Lucy Letby trial: Nurse accuses doctors of conspiracy against her

Nurse Lucy Letby has accused infirmary bosses of a "conspiracy" against her to screen up shortcomings connected the neo-natal ward wherever she is accused of murder.

The 33-year-old is charged with murdering 7 babies and attempting to execution 10 others astatine the Countess of Chester Hospital betwixt 2015 and 2016.

She told her proceedings a "gang of four" doctors apportioned "blame" connected to her "to screen up failings astatine the hospital".

Ms Letby denies each charges against her.

Prosecutor Nick Johnson KC, successful transverse examination, asked Ms Letby however she felt towards her erstwhile colleagues.

Asked astir Dr Stephen Brearey, a advisor who demanded the suspect was taken disconnected the portion successful June 2016, Ms Letby said she did not person a occupation with him astatine the clip she was moving with him.

Mr Johnson past directed the assemblage towards a note, recovered astatine Ms Letby's home, which had a profanity written connected it.

Ms Letby has antecedently told the tribunal this was written aft she was removed from the portion and was directed astatine Dr Brearey and Dr Ravi Jayaram arsenic they had been "making comments I was liable for the deaths of babies".

Mr Johnson went connected to inquire Ms Letby if she felt determination was a "conspiracy" against her, she agreed.

"Who is successful the conspiracy group?," Mr Johnson asked.

She named Ravi Jayaram, Stephen Brearey, John Gibbs and different doc who cannot beryllium named for ineligible reasons.

"So the pack of four?," Mr Johnson said.

Mr Johnson asked what the conspiracy betwixt the 4 was, and she said they had "apportioned blasted onto me".

"I judge to screen up things astatine the hospital," she added.

Ms Letby was aboriginal asked astir the decease of a babe boy, Child A.

She told the tribunal that if the origin of decease was established arsenic aerial embolus, past it would person travel from the idiosyncratic connecting the fluids, "which wasn't me".

Mr Johnson besides asked Ms Letby astir insulin discovered successful the humor of 2 babies successful this case.

Ms Letby was asked if Child E was poisoned with insulin.

"Yes I hold that helium had insulin," she said.

Mr Johnson asked: "Do you judge that idiosyncratic gave it to him unlawfully?"

Ms Letby said she did not cognize "where the insulin came from" and denied causing the babe immoderate harm.

She besides agreed that Child L was poisoned with insulin but added: "I don't cognize however the insulin got there."

"I don't judge that immoderate subordinate of unit connected the portion would marque a mistake successful giving insulin," she said.

Earlier the tribunal heard that a full of 257 nursing displacement handover sheets, containing immoderate of the names of her alleged victims, were recovered during constabulary searches of her location pursuing her apprehension successful July 2018.

She agreed with Mr Johnson that taking specified sheets retired of the infirmary was not "normal practice" and they should beryllium discarded successful confidential waste.

"What were you reasoning arsenic this heap of handover sheets accumulated astir to the size of a phonebook," Mr Johnson asked.

The suspect said she did not cognize she "had that many".

Mr Johnson enactment it to her that she was keeping the notes for her "little collection".

Ms Letby responded: "No."

She added: "I support a batch of paper, I person a trouble throwing thing anyway."

The erstwhile caregiver said she had kept galore items implicit the years, including cards, letters, notes and did not support the handover sheets "because of the content".

Mr Johnson responded: "Are you truly asking the assemblage to judge that pieces of insubstantial with delicate accusation astir dormant children connected them were insignificant?"

The suspect responded: "Yes."

Mr Johnson past asked Ms Letby astir a humor state grounds illustration relating to 1 of the babies successful this case, which was besides recovered astatine her home.

Mr Johnson accuses her of "fishing it retired of the confidential discarded bin".

She responded: "I ne'er fished thing retired of the confidential discarded bin."

He said: "It was for your small collection, wasn't it?"

Mr Johnson went connected to talk astir a keepsake container successful her erstwhile location successful Chester, and asked her if she knew what was successful it erstwhile constabulary raided her home.

Ms Letby said: "I can't recall."

Mr Johnson explained to the assemblage that a "pristine" handover sheet, dated 1 June 2010, was recovered successful the box.

He said this was Ms Letby's archetypal time arsenic a pupil caregiver connected the Countess of Chester neonatal unit.

Mr Johnson said the suspect was "not prepared to archer the information astir these handover sheets" but she responded saying "the information is what I person told you".

Ms Letby was past asked astir a sympathy paper she sent to the grieving parents of a babe girl, Child I, who she allegedly murdered.

Inside, the suspect wrote: "There are nary words to marque this clip immoderate easier. It was a existent privilege to attraction for [Child I] and get to cognize you arsenic a household - a household who ever enactment [Child I] archetypal and did everything imaginable for her.

"She volition ever beryllium portion of your lives and we volition ne'er hide her.

"Thinking of you contiguous and always. Lots of emotion Lucy x."

An representation of the paper and its wrong connection was recovered by constabulary from Ms Letby's telephone and GPS information confirmed that the representation was taken connected the neonatal unit, the proceedings heard.

Mr Johnson asked: "Why did you constitute the paper astatine home, and past bring it to enactment and instrumentality a photograph of it successful the spot wherever the babe had died successful dreadful circumstances?"

Ms Letby responded: "The spot is insignificant, I instrumentality photos of the bulk of cards that I send. This was taken to springiness to the unit who were going to the funeral."

Mr Johnson asked her if she took the representation to "give you a spot of a thrill, taking a representation successful the spot wherever the kid died?".

"Absolutely not," Ms Letby said.