UK - Healthcare worker arrested on suspicion of murder/attempted murder of a number of babies, 2018

[badgersmythe]

Nurse Lucy Letby, 31, denies murdering eight babies


Hereford nurse Lucy Letby, 31, denies murdering eight babies and attempting to murder 10 more | Daily Mail Online

 

[thatssoamy]

Yes, six months. See this report from the BBC at an earlier hearing. There are eighteen charges and no doubt a significant amount of evidential material to be presented.

Lucy Letby: Trial date set for nurse accused of baby murders

The average length of a Crown Court trial is two weeks.

Thanks, has she been on remand for 2 years already? And that another year until the trial then 6 months of trial? If she gets found innocent that's alot of time that she will never get back.

 

[Sarahlou]

Thanks, has she been on remand for 2 years already? And that another year until the trial then 6 months of trial? If she gets found innocent that's alot of time that she will never get back.

No, she was remanded in November 2020

 

[Skigh]

I cannot imagine many people would want to sit on the jury for 6 months

 

[Sarahlou]

I cannot imagine many people would want to sit on the jury for 6 months

I can't either. It seems like it would be a nightmare to arrange. That is a very long time to be on a jury.

 

[investikater]

Thanks, has she been on remand for 2 years already? And that another year until the trial then 6 months of trial? If she gets found innocent that's alot of time that she will never get back.

i'm confused about the timeline also

UK nurse denies murdering eight babies

She was previously arrested twice, in 2018 and 2019, but was twice bailed pending further inquiries.

did she go back to work on the neonatal ward?!

 

[investikater]

Hereford nurse Lucy Letby, 31, denies murdering eight babies and attempting to murder 10 more | Daily Mail Online

Police launched an investigation after the hospital raised concerns at the high number of deaths between March 2015 and July 2016 - which were said to be 10 per cent above average.

An internal inquiry was undertaken when medics found premature babies had died following heart and lung failure, but were unusually impossible to resuscitate.

10% seems like a smallish number - why are they sure it's not within a margin of error, or a random statistical cluster?

 

[Whitehall 1212]

I can't either. It seems like it would be a nightmare to arrange. That is a very long time to be on a jury.

A very interesting article on the realities of just such a call to duty

'We spent almost two years sitting on a jury' - BBC News

 

[nothinonyou]

A very interesting article on the realities of just such a call to duty

'We spent almost two years sitting on a jury' - BBC News

wow i did it for a couple of days and it was draining, a lot of waiting around and everyone was so incredibly serious and stone-faced all the time. exhausting

 

[Jules2021]

Imagine the logistics of finding twelve jurors who can be available for six months, absorb all the evidence, and then make a decision on each charge. There will need to be a few more besides for the jury selection.

The complexity is usually only something seen in fraud trials. One of which holds the record as the longest UK criminal trial at 321 days in 2017.

You're right of course, the logistics of arranging it all must be a complete nightmare. I'm sure everything is being done as quickly as possible but once they settled on July I thought that would be it for sure, I'm surprised they can delay it this many times...well let's hope it doesn't get delayed again. At this rate the trial could also last far longer than 6 months? Glad she was at least finally able to answer all the charges so things are heading in the right direction.

I'm just wondering how it's all going to get reported when the trial starts...is it going to be a huge story after all this time when right now a lot of people still don't really know about the case because of all the laws around the reporting of it. After having followed the case for probably at least 3 years it'll be very strange to see it blow up in the news finally and everyone is talking about it.

 

[Spy Versus Spy]

Just think, the process is probably slightly longer than the combined ages of the 'victims'' lifespan.

 

[Sarahlou]

Am I going mad or have all the posts from today disappeared?
Glad Websleuths is back though!

 

[Tortoise]

An I going mad or have all the posts from today disappeared?
Glad Websleuths is back though!

Yes, all gone.

 

[Whitehall 1212]

Yes, all gone.

With a bit of luck they will be migrated across. Assuming they are saved somewhere?

 

[Tortoise]

With a bit of luck they will be migrated across. Assuming they are saved somewhere?

I like your optimism. I think they're probably not saved, unfortunately.

 

[Marantz4250b]

Am I going mad or have all the posts from today disappeared?
Glad Websleuths is back though!

Yep, all gone for me!

 

[Whitehall 1212]

I like your optimism. I think they're probably not saved, unfortunately.

 

[Kemug]

So, reposting : IIRC, I said that I don't see why Lucy can't be out on bail for the next year. If LE is worried about that, there are options - ankle bracelet, curfew, even home detention. What are they scared of? Her absconding, murdering more babies, suicide? People can commit suicide in jail if they are determined enough.

 

[investikater]

it's weird to me that they can't find a cause of death.
how often does that happen with infants?
and if they can't find a cause, why are they convinced it's murder over just 10%? and why are they convinced that she is the murderer?


also what are we to make of the skin splotches? what does that suggest?

 

[Marantz4250b]

So, reposting : IIRC, I said that I don't see why Lucy can't be out on bail for the next year. If LE is worried about that, there are options - ankle bracelet, curfew, even home detention. What are they scared of? Her absconding, murdering more babies, suicide? People can commit suicide in jail if they are determined enough.

I think that the latter is pretty high up the list. The comments made by her solicitor at the initial hearing gave a hint of that, in my opinion.

I can't see it likely that she'd committ further crimes (not that she has been convicted of anything already) and witness intimidation or absconding seem similarly unlikely. It doesn't seem beyond the realms of possibility that a nurse may be able to secrete something with which to end their life with though. I mean, it does perhaps explain why the police were searching the gutters and drains at her property! Potentially looking for something very small??