Child serial killer nurse Lucy Letby has formally filed a bid to challenge her conviction at the Court of Appeal, officials have said.
Letby, 33, was sentenced to a whole life order last month after jurors convicted her of the murders of seven babies and the attempted murders of six others at the Countess of Chester Hospital’s neonatal unit in 2015 and 2016.
She killed her victims by callously injecting air and fluids including insulin and milk into babies in her care between June 2015 and June 2016.
Letby, the UK’s most prolific child killer in modern times, did not appear in the dock at Manchester Crown Court for sentencing last month.
Court staff said on Friday that they had received an application for permission to appeal.
Typically, applications for permission to appeal against a crown court decision are considered by a judge without a hearing.
If this is refused, people have the right to renew their bid for permission at a full court hearing before two or three judges.
The Judicial Office confirmed that it had received an application from her legal team.
A spokesperson told ITV: “Court staff said on Friday that they had received an application for permission to appeal.”
Separately, a court hearing will take place on September 25 where the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) will decide whether to pursue a retrial for six outstanding counts of attempted murder.
The Department of Health has previously said that an independent inquiry will be held into Letby’s case, and will examine “the circumstances surrounding the deaths and incidents – including how concerns raised by clinicians were dealt with”.
Letby, from Hereford, was cleared of two counts of attempted murder.
The jury of seven women and four men could also not reach verdicts on allegations that Letby attempted to murder three baby girls, Child H, Child J and Child K.
They also could not reach verdicts over two counts of attempted murder against Child N, a baby boy, and an allegation she tried to murder another male infant, Child Q.
Cheshire Police has been contacted for comment.
