Lucy Letby: serial child killer denied chance to appeal murder and attempted murder convictions

Last month, the 34-year-old former nurse’s lawyers asked senior judges at the Court of Appeals to approve a bid to bring forward an appeal to her conviction after she was found guilty of the murder of seven babies and the attempted murder of six others. At a hearing on Friday morning (May 24), Dame Victoria Sharp, sitting with Lord Justice Holroyde, confirmed that the bid had been refused.

Marking the end of Letby’s appeal process, Dame Victoria said: “Having heard her application, we have decided to refuse leave to appeal on all grounds and refuse all associated applications. A full judgment will be handed down in due course.”

The full reasoning behind the judges’ decision was not made public, while the full details of Letby’s appeal bid was also not made available to the public. Dame Victoria previously said that it could be reported that her appeal was being argued on four points related to the judge at her trial refusing legal applications.

She was found guilty following a trial at Manchester Crown Court in August 2023. Letby was found to have carried out the murder and attempted murder of babies at the Countess of Chester Hospital between 2015 and 2016.

The jury at her trial was unable to reach a verdict on six counts of attempted murder in relation to five children. She will face a retrial over in June on a single count of attempted murder in relation to one child, identified only as Child K.