More than 400 healthcare workers have called for a review of Lucy Letby’s case.
The group, which includes 200 nurses, as well as consultants, junior doctors, radiographers and psychiatrists, has written to health unions asking them to “stand with us” to protect staff from allegations of wrongdoing.
They claim Letby’s “unsafe” conviction has triggered a “climate of fear” in the NHS and that they have been “gagged” and prevented from speaking out on behalf of Letby by their trusts.
Letby, 35, of Herefordshire, was convicted of the murders of seven babies and the attempted murder of seven others while working at the Countess of Chester Hospital in 2015 and 2016.
But many experts have challenged the way the evidence was presented to the jury, and a panel of world-leading experts has since reviewed the medical notes and concluded there were no malicious acts.
A sketch of Letby during her trial. She was found guilty of murdering seven babies, and trying to kill six others
Letby’s case is currently being considered by the Criminal Cases Review Commission, which looks into potential miscarriages of justice, although police and the Crown Prosecution Service insist she was fairly convicted.
The new letter was compiled by the group Nineteen Nurses, who originally wrote to Sir Keir Starmer about the case last year, but since then their group has grown to 426.
They claimed that “nurses are afraid” and called for unions to demand an independent and transparent review of the Letby conviction.
The neonatal unit at the Countess of Chester hospital where Letby worked
“We stand united in our deep concern over what many in the nursing and wider healthcare community believes to be an unsafe conviction in the case of Lucy Letby,” they wrote.
“Many who question the fairness of this conviction are being silenced – gagged by professional pressure, fear of disciplinary action and the chilling reality that advocating for truth could end their careers.
“But we refuse to be silent. Speaking up for one nurse is speaking up for us all.
“It is not just Lucy Letby’s liberty at stake, but the very foundation of trust and safety for nurses working across the UK.
“If a nurse can be convicted in such a manner, without irrefutable evidence, then any nurse could be next.”
The nurses argue that Letby’s conviction was based largely on circumstantial evidence and contested medical opinions. They said it had sent a “chilling message” across the NHS: that any nurse working in a strained, high-risk environment could face criminal charges for systemic failures beyond their control.
Letby was employed at the hospital straight out of university – Christopher Furlong/Getty Images
“This isn’t justice. This is scapegoating,” the letter continued. “If a nurse can be convicted in such a manner, without irrefutable evidence, then any nurse could be next.
“Nurses are second-guessing their clinical judgment, hesitating to document decisions and are afraid to raise concerns – not because they don’t care, but because they fear being punished for telling the truth.”
NineteenNurses.com was formed to support nurses and healthcare professionals affected by or concerned about miscarriages of justice within the health system.
‘Weaponisation of blame’
The group says that many nurses have started second-guessing their clinical judgment, hesitating to document decisions and are afraid to raise concerns.
They are calling on the UK’s main healthcare unions to demand an independent and transparent review of the Letby conviction.
“We ask our unions to stand with us in protecting the profession from the weaponisation of blame in a system already buckling under immense strain,” they added.
“We demand a truly independent review into this case, free from institutional bias and media influence.”
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