Former Neonatal Nurse Lucy Letby Was Convicted of Murdering Seven Babies Why Did She Do It?

Publish date: 2024-05-23

Why did Lucy Letby do it? The former neonatal nurse was sentenced to life in prison for the deaths of seven babies. Here's what we find out about her crimes.

Source: YouTube/New York Post (video still)

Lucy Letby

Lucy Letby has been dubbed the worst child serial killer in Britain's history. Her crimes are horrific and are made worse by way of the documented ways wherein she acted during those instances. The former neonatal nurse would seemingly revel in the grief of the households who were mourning the loss of their babies and would incessantly seek out their social media profiles on the anniversaries of their children's deaths.

It's nearly impossible to wrap one's thoughts around these acts, and but there will have to be a reason why for them. A person doesn't merely get up one day and come to a decision to commit such atrocities, or do they? Why did Lucy Letby do it? Here's what we know.

Source: YouTube/@The Independent

Why did Lucy Letby do it? There are several theories.

We would possibly never know why Letby did what she did, however there are multiple theories as to what propelled her to such an awful position. According to The Guardian, jurors were given a host of possible motives through the prosecution all the way through the nurse’s 10-month trial at Manchester crown courtroom."

Prosecutor Nick Johnson KC put forth the idea that Letby was suffering from a God complex. It all came down to an interest in harming the babies, then being the first to let doctors know their health was declining thus giving her control over their lives. "After her final homicide in June 2016, she mentioned to doctors: 'He’s now not making it out of here alive, is he?'" It was as if Letby enjoyed being the bearer and cause of such tragic news.

A more disturbing theory paints Letby as someone who got a thrill out of the deaths of these babies. The parents of one little girl, known as Child 1, recall Letby "smiling and going on about how she was provide at [Child I’s] first tub and how much she had liked it." This occurred after their child suffered repeated attacks by Letby which resulted in her death. She also searched for families on social media, one after the other, as if she was "hunting for grief," per The Guardian.

Was all of this born from her need to catch the eye of a married doctor Letby was allegedly engaged in a secret relationship with? Texts between Letby and this doctor were displayed in court, revealing the "pair messaged steadily, swapping love center emojis, and met up several instances outside paintings — together with on an afternoon go back and forth to London — even after Letby was removed from the neonatal unit in July 2016." He was frequently the doctor Letby called when a baby's health was deteriorating.

One of the more upsetting theories is that Letby was merely acting out of boredom. Evidence provided during the trial showed that Letby "agreed that she found work less stimulating when she was assigned to babies who did now not want as a lot scientific attention."

Finally, the most damning evidence lodged against Letby came in the form of handwritten Post-it notes discovered in her purse after the arrest in July 2018. These notes support a theory that Letby felt she wasn't good at her job and was caught in some sort of cycle. "I killed them on function as a result of I’m not good sufficient to care for them," she wrote on one. "I AM EVIL I DID THIS," Letby scribbled on another. Letby claimed these were the "ramblings of someone in psychological anguish," written after she was suspended from work.

Source: YouTube/The Independent (video still)

Note written by Lucy Letby

The judge handed down a rare sentencing.

Letby is only the third woman alive to receive a life sentence in the United Kingdom, and Justice James Goss did not hold back while handing it down, via Guardian News. "This was a cruel, calculated, and cynical campaign of child homicide, involving the smallest and maximum vulnerable of children," he said. "Knowing that your actions had been causing a significant bodily suffering and would reason untold psychological suffering."

He went on to specify how Letby ensured her tracks would be covered by removing and retaining "confidential data" that were related to her crimes then "checked up on bereaved parents." This next part was difficult to hear: "There was a deep malevolence bordering on sadism for your actions."

There was also mention of Letby's own reactions during the trial. She was cold and lacking in accountability while staunchly denying she did anything wrong then attempted to blame others for her own crimes. "You don't have any remorse," stated Justice Goss.

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