Lucy Letby trial: Nurse accused of murdering babies takes the stand

A caregiver accused of murdering 7 babies and attempting to termination 10 others astatine a hospital's neonatal portion has started giving grounds successful her defence.

Lucy Letby is lasting proceedings astatine Manchester Crown Court, facing 22 charges relating to fatal and near-fatal incidents astatine the Countess of Chester Hospital successful 2015 and 2016.

The 33-year-old, primitively from Hereford, denies each of the charges.

By Judith Moritz, North of England correspondent, BBC News

I'm 1 of lone 5 reporters present successful tribunal fig 7 astatine Manchester Crown Court - due to the fact that of the level of interest, astir of those covering the proceedings are watching connected a video nexus from an annexe successful a antithetic building.

For the past six months Lucy Letby has been sitting wrong the dock, flanked by situation officers, watching proceedings from down a solid screen.

Now she's made the abbreviated travel crossed the courtroom to the witnesser box, and it's my archetypal accidental to spot her adjacent up, from my spot nearby.

She is sitting straight other the assemblage who'll determine her fate.

After fractional a year's worthy of prosecution evidence, this is the archetypal accidental they've had to perceive from her directly.