LUCY LETBY: WHY SHE WON’T FACE FURTHER CHARGES OVER SIX BABIES

LONDON — The Crown Prosecution Service has confirmed that Lucy Letby will not face further criminal charges over six additional babies, after an independent review upheld an earlier decision not to prosecute.

The decision was announced on Aug. 5, 2026, following requests from the families of six infants for the cases to be reconsidered under England and Wales’ Victims’ Right to Review scheme.

SIX ALLEGED ATTEMPTED MURDERS REVIEWED

The independent prosecutor reviewed six alleged attempted-murder offences involving six babies.

According to the CPS, the review involved a re-examination of substantial evidence and material and was conducted by a prosecutor who had not been involved in the original decision.

After completing that review, the CPS concluded that the original decision should stand.

No additional charges will therefore be brought against Letby in those six cases.

WHY DID THE CPS REJECT THE CASES?

The development follows a broader decision announced by prosecutors in January 2026, when the CPS said it would not bring further charges relating to allegations involving nine children.

Prosecutors said the available evidence did not meet the required evidential test for criminal prosecution.

The August review did not reverse that conclusion.

That distinction is important: the CPS decision is not a finding that the underlying events did not occur, nor is it a new verdict on Letby’s guilt or innocence. It means prosecutors do not believe the evidence currently satisfies the threshold necessary to bring those additional criminal charges.

HER EXISTING CONVICTIONS ARE NOT CHANGED

The new decision does not overturn or reduce Letby’s existing convictions.

Letby remains imprisoned after being convicted of murdering seven babies and attempting to murder seven others at the Countess of Chester Hospital. She received whole-life sentences and remains behind bars.

The six cases reviewed in August are additional allegations and are separate from the offences for which she has already been convicted.

FAMILIES ASKED FOR THE DECISION TO BE REVIEWED

The families of the six babies had used the Victims’ Right to Review procedure to challenge the CPS’s original decision.

That process allows victims or their families to request an independent review when prosecutors decide not to start a prosecution or discontinue one.

The CPS said it has written to the families involved and will offer meetings to answer their questions about the outcome.

DOES THIS END THE LUCY LETBY STORY?

No.

The decision closes another possible route to prosecution, but it does not resolve the separate legal controversy surrounding Letby’s existing convictions.

Her defense has continued to challenge aspects of the evidence used at trial, while the Criminal Cases Review Commission is considering whether her convictions should be referred back to the Court of Appeal.

At the same time, the wider investigation into events at the Countess of Chester Hospital has continued, including scrutiny of hospital management and the circumstances surrounding the deaths and collapses of babies.

WHAT THE AUGUST DECISION REALLY MEANS

The headline may sound like a major new prosecution has been stopped, but legally the development is more specific:

Six additional attempted-murder allegations were independently reviewed — and prosecutors decided there was still insufficient evidence to bring charges.

Letby’s existing convictions remain in force.

So while the August decision closes another potential chapter of criminal prosecution, it does not settle the continuing debate over her original convictions or the evidence behind them.

Six more cases have now been closed from the prosecution route. But the wider Lucy Letby controversy — including the continuing challenges to her convictions — remains very much alive.