Lucy Letby has 'new hope' as barrister prepares to submit appeal file
A week later he met Letby, who is serving 15 whole-life orders after murdering seven infants and attempting to murder seven others, with two attempts on one of her victims, between June 2015 and June 2016. Mr McDonald said he is submitting 'new evidence' to the Criminal Cases Review Commission (CCRC), which investigates potential miscarriages of justice, and has also spent the past year working to boost public criticism of her convictions.
He gathered a panel of 14 neonatal and paediatric experts, shared the babies' medical notes with them, and held a press conference casting doubt on the prosecution's case. Lawyers for the families of Letby's victims previously rubbished the panel's findings as 'full of analytical holes' and 'a rehash' of the defence case heard at trial.
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In July, Cheshire Police passed evidence of further allegations related to baby deaths and collapses at the hospitals where Letby, 35, worked. Mr McDonald, who is known for making high-profile appeals, told the Sunday Times: 'Remember, 12 months ago, she'd lost every argument. She had been saying that she was not guilty right from the beginning and nobody believed her.
'She went through a whole trial and she was convicted. She went to the Court of Appeal and she was convicted. She had a retrial; she was convicted. She went to the Court of Appeal again; she was convicted. And that was it.
'There, you have a broken person. But today, after everything that has happened in the last 12 months, she's got new hope.'
McDonald, 59, estimated he has spent thousands of hours on Letby's case and spoke to the newspaper while on holiday with his two children, aged three and four. He said he speaks to the killer at least once every two weeks and visits her each month at Bronzefield prison, in Ashford, Surrey.
'I'm on holiday in Devon and I'm working on (the case). I had a telephone conference with Lucy yesterday. I won't stop. I will not stop until she is out,' he said. It is important to 'win the public narrative' of a potential miscarriage of justice case before taking on the legal narrative, because 'the Court of Appeal will know that the country is going to be looking at them', he added.
The barrister claimed he has never submitted this much evidence to the CCRC and 'if this is not referred back to the Court of Appeal then one has to question the purpose of the CCRC'.
The possible potential offences against Letby are now being considered by lawyers at the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS).The news emerged hours after police confirmed three people who were part of the senior leadership team at the hospital where Letby worked have been arrested on suspicion of gross negligence manslaughter.
Cheshire Constabulary said the suspects, who occupied senior positions at the Countess of Chester Hospital (CoCH) between 2015 and 2016, were arrested and later bailed pending further inquiries. Police said corporate manslaughter and gross negligence manslaughter probes are continuing.
Mr McDonald previously said the police's announcement about potential new charges against Letby came at a 'very sensitive time' and that a proper and full public inquiry into failings by the hospital is needed. In the latest interview, Mr McDonald told the Sunday Times: 'I'm not naive; I'm a criminal defence barrister – I've represented many people over the years who are guilty.
'But I'm also able to see very clearly where this has gone wrong. There's no forensic evidence. There's no CCTV. There's no eyewitness evidence.
'There's just a theory by a man called Dewi Evans,' he said, referring to the person who was the lead prosecution medical expert in her trial.
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Qantas hit with huge fine in court, rush hour chaos after crash on major bridge, leaders 'very afraid' of Trump meeting
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The Transport Workers Union had sought the maximum penalty of $121 million, while Qantas urged Justice Michael Lee to impose a "mid-range" penalty between $40 million and $80 million. The Federal Court judge cited the "sheer scale of the contraventions, being the largest of their type" as a reason to impose a penalty that would deter other businesses from similar conduct. He ordered Qantas to pay $90 million in penalties, $50 million of which is to be paid directly to the union that brought the proceedings and highlighted the illegal conduct. "To deprive someone of work illegally is to deprive someone of an aspect of their human dignity, and this is not assuaged simply by expressions of regret," Justice Lee said. He was scathing about the embattled airline's conduct after the outsourcing, pointing to efforts to place a "less than candid" picture of the outsourcing decision before the court. In news just in, Qantas has copped a $90 million fine for illegally sacking 1,800 workers during the Covid pandemic. The Transport Workers Union had sought the maximum penalty of $121 million, while Qantas urged Justice Michael Lee to impose a "mid-range" penalty between $40 million and $80 million. The Federal Court judge cited the "sheer scale of the contraventions, being the largest of their type" as a reason to impose a penalty that would deter other businesses from similar conduct. He ordered Qantas to pay $90 million in penalties, $50 million of which is to be paid directly to the union that brought the proceedings and highlighted the illegal conduct. "To deprive someone of work illegally is to deprive someone of an aspect of their human dignity, and this is not assuaged simply by expressions of regret," Justice Lee said. He was scathing about the embattled airline's conduct after the outsourcing, pointing to efforts to place a "less than candid" picture of the outsourcing decision before the court. Treasurer admits 'a lot of work to do' for productivity Treasurer Jim Chalmers is warning there is no quick fix for productivity as the government is set to commence its much-hyped round table. "Productivity has been elusive over the last couple of decade, but it will be essential to the couple of decades ahead. That's what motivates and drives us in this economic reform round table," he told reporters on Monday. "This productivity challenge has been bedevilling our economy for a couple of decades. The weakest decade for productivity growth in the last 60 years was the Coalition decade. That is the situation we inherited. It will take some time to turn around. "We have a lot of work to do." Treasurer Jim Chalmers is warning there is no quick fix for productivity as the government is set to commence its much-hyped round table. "Productivity has been elusive over the last couple of decade, but it will be essential to the couple of decades ahead. That's what motivates and drives us in this economic reform round table," he told reporters on Monday. "This productivity challenge has been bedevilling our economy for a couple of decades. The weakest decade for productivity growth in the last 60 years was the Coalition decade. That is the situation we inherited. It will take some time to turn around. "We have a lot of work to do." 