Lucy Letby case

Major events in the case, shown in chronological order.

1. 2012

   The investigation develops

   Neonatologists examined approximately 4,000 admissions at that hospital, where Letby had worked from 2012, and at Liverpool Women's Hospital, where she had completed two placements in 2012 and 2015, and were asked to refer any "unexpected and unexplained" deteriorations to police.

   Source: Wikipedia ↗
2. 2015

   A central event is documented

   Concerns about an increase in infant collapses and deaths in the neonatal unit at the Countess of Chester Hospital first arose in June 2015, when four collapses occurred, three of them fatal.

   Source: Wikipedia ↗
3. 2015

   National MBRRACE‑UK data later showed that the unit's neonatal

   National MBRRACE‑UK data later showed that the unit's neonatal death rate between June 2015 and June 2016 was at least 10 per cent higher than expected, with deaths in 2015 double those of the previous year.

   Source: Wikipedia ↗
4. 2015

   The court returns a verdict

   Lucy Letby (born 4 January 1990) is a British former NHS neonatal nurse convicted of murdering seven babies and attempting to murder seven others at the Countess of Chester Hospital in Chester between June 2015 and June 2016.

   Source: Wikipedia ↗
5. 2016

   A central event is documented

   In May 2016, the trust's executive team concluded that the rise in deaths was coincidental.

   Source: Wikipedia ↗
6. 2017

   A central event is documented

   The trust publicly announced police involvement in May 2017, stating that it sought assurances to rule out unnatural causes of death.

   Source: Wikipedia ↗
7. 2022

   A central event is documented

   During Letby's 2022–2023 trial, the prosecution's expert witness, Dewi Evans, relied on a 1989 article by Canadian neonatologist Shoo Lee to support a diagnosis of air embolism as the mechanism of death in several cases.

   Source: Wikipedia ↗