Posted 26 April 2023 - 11:48
Posted 26 April 2023 - 11:48
News
Lucy Letby trial: nurse wanted to attend Child I’s funeral
The nurse took a photograph of sympathy card she sent to the grieving parents of Child I, a baby she is accused of killing on a fourth attempt
The nurse took a photograph of sympathy card she sent to the grieving parents of Child I, a baby she is accused of killing on a fourth attempt
Nurse Lucy Letby wanted to go to the funeral of a baby girl she is accused of murdering, a court has heard.
Ms Letby also took a photograph of a sympathy card she sent to the grieving parents of the infant to remember her ‘kind words’, Manchester Crown Court was told.
Lucy Letby sent a sympathy card to Child I’s parents
She is accused of murdering Child I, who was born prematurely, in the early hours of 23 October 2015, which the Crown says was the fourth attempt to take the infant’s life.
Ms Letby is accused of murdering seven babies and attempting to murder ten others at the Countess of Chester Hospital’s neonatal unit between June 2015 and June 2016. She denies all charges.
On Tuesday, excerpts from Ms Letby’s interviews with Cheshire Police following her arrest were read out in court.
Asked how she coped with the death of Child I, she replied: ‘It affects everybody on the unit because we all knew (Child I) quite well and we’d got to know the family.
‘I wanted to go to (Child I’s) funeral. I was unfortunately working at the time so didn’t go.’
Ms Letby said she photographed card to remember her ‘kind words’
Showing Ms Letby her photograph of the sympathy card, the officer asked: ‘Can you explain, Lucy, what that is?’ Ms Letby said: ‘Yeah, I sent a sympathy card to the parents because I wasn’t able to attend the funeral.’
When asked if that was ‘normal practice’, Ms Letby replied: ‘No. Well, it’s not very often that we would get to know a family as well as we did with (Child I).’
Asked why she didn’t go to the funeral, Ms Letby said: ‘I was working. I wasn’t able to change my shift. It was suggested that I could send a card via one of the other nurses who was going.’
When asked if she had sent cards to other parents before, Ms Letby said no.
The detective asked: ‘Why did you take photographs of it on your phone?’ Ms Letby said: ‘I often take pictures of any cards that I have sent, even birthday cards – anything like that. I often take pictures of them.’
Asked 'Why did you want to remember what you’d wrote to them, Lucy?’, she replied: ‘It was upsetting losing (Child I) and I think it was nice to remember the kind words that I hoped I’d shared with that family.’
On the card Ms Letby wrote: ‘There are no words to make this time any easier. It was a real privilege to care for (Child I) and get to know you as a family – a family who always put (Child I) first and did everything possible for her. She will always be a part of your lives and we will never forget her. Thinking of you today and always – sorry I cannot be there to say goodbye. Lots of love Lucy x.’
Diary noted twin boys’ birth and date they needed to be resuscitated
Ms Letby was also asked about twin boys, Child L and Child M, whom she allegedly attempted to murder on 9 April 2016.
A diary found at her home in Chester contained a reference to ‘LD twins’ in an entry for 8 April that year, which Ms Letby said meant ‘long day’ twins. The detective asked if that referred to Child L and Child M and Ms Letby replied: ‘Was that the day when they were born? … Yes.’
The detective said ‘Is there a reason why you put that in your diary?’ and Ms Letby replied: ‘Because I attended their delivery.’
The defendant was then asked about entries for 9 April in which she wrote ‘LD (extra) twins resus’.
‘Because that was a significant event on that day,’ she replied. ‘It was an extra shift, it was my fourth long day in a row.’
Nurse took home a list of drugs given to Child M
The jury has heard that a list of resuscitation drugs and the times they were given to Child M, which had been written on a paper towel, was also recovered in a search of Ms Letby’s home in July 2018.
Asked why this was in her possession, Ms Letby said: ‘They have inadvertently come home with me on the night shift.’ Asked why she had not put the towel in the hospital’s confidential waste, she said: ‘It was an error on my part that I had not emptied my pockets on leaving.’
The trial continues.
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