Former neonatal nurse Lucy Letby has been found guilty of the attempted murder of a tiny premature baby in her care.
Letby was previously convicted of the murder of seven babies and the attempted murder of six more (one of them on two occasions).
The baby girl victim in this trial, known only as Child K, weighed in at only one-and-a-half pounds when she was born at the Countess of Chester Hospital on 17th February 2016.
She was delivered at only 25 weeks' gestation.
The jury of six men and six women has concluded that 34-year-old Letby tried to kill Child K only two hours later.
During the trial the jury heard how Child K, despite her small size and prematurity, was stable and showing signs of improvement. She had been placed on a ventilator in an incubator in nursery 1, which is where the most vulnerable babies were looked after.
Nurse Joanne Williams, a very experienced Band 6 nurse, was responsible for the care of Child K on the night in question. Letby was working elsewhere on the unit.
The jury heard that Ms Williams took a series of observations from Child K at around 3.30 am. She then decided to go and visit the baby's parents to give them an update on her progress.
Satisfied that Child K was stable, Ms Williams asked Letby to mind her the short time she was away speaking to her parents.
Hospital records show that Ms Williams swiped out of the neonatal unit for the short walk to the neighbouring labour ward at 3.47 am.
Dr Ravi Jayaram, consultant pediatrician, was the senior clinician on duty that evening. By chance he was present in the neonatal unit at the time Ms Williams decided to visit Child K's parents.
On passing Ms Williams told Dr Jayaram where she was going and that "Lucy is babysitting" during her short absence.
By this time there were strong suspicions among senior clinicians that Letby was the "common factor" involved in the deaths of five babies on the unit. Dr Jayaram told the court that he felt uneasy at hearing Letby was alone with Child K in nursery 1.
Although he didn't use the words, it was almost as if Dr Jayaram had a sixth-sense that something wasn't quite right. He decided to reassure himself by popping into nursery 1 to see that everything was in order.
On entering the nursery Dr Jayaram's saw Letby stood beside the incubator. His eyes were drawn to the monitors and he could see that Child K's oxygen levels had fallen dangerously low, but instead of intervening Letby was stood passively watching the baby's condition deteriorate.
Dr Jayaram recounted events: "Lucy Letby was stood next to the incubator. She wasn't looking at me. She didn't have her hands in the incubator. She was definitely facing in my direction.
"As I approached, I said 'what's happened?' and Lucy looked up and said 'it looks like she is desaturating'."
Dr Jayaram also told jurors that alarms associated with the monitoring equipment should have sounded when Child K's oxygen levels fell below 90 percent, but on this occasion had not done so.
A short time later Ms Williams, totally unaware of events, arrived back on the unit. Appearing to contradict Dr Jayaram, she said that her attention was immediately drawn to the sound of an alarm in nursery 1.
Child K's sudden collapse was totally unexpected. In her evidence Ms Williams confirmed that she would not have left the baby's side unless she was satisfied that everything was in order.
Letby, who, in the first trial, tried to throw her colleagues under the proverbial bus, supported Ms Williams in this claim, saying that she would not have left the nursery unless she was satisfied Child K was stable.
Child K was transferred to Arrowe Park Hospital in the hours after her attempted murder. She sadly died three days later, but her death has not been directly attributed to Letby's actions.
Letby denied any involvement in Child K's collapse, highlighting that records show she was feeding another baby on the unit at around the same time. She disagreed with Dr Jayaram's account that she was stood passively watching as the baby's oxygen levels plummeted.
The jury has decided that the account given by Dr Jayaram paints a more accurate picture of events that night.
They have concluded that the Crown's version, that Letby deliberately tampered with Child K's breathing tube, has led to the rapid, life-threatening deterioration in her condition. They have also concluded that Letby intended her actions to kill Child K.
Letby will be sentenced by trial judge Mr Justice Goss on Friday, 5th July 2024.
In a statement, the family of Child K said: "To lose a baby is a heartbreaking experience that no parent should ever go through, but to lose a baby and then learn of the harm that was inflicted in these circumstances is unimaginable.
"Over the past seven to eight years we have to had to go through a long, torturous and emotional journey twice from losing our precious newborn and grieving her loss to being told years later that her death or collapse might be suspicious. Nothing prepares you for that news.
"Today, justice has been served and a nurse who should have been caring for our daughter has been found guilty of harming her, but this justice will not take away the extreme hurt, anger and distress that we have all had to experience."
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