Jury in trial of murder accused nurse Lucy Letby begins deliberations

Letby, 33, is accused of murdering seven babies and trying to murder 10 others during the course of her work on the neonatal unit at the Countess of Chester Hospital.

The defendant, from Hereford, is said to have deliberately harmed the infants in various ways, including by injecting air intravenously and administering air and/or milk into the stomach via nasogastric tubes.

She also allegedly added insulin as a poison to intravenous feeds, interfered with breathing tubes and inflicted trauma in some cases.

Letby denied all the allegations as she gave evidence in the witness box at Manchester Crown Court for 14 days during the trial, which began last October.

She denies doing anything harmful to any child and that the sudden collapses and deaths could have been due to natural causes, or for some unascertained reason, or from failure by others to provide appropriate care.

The defence said she was a “hard-working, dedicated and caring” nurse who loved her job.

Trial judge Mr Justice Goss has told the jury of eight women and four men to approach their deliberations in a “fair, calm, objective and analytical way”.

He told them to cast aside emotion or any feelings of sympathy or antipathy.

Mr Justice Goss added: “You are under no pressure with time.”

Letby denies seven counts of murder and 15 counts of attempted murder between June 2015 and June 2016.

Jurors were sent home before 4.15pm on Monday and will return to resume deliberations at 10.30am on Tuesday.