrial in July, she was convicted of trying to kill a seventh child – a premature baby girl so small she could fit in the palm of the nurse’s hand.

A court order prohibits reporting of the identities of the surviving and dead children involved in the case.

The inquiry continues.

This article originally appeared in the The Sun and was reproduced with permission