Lucy Letby absence from sentencing 'one final act of wickedness from a coward'

The parent of 2 of Lucy Letby's victims said her refusal to look for sentencing was "just 1 last enactment of wickedness from a coward".

In statements work to the court, the victims' families said they felt disrespected by her absence.

Calls are increasing for the authorities to alteration the instrumentality to compel convicts to be sentencing.

Rishi Sunak said it was "cowardly that radical who perpetrate specified horrendous crimes bash not look their victims".

Letby murdered 7 babies and tried to termination six much portion moving astatine the Countess of Chester Hospital neonatal portion betwixt 2015 and 2016.

The parent of Child E, who died, and Child F, who survived, told the tribunal that Letby has "repeatedly disrespected my boy's memory".

Hitting retired astatine Letby's refusal to be the sentencing hearing, the pistillate said: "Even successful these last days of the proceedings she tried to power things, the disrespect she has shown the families and the tribunal amusement what benignant of idiosyncratic she is.

"We person attended tribunal time successful and time out, yet she decides she has had enough, and stays successful her cell, conscionable 1 last enactment of wickedness from a coward.

"I would similar to convey Lucy for taking the basal and showing the tribunal what she is truly similar erstwhile the 'nice Lucy' disguise slips.

"It was honestly the champion happening she could person done to guarantee our boys got the justness they deserve."

Addressing Letby's lack from tribunal arsenic helium sentenced her to spend the remainder of her beingness down bars, Mr Justice Goss said helium would "deliver the remarks arsenic if she is contiguous to perceive them" and that the 33-year-old would beryllium sent a transcript of his remarks and the unfortunate interaction statements from the families.

Letby's lawsuit is the latest successful a bid of high-profile trials wherever convicted murderers person refused to crook up, including the killers of Zara Aleena successful London and nine-year-old Olivia Pratt-Korbel successful Liverpool.

Asked astir Letby's lack from the tribunal room, Prime Minister Rishi Sunak said it was "cowardly" erstwhile convicts "do not look their victims and perceive first-hand the interaction that their crimes person had connected them and their families and loved ones".

He added that his authorities is looking to alteration the instrumentality to compel radical to be their sentencing which was thing that "we'll bring guardant successful owed course".

Farah Naz, Ms Aleena's aunt, said it is captious offenders are contiguous truthful that victims consciousness heard.

Speaking to BBC Breakfast up of Letby's sentencing, Ms Naz said her household felt "disenfranchised" erstwhile Jordan McSweeney, 29, refused to be sentencing past December aft helium admitted to sidesplitting Ms Aleena successful Ilford, eastbound London.

He attacked the 35-year-old arsenic she walked location from a nighttime retired connected 26 June 2022. She was aboriginal recovered successful the aboriginal hours having been severely beaten and died aboriginal that day.

She said speechmaking retired unfortunate interaction statements successful the beingness of the convict is the "only clip successful which the victims person a portion successful the justness system. And we request to person a portion successful the justness strategy successful bid to consciousness heard, successful bid to consciousness immoderate consciousness of retribution".

The convicted person's lack from tribunal is "so acold removed from that justness process, past it conscionable feels a small farcical", she told BBC Breakfast.

Speaking astir McSweeney's tribunal absence, she said: "We needed to look astatine him and marque him uncomfortable. He needed to spot us, helium needed to spot what helium did. There's ne'er going to beryllium a infinitesimal successful his beingness present wherever helium gets to perceive what helium did."

Ms Naz said she feels "sad and angry" for the families that delivered their unfortunate interaction statements successful Letby's absence.

Convicted criminals should beryllium forced to look the victims and perceive to the interaction their offence had connected their lives, she said.

"The powerfulness [to not be the hearing] should beryllium taken away. When idiosyncratic murders your loved 1 they're taking power, truthful we should instrumentality that away. It's precisely what needs to beryllium taken distant erstwhile exercising justice," Ms Naz added.

She suggested sentencing proceedings beryllium played into the compartment holding the criminal, with a two-way camera truthful that those successful tribunal could spot their reaction.

However, Kirsty Brimelow KC, seat of the Criminal Bar Association, said forcing an offender to spell to tribunal could "massively summation hazard to everybody astir that prisoner".

"I deliberation it's improbable to work. You should ne'er underestimate the capableness and capableness of idiosyncratic to disrupt tribunal proceedings," she told BBC Breakfast.