Lucy Letby: Inquests into deaths of five babies killed by former nurse open
Inquests were opened and adjourned into the deaths of five babies, for which Lucy Letby was found guilty of murder.
HM Cheshire senior coroner Jacqueline Devonish opened an inquest into the deaths of Baby C, Baby E, Baby I, Baby O and Baby P on Wednesday.
The babies died at the Countess of Chester Hospital in 2015 and 2016, while Letby, 36, was working as a nurse in the neonatal unit.
Brief summaries of the circumstances of each death were first passed to the coroner in 2015 and 2016 and read by coroner’s officer Detective Inspector Darren Reid during the 20-minute hearing in Warrington.
He added that following Letby’s conviction, investigations were requested as there was reason to suspect an unnatural death.
Ms Devonish said she was satisfied every baby required an inquest and Thirlwall temporarily postponed them from 14 to 25 September, depending on the outcome of the public inquiry.
Each investigation was formally suspended for three months until the review date on 5 May.
The investigation into Baby D, which opened in January 2016, was also postponed until the same date.
Lady Justice Thirlwall’s inquest report into how the nurse was able to commit her crimes will be published after Easter.
The inquest into Baby A’s death, conducted in October 2016, recorded a narrative conclusion stating that it could not be determined what caused the teenager’s collapse and subsequent death, or whether it was due to a natural or unnatural event.
Letby, from Hereford, was removed from clinical duties in July 2016 after consultant paediatricians raised concerns he might deliberately harm babies, but these fears were not mentioned at Baby A’s inquest.
Last month the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) announced it would not pursue further charges against Letby.
Cheshire Constabulary had submitted evidence files to assess the alleged murder and attempted murder of the two deceased and seven surviving babies.
But CPS chiefs concluded the evidentiary test was not met in any of the cases.
Letby has twice been refused permission to appeal his conviction in 2024.
The Criminal Cases Review Commission, which is investigating possible miscarriages of justice, is considering evidence presented on its behalf by an international medical team who claimed that inadequate medical care and natural causes were among the causes of babies fainting.
