Expert claims Lucy Letby evidence was ‘flawed’ and asks 'about 6 deaths when nurse not on'
A staff rota used in evidence may have been 'over-interpreted', a leading statistics expert claims.
Another expert has questioned evidence used during the trial of serial baby killer Lucy Letby.
Letby was convicted in August 2023 of the murders of seven babies and the attempted murders of six others after one of the longest trials in British history.
A key part of the former neonatal nurse's case was a staffing rota which showed she had been on duty during every collapse or death at the Countess of Chester Hospital between June 2015 and June 2016.
Peter Green, a professor of statistics and former president of the Royal Statistical Society, said there are "a number of issues" with the rota.
He told the BBC the chart appears to be "very convincing" but one issue is it only describes 25 of the "bad events" that happened during the above period.
Professor Green said: "It doesn't include any of the events that happened when Lucy was not on duty."
In that period there were reportedly at least six other deaths and a number of collapses, the BBC reports.
The statistics expert cautioned that there is a danger that while the rota evidence can be "very compelling" to a non-professional, it could still be "over-interpreted".
Letyb's trial at Manchester Crown Court ran for 10 months from October 2022 to August 2023, with a retrial ordered after a jury was unable to reach a verdict on one count of attempted murder of a baby girl.
The 34-year-old was found guilty last month of an attack on a newborn infant during a night shift in the Countess of Chester's neonatal unit in February 2016.
Don't miss...
Labour plans to free prisoners after serving a fifth of sentence 'will go wrong' [REPORT]
Tories warn Labour set to raise taxes after Reeves refuses to rule out hikes [LATEST]
Doom-mongering Keir Starmer looking to wallop drivers with £2bn tax grab [REVEALED]
She was sentenced to 15 whole-life orders - making her only the fourth woman in British history to be told she would never be released from prison.
Professor Green's comments come after neonatologist Dr Michael Hall told The Times that he disagreed with claims concerning the health of some of the babies before their deaths.
Among a series of claims made to the same publication, he said the prosecution's expert witnesses had "overstated" the extent to which some of the babies had been deemed "completely stable" before their collapse.
Experts have also argued that not enough attention was given to staffing levels on the ward and how premature the babies were.
Thousands of pages of evidence were presented at Letby's trial along with notes from Letby's house which appeared to include confessions.
Letby also searched for the families of the babies who died, with the prosecution arguing this showed she had a morbid interest in the impact of her crimes.
