UK nurse sentenced to life imprisonment for killing newborns

London: A former neonatal nurse who killed seven babies in her care and tried to kill six others at a hospital in northern England was sentenced Monday to life in prison with no chance of release by a judge who highlighted ''the cruelty and calculation'' of her actions. 

Lucy Letby, who refused to appear in court to face grieving parents who spoke of their anger and anguish, was given the most severe sentence possible under British law, which does not allow the death penalty.

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Justice James Goss said that the number of killings and attempts and the nature of the murders by a neonatal nurse entrusted with care for the most fragile babies provided the "exceptional circumstances" required to impose a so-called "whole-life order", which is exceptionally rare.

"There was a malevolence bordering on sadism in your action," Goss said. "During the course of this trial you have coldly denied any responsibility for your wrongdoing. You have no remorse. There are no mitigating factors."

Following 22 days of deliberation, a jury at Manchester Crown Court convicted Letby, 33, of killing the babies over a yearlong period that saw her prey on the vulnerabilities of sick newborns and their anxious parents. The victims died in the neonatal unit at the Countess of Chester Hospital in northwest England between June 2015 and June 2016.

"I don't think we will ever get over the fact that our daughter was tortured till she had no fight left in her and everything she went through over her short life was deliberately done by someone who was supposed to protect her and help her come home where she belonged," the mother of a girl identified as Child I said in a statement read in court.

Prosecutor Nicholas Johnson said Letby deserved a "whole-life tariff" for "sadistic conduct" and premeditated crimes. Defence lawyer Ben Myers said Letby maintained her innocence. Letby's absence, which is allowed in British courts during sentencing, fuelled anger from the families of the victims, who wanted her to listen to statements about the devastation caused by her crimes.