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Before Goss handed down whole-of-life sentences for each of Letby’s crimes − meaning she will never be released − victim impact statements from the parents who suffered heartbreaking loss were read to the court. Even after reading them all I still cannot fully grasp what they must be going through.
A court artist’s drawing of the parent of one of Lucy Letby’s victims reading a victim impact statement at Manchester crown court.Credit: Elizabeth Cook
If you cannot trust a nurse on a maternity ward to care for a newborn who can you ever trust again?
During my 20-odd years in journalism I’ve met many people who have fought long and hard for the abolition of the death penalty. The hanging of Australian heroin trafficker Nguyen Tuong Van in 2005 remains clear in my memory. So, too, the 2015 execution by firing squad of eight people convicted of drug offences in Indonesia, among them Australians Andrew Chan and Myuran Sukumaran.
But you could not hold it against any of the parents who told you they thought Letby deserved to be killed for her crimes. To be honest, I couldn’t have told them they were wrong to think so.
Police are now reviewing the care of 4000 babies Letby may have come into contact with and suspect she could be linked to the death of at least 30 more children.
No confession, no remorse. Letby did not even front the courtroom for her sentencing. The judge made an order for the victim impact statements to be delivered to her cell, but there is no guarantee she will ever read them.
So, remind me again, why should such an evil monster be allowed to live out the rest of her life, even in prison?
Capital punishment is often justified with the argument that by executing convicted murderers we will deter would-be murderers. It is painfully clear, however, that nothing would have stopped Letby.
Our medical and other institutions, even at their best, are not perfect. We need to keep constant watch.
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If newspaper and TV straws polls are to be believed here in the UK this week, a referendum on the death penalty would be a close run thing. But we should remember it is too often a tool of politics. The death penalty remains a popular way for leaders to show their citizenry that they are strong on law and order.
Perhaps we can be thankful Letby has to live with her crimes for decades to come and doesn’t get an easy way out.
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