The Lucy Letby case shows systemic failure and a national malaise

IT IS HARD to know which is more shocking. Is it the murder of seven babies and attempted killing of seven others at the Countess of Chester hospital in north-west England, for which Lucy Letby, who was a nurse there, is in prison for life? Or is it the possibility that Ms Letby is the victim of a miscarriage of justice? It looks increasingly likely that her convictions, in 2023 and 2024, were questionable. An international panel of experts has raised serious doubts about the medical evidence—and about whether the babies’ deaths were even murder. The Criminal Cases Review Commission (CCRC), an independent body that probes potential wrongful convictions, may refer the case back to the Court of Appeal. Whether or not Ms Letby is guilty, her saga exposes deep failures, as well as an overarching malaise afflicting Britain.