This morning, Lucy arrived at Manchester Crown Court wearing a blue t-shirt and black jacket at about 5:30 a.m. EST. Then, the prosecution– led by Nick Johnson KC– resumed its opening.
On day one, Johnson detailed the circumstances surrounding Child A’s death and Child B’s incidence of harm. Today, he began by describing Child C– who the prosecution claim was murdered by Lucy on June 14, 2015.
Like many other children involved in the case, Child C was born prematurely. The baby boy was born weighing less than two pounds, although he was expected to thrive and was deemed “in good condition” by his medical team.
Then, on the evening of June 13, Child C was assigned to a different nurse at Countess of Chester Hospital. At the same time, Lucy was assigned to care for another child– who is not included in the indictment and is known only by the initials JE.
According to Johnson, the nurses’ shift leader told Lucy that she needed to watch JE closely since the child was considered to be in a deteriorating condition.
“This was a message that [the shift leader] had to reinforce later in the shift when it became clear that Letby was ignoring her,” Johnson added.
Then, when Child C’s designated nurse left to visit the nursing station, the baby boy’s alarm began to sound. And when Child C’s nurse returned to the room, she found Lucy standing next to the baby boy’s cot.
By that point, Child C was experiencing rapidly dropping oxygen levels and heart rate. And Johnson claims that Lucy had “no business” for being in the boy’s room.
“There again at the bedside, or the incubator side, was Lucy Letby,” Johnson said.
Other staff members were able to assist Child C using a device to help him breathe, known as a “neopuff.” However, after Child C recovered shortly afterward, the boy still suffered a prolonged period of low oxygen saturation and heart rate.
During this damage control period, the shift leader assigned Lucy to another child’s room. And according to Johnson, texts sent by Lucy that day revealed her discontent with the reassignment.