In April 2024, a pivotal exchange took place between Cheshire Police and Dr. Ravi Jayaram, a key prosecution witness in the trials of nurse Lucy Letby, who is serving a life sentence for seven murders and seven attempted killings at the Countess of Chester Hospital’s neonatal unit. The interaction, revealed through a recently obtained transcript, raises questions about the handling and interpretation of crucial evidence ahead of Letby’s second trial.
Dr. Jayaram, once a prominent medical figure, testified in both of Letby’s trials concerning an incident involving a seriously ill infant, known as Baby K. While he did not witness Letby causing harm, he asserted that she neglected to assist the child when intervention was necessary. This testimony played a significant role in the prosecution’s narrative, with media coverage at the time describing Dr. Jayaram as having caught Letby “virtually red-handed.” However, some aspects of his evidence and its consistency have since come under scrutiny.
An earlier email from Dr. Jayaram dated 2017 stated that Letby herself had alerted him to Baby K’s distress, a detail that appears to contradict his later testimony that cast suspicion on the nurse. This inconsistency has fueled debate over the accuracy of the evidence used to convict Letby.
The transcript details a conversation between Dr. Jayaram and officers Darren Riley, a civilian investigator, and Detective Constable Kate Millins. They discussed swipe card data records showing nurse Jo Williams’s movements in and out of the neonatal unit. The data initially suggested Williams left the ward at 3:47 a.m., a critical detail supporting Dr. Jayaram’s claim that Letby was alone at that time. However, police acknowledged that the swipe data’s timing was reversed—it indicated Williams was entering rather than leaving.
During the half-hour discussion, the officers told Dr. Jayaram, “We can’t change the data, but we can change the interpretation of it,” reflecting an attempt to reconcile the conflicting facts within the constraints of the original records. The conversation also touched on other elements of Dr. Jayaram’s testimony that were considered confusing or inconsistent.
When contacted for comment, Cheshire Police declined to respond. Dr. Jayaram has not replied to requests for his perspective on the matter.
The case has drawn political attention. Former Conservative Cabinet minister Sir David Davis described the revelations as “deeply troubling,” expressing concern over what he characterized as police and witness efforts to “reshape the interpretation of the evidence” to Letby’s detriment ahead of her retrial. Sir David called for an independent police force to review the conduct of Cheshire Police in their investigation.
The case against Lucy Letby remains one of the most high-profile and controversial in recent British legal history, with ongoing debates about the sufficiency and handling of evidence central to the convictions.