Seized maternity notes not given to Lucy Letby defence

Maternity notes for the babies Lucy Letby has been convicted of murdering were not made available to her defence ahead of her trial, the BBC has learned.

The neonatal nurse was convicted of murdering and attempting to murder 14 babies at the Countess of Chester Hospital in 2015 and 2016.

File on 4 Investigates has discovered that maternity notes for the babies in the case – which include details of the mother’s pregnancy, labour and birth – were seized by Cheshire Police. But they were not reviewed by the prosecution’s chief medical expert or disclosed to Letby’s defence.

The Crown Prosecution Service said Letby was convicted following two jury trials and that the Court of Appeal dismissed her argument that prosecution evidence was flawed.

Letby, originally of Hereford, is currently serving 15 whole life terms.

Since her trial, and subsequent retrial on one case, there have been concerns raised about some of the evidence presented to the jury.

One concern is that the maternity history of the babies in the case was not adequately considered.

Experts told the BBC that it is critical to fully assess the pregnancy, labour and delivery of a baby when determining why they collapsed and died.

Dr Dewi Evans, the chief medical witness for the prosecution, said the full maternity notes were not relevant to the case.

“I never saw any obstetric notes and I have no idea what happened to them,” he said.

“I don’t think that maternity care was a particular issue in the Letby case. I think most of the babies I dealt with were born in acceptable condition.”

Evans said he did see brief maternity summaries – “usually a couple of paragraphs” – attached to each baby’s neonatal notes.