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If you were previously on the fence about Lucy Letby’s guilt, have the Thirlwall findings swayed you either way?

114 replies

KwellsBells · Yesterday 14:53

I personally have always thought she is guilty, and even more so since the report findings were published.

YABU - still on the fence/ still believe she is innocent

YANBU - she’s guilty

OP posts:
TheFlandersPigeon · Today 09:43

I have to say, the clinicians who were barely doing ward rounds and in one case misled the court have come out of this pretty well. Regardless of whether Letby is a murderer or not, really.

EasternStandard · Today 09:46

SisterTeatime · Today 09:16

But Lucy Letby’s case has brought enormous attention to the failings of the hospital, through trials and this enquiry process. She is one of only three women currently serving a whole life term AFAIK. The publicity and focus on the hospital’s failures could not possibly ever have approached this level of scrutiny if it had not been a murder case. The scapegoat argument simply does not make sense.

Yes but she is doing life imprisonment and if there is a concerted effort to pass it on to one person that has been achieved.

No one else is on trial or pinpointed.

To add I am uncertain either way on her guilt.

laurini · Today 09:46

I'm a fence sitter because I wasn't on the jury and haven't read reams and reams of evidence. However, I trust the jury more than I do some random people who don't have all the information. The Thirlwall enquiry doesn't change anything for me as it wasn't considering her guilt or otherwise.

nomoreforks · Today 09:50

I have no idea if LL is guilty but the conviction looks unsafe. The department she worked in seems to have had many issues, and other experts have challenged the expert opinions at trial. Also, her defence was completely inadeqate. She needs a new trial as the evidence looks shaky from the first one.

OnlyUsername · Today 09:56

Tickingcrocodile · Yesterday 21:30

I previously thought she was guilty. I still think she is guilty. However, the Thirlwall Report was not about whether she was guilty or not, it was about systemic practices and culture that need to change to safeguard patients, most especially tiny vulnerable babies. The report is damning. Those who were suspicious of her had a duty to do more. It astounds me that the number of babies dying was so much higher than in previous years yet nobody seems to have raised an eyebrow for some time. The management seemed more concerned with bad publicity than anything else - although I'm not sure there is any worse publicity than having several babies dying in suspicious circumstances.

As always, my sympathy lies with the families who must now be wondering of their baby could have been saved. I thought the demonstrators outside were completely insensitive and inappropriate.

I agree. If she is guilty (and I believe she is) some of the deaths could have been prevented. I believe she took advantage of poor management, unclean conditions and lack of communication between teams and individuals.

TheFlandersPigeon · Today 10:07

laurini · Today 09:46

I'm a fence sitter because I wasn't on the jury and haven't read reams and reams of evidence. However, I trust the jury more than I do some random people who don't have all the information. The Thirlwall enquiry doesn't change anything for me as it wasn't considering her guilt or otherwise.

I don’t not trust the jury, and see no reason to think they didn't do their best in good faith. Unfortunately though they didn't have all the information either. So like you I'm a fence sitter in that I don't know whether she's guilty.

MistressoftheDarkSide · Today 10:08

I have always wondered where we'd be now if she had been taken off duty after the first few "suspicious" deaths and deaths had still continued at a "suspicious" rate. Would the next nurse or HCP with high attendance rates have been in the frame?

user293948849167 · Today 10:09

Firefly1987 · Yesterday 23:46

@Oftenaddled well it's a lot more likely than not, especially when you take into account they happened two separate times and she's connected to both. THEN you add in the fact that both these babies were twins and their sibling also unexpected collapsed (on her watch) it makes sense she doesn't want to be tied to two twin deaths/collapses so chooses one to poison whilst off shift.

Then you add in the fact both babies are suffering from the effects of insulin poisoning (which is the reason the test is done in the first place) and there really is no other conclusion. Even you have to admit it looks more like poisoning than not.

I agree, immunoassays can give false positives due to error/interference but it’s extremely rare and the manufacturer would consider it a major problem especially in an insulin assay.
When you factor in the same result from two unrelated babies months apart it becomes even less likely that it was an issue with the assay. This also makes a clerical error or contamination unlikely.
The NHS categorically do not use shoddy error prone immunoassays, they will be using high quality ones from a reputable manufacturer.
They should have followed up on that result asap with repeat testing and forensic analysis for exogenous v endogenous insulin. It should always be a red flag when you get that kind of insulin/c-peptide result and it’s shocking that it wasn’t followed up.

It sounds like this is what the experts are saying too, there could be rare biological reasons causing high insulin in premature babies (and if I read something convincing enough I would accept that), an error with the tests I just cannot believe.

Ireallycantthinkofagoodone · Today 10:16

Oftenaddled · Yesterday 22:45

I'm afraid you are wrong on this point - Thirlwall did ask the questions and upload the answers

I said we can agree to differ, but still you feel you must have the last word……

Obviously it hasn’t occurred to you that people can observe behaviour in another human that gives them concerns, and makes them more watchful about that person’s actions, but isn’t concrete evidence?

When nothing is recorded, then that’s that.

You are determined to stick with your view, and that’s fine, but don’t bother to further insult me by suggesting I don’t know what I’m talking about.

TheFlandersPigeon · Today 10:27

Are you saying you have personal knowledge of concerns that there's no evidence trail for? I'm a bit confused about what's being said here.

notanothernamesurely · Today 10:31

Always thought she isn’t guilty. Still think she isn’t guilty. No idea how they managed to convict her on the evidence presented.

ProfessoressaSazzasez · Today 10:41

Mrcollinswave · Yesterday 18:03

NHS and totally agree.
And when she wrote "I did it, I killed them"
that didn't mean she actually murdered them. She may have felt to blame as she felt she wasn't good enough, especially if the finger was being pointed at her. she was probably traumatised. The NHS would throw you under a bus if they could to save themselves.
Years later, I still feel guilty and that I was to blame for the death of a patient. I felt I made mistakes. I have never murdered anyone.
I haven't read it either though so freely admit if I did I may feel differently.

The context of that was that she approached a therapist to deal with feeling terrible about the deaths & being told to write down the worst things she was thinking.

ProfessoressaSazzasez · Today 10:43

MistressoftheDarkSide · Today 10:08

I have always wondered where we'd be now if she had been taken off duty after the first few "suspicious" deaths and deaths had still continued at a "suspicious" rate. Would the next nurse or HCP with high attendance rates have been in the frame?

Possibly if that nurse had previously fallen out with one of the doctors…

LathkillDale · Today 10:43

laurini · Today 09:46

I'm a fence sitter because I wasn't on the jury and haven't read reams and reams of evidence. However, I trust the jury more than I do some random people who don't have all the information. The Thirlwall enquiry doesn't change anything for me as it wasn't considering her guilt or otherwise.

DH did jury service at the Old Bailey. One case was the sexual assault of a child by a relative. He had no faith in some of his fellow jurors and never has had in juries ever since.

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