LUCY LETBY CASE: PART 18
Thirlwall marches on
FORMER supreme court judge Jonathan Sumption believes Lucy Letby is “probably innocent” and deserves an appeal, he told the Sunday Times last weekend. But Lady Justice Thirlwall is writing her report now into what happened at the Countess of Chester hospital, dismissing legal arguments that if Letby turns out not to be a murderer, her inquiry’s recommendations to stop future NHS murderers might completely miss the point (that an innocent nurse was blamed for dangerously substandard NHS care).
Thirlwall’s challenge is to deduce recommendations that make NHS maternity and neonatal care safer for the most vulnerable babies, irrespective of whether Letby’s verdict is later overturned on appeal (which would require a further inquiry to determine how the legal process got it so wrong).
Lawyers acting for a group of bereaved parents have written to Thirlwall arguing that the international experts supporting Letby have made serious errors in their press-conferenced summary reports. The lawyers have been offered the full expert reports but have so far declined. Seven of the experts have said publicly they would give evidence under oath, if asked, and have stated they were “struck by the lack of expertise” of the witnesses at Letby’s original trial.