'Boring' Aussie dad's first move after winning lottery A self-described "boring guy" headed straight to Google after landing $1.6 million as one of four division one winners in the Saturday Lotto. The Armidale father went through all the questions in his head via the search engine, admitting he was unable to sleep after the huge win. 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Read more from Associated Press here. European and NATO leaders announced they will join Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelensky at the White House to present a united front in talks with Donald Trump on ending Russia's war in Ukraine. Leaders from Britain, France, Germany, Italy and Finland are rallying around the Ukrainian president after his exclusion from Trump's summit on Friday with Russian President Vladimir Putin. Their pledge to be at Zelensky's side at the White House on Monday is an apparent effort to ensure the meeting goes better than the last one in February, when Trump berated Zelenskyy in a heated Oval Office encounter. 'The Europeans are very afraid of the Oval Office scene being repeated and so they want to support Mr Zelensky to the hilt,' said retired French Gen. Dominique Trinquand, a former head of France's military mission at the United Nations. 'It's a power struggle and a position of strength that might work with Trump,' he said. Read more from Associated Press here. Rush hour chaos as city-bound lanes closed Sydney has been plunged into traffic chaos after a five-vehicle crash on the Anzac Bridge, with cars backed all the way up to Leichhardt. The crash happened in the eastbound lanes about 6.30am on Monday. Live traffic cameras show three of the four eastbound lanes are blocked, and the gridlock stretches back almost 3km down the A44. The right-hand westbound lane is also blocked by emergency response vehicles. An Ambulance NSW spokesman said five vehicles were involved in the crash; three cars, a motorbike and a truck. All people who needed to be checked by paramedics had minor injuries, the spokesman said. The male motorbike rider was still however taken to the Royal Prince Alfred Hospital. Images show at least four police vehicles and two road crews are on scene. A damaged dark-coloured sedan stopped sideways across two lanes was put onto a tow truck about 7am. There is also a cement truck which appears to have been involved in the crash. Live Traffic NSW are advising motorists to slow down to 40km/h and plan for their commute to take extra time. - NewsWire Sydney has been plunged into traffic chaos after a five-vehicle crash on the Anzac Bridge, with cars backed all the way up to Leichhardt. The crash happened in the eastbound lanes about 6.30am on Monday. Live traffic cameras show three of the four eastbound lanes are blocked, and the gridlock stretches back almost 3km down the A44. The right-hand westbound lane is also blocked by emergency response vehicles. An Ambulance NSW spokesman said five vehicles were involved in the crash; three cars, a motorbike and a truck. All people who needed to be checked by paramedics had minor injuries, the spokesman said. The male motorbike rider was still however taken to the Royal Prince Alfred Hospital. Images show at least four police vehicles and two road crews are on scene. A damaged dark-coloured sedan stopped sideways across two lanes was put onto a tow truck about 7am. There is also a cement truck which appears to have been involved in the crash. Live Traffic NSW are advising motorists to slow down to 40km/h and plan for their commute to take extra time. - NewsWire Qantas set for big fine after illegally sacking workers Australia's largest airline is staring down the barrel of another nine-figure fine for illegally sacking more than 1800 workers during the COVID-19 pandemic. The Federal Court will hand down a hefty penalty to Qantas on Monday in what will be the latest court blow for the airline after a scandal-plagued recent tenure. Qantas outsourced its baggage handlers, cleaners and ground staff in 2020, in a move the court ruled was designed to curb union bargaining power in wage negotiations. It appealed the ruling to the High Court but the decision was not overturned, paving the way for Monday's penalty. The Transport Workers Union has sought the maximum penalty of $121 million, while Qantas has urged Justice Michael Lee to impose a "mid-range" penalty between $40 million and $80 million. Qantas will cop the fine on top of a $120 million compensation payment it has made to the ground staff for their economic loss, pain and suffering since their jobs were outsourced during the pandemic. It has argued the actions were a mistake, not a deliberate breach of the law. Qantas also sold tickets to cancelled flights for several years, triggering more legal turmoil and a $100 million fine after it was sued by the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission. The carrier, which was under the control of Alan Joyce at the time of the illegal sacking, lost billions of dollars during the pandemic, which decimated the aviation sector. But the former CEO did not address the scandal when he spoke at an aviation conference on Thursday, instead spruiking his ability to keep the airline afloat in unprecedented times. "But here's the real insight: resilience isn't a reaction … it's a decision made years in advance, often when it's uncomfortable, even unpopular," he said. "Qantas was the only major Australian airline not to go bankrupt during or after the pandemic … that wasn't luck. That was resilience." Australia's largest airline is staring down the barrel of another nine-figure fine for illegally sacking more than 1800 workers during the COVID-19 pandemic. The Federal Court will hand down a hefty penalty to Qantas on Monday in what will be the latest court blow for the airline after a scandal-plagued recent tenure. Qantas outsourced its baggage handlers, cleaners and ground staff in 2020, in a move the court ruled was designed to curb union bargaining power in wage negotiations. 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But the former CEO did not address the scandal when he spoke at an aviation conference on Thursday, instead spruiking his ability to keep the airline afloat in unprecedented times. "But here's the real insight: resilience isn't a reaction … it's a decision made years in advance, often when it's uncomfortable, even unpopular," he said. "Qantas was the only major Australian airline not to go bankrupt during or after the pandemic … that wasn't luck. That was resilience."
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6 hours ago
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Met Police urged to scrap facial recognition at Notting Hill Carnival over 'racial bias' fears
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Police and paramedics block Hyde Road after crash
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