A new Channel 4 documentary on convicted baby killer Lucy Letby has been criticised for allowing certain factual claims to go unchallenged, according to hosts of the Daily Mail's The Trial podcast.
The two-part series, Lucy Letby: Murder or Mistake, directed by Emmy-winning filmmaker Daniel Bogado, contrasts the arguments of Letby's new defence barrister Mark McDonald, who believes no crime was committed, with prosecution expert Dr Dewi Evans, who remains convinced of her guilt.
In an interview on The Trial podcast, Bogado declined to state his own view on Letby's guilt, saying: 'If you watch the documentary, the scenes as they unfold, and you think she's innocent – there's nothing that doesn't make sense. But if you think she's guilty, the same applies.'
However, podcast hosts Caroline Cheetham and Liz Hull raised concerns about claims in the film that they said were misleading. Cheetham objected to a clip featuring Jeremy Vine stating that the rota evidence used against Letby had been 'proved wrong', insisting the evidence was accurate and showed Letby was on duty for all the babies at the centre of the case.
Hull argued that claims made by Private Eye's Dr Phil Hammond and barrister McDonald needed more pushback, including assertions that the hospital was 'falling apart' and that Letby was among the loudest voices raising concerns. She noted that the Royal College had said the Countess of Chester Hospital had better staffing ratios than similar hospitals.
The documentary also features an anonymous family whose baby was cared for by Letby but whose case was not part of the trial. The mother admitted she remains uncertain about Letby's guilt, veering 'from one to the other'.
