Former British nurse Lucy Letby, convicted last year of murdering seven babies and attempting to kill six others, faced trial again on Wednesday for the attempted murder of another newborn in her care.
Letby, 34, was found guilty last August of committing the crimes between June 2015 and June 2016 while working as a nurse in the neonatal unit of the Countess of Chester Hospital in Chester, northern England.
Now, Letby is on trial at Manchester Crown Court, charged with one count of attempted murder of another baby girl, referred to as Child K, in February 2016.
She denies the accusation.
Prosecutor Nick Johnson emphasized that the jury should not convict Letby simply because she had been found guilty in previous cases, but highlighted the significance of her past convictions as evidence of her intent at the time of the alleged offense.
“In a nutshell, we are saying that her status as a multiple murderer and attempted murderer is an important piece of evidence you can, if you wish, take into account when you are considering if we have proved … that she was attempting to murder (Child K),” Johnson said.
Judge James Goss addressed the jury on Tuesday, instructing them to base their decision solely on the evidence presented during the trial and nothing else. The trial is expected to last about four weeks.