每日英语听力外刊精读20230822:英国"恶魔护士"谋杀婴儿罪名成立


文本选自:The New York Times(纽约时报)
作者:Megan Specia, Isabella Kwai and Aaron Boxerman
原文标题:British Nurse Is Convicted of Killing Seven Newborns
原文发布时间:18 Aug. 2023
British Nurse Is Convicted of Killing Seven Newborns
A British nurse was found guilty on Friday in the deaths of seven newborns and the attempted murders of six others, according to the police department responsible for the investigation, ending a yearslong case that has haunted England since a string of deaths in the neonatal unit where the nurse worked came to light in 2016. The nurse, Lucy Letby, 33, was accused of killing seven babies and trying to kill 10 others while working at the Countess of Chester Hospital in the city of Chester, in northwestern England, between June 2015 and June 2016. She was first charged in 2020. At her trial, the jury did not reach verdicts on six other counts of attempted murder, according to prosecutors. And she was found not guilty on two counts of attempted murder.
The guilty verdicts make Ms. Letby the most prolific serial killer of children in modern British history. Over the course of the trial at Manchester Crown Court, which began in October, jurors heard that Ms. Letby had harmed the babies in her care in a number of ways, including by overfeeding them with milk and injecting them with air and insulin. She denied those accusations. Prosecutors called it a "horrifying case" and said Ms. Letby had intended to kill the babies while blaming natural causes for their conditions.
"She perverted her learning and weaponized her craft to inflict harm, grief and death," said one of the prosecutors, Pascale Jones, adding that innocuous substances became lethal in her hands. "Her attacks were a complete betrayal of the trust placed in her."
英国“恶魔护士”谋杀婴儿罪名成立

精听党背景导读
据法新社报道,英国护士露西·莱特比将于当地时间8月21日被判刑,她因谋杀7名婴儿以及试图杀害另外6名婴儿或将面临终身监禁。
据报道,33岁的莱特比因在2015年6月至2016年6月期间,在英格兰切斯特伯爵夫人医院谋杀了7名婴儿,以及试图在护理期间杀害另外6名婴儿被判有罪。法媒称,此人是英国现代史上杀人最多的儿童连环杀手。
文本选自:The New York Times(纽约时报)作者:Megan Specia, Isabella Kwai and Aaron Boxerman原文标题:British Nurse Is Convicted of Killing Seven Newborns原文发布时间:18 Aug. 2023关键词:新生儿 连环杀手 护士
精听党带着问题听
1.“被判定有罪”在文中有几种英语表达方式?2. 如何理解段一中的“come to light”?3. 露西·莱特比是怎么实施犯罪的?
精听党选段赏析
标题解读
British Nurse Is Convicted of Killing Seven Newborns
英国一名护士因杀害7名新生儿被判有罪
be convicted of 被判定有罪;
newborn n. 婴儿;新生儿;
段一
A British nurse was found guilty on Friday in the deaths of seven newborns and the attempted murders of six others, according to the police department responsible for the investigation, ending a yearslong case that has haunted England since a string of deaths in the neonatal unit where the nurse worked came to light in 2016. The nurse, Lucy Letby, 33, was accused of killing seven babies and trying to kill 10 others while working at the Countess of Chester Hospital in the city of Chester, in northwestern England, between June 2015 and June 2016. She was first charged in 2020. At her trial, the jury did not reach verdicts on six other counts of attempted murder, according to prosecutors. And she was found not guilty on two counts of attempted murder.
be found guilty 被判有罪;
attempted adj. 企图的;未遂的;1. attempted murder 企图谋杀;谋杀未遂;
yearslong adj. 长年的,持续多年的;
haunt vt.(鬼魂)出没;萦绕在……心头;(长期)困扰;常去(某地);
a string of 一系列,一串;
neonatal adj. 新生的;初生的;1. the neonatal intensive care unit 新生儿特别护理间;
come to light 暴露;真相大白;众所周知;
be accused of 被指控;
charge vt. 控告,指控;
trial n. 审判,审理;
reach verdicts 作出判决;作出裁决;
count n.(被指控的)罪状,事项;
参考译文
负责调查的警察局表示,一名英国护士周五被判有罪,罪名是导致七名新生儿死亡,并企图谋杀另外六名新生儿。自2016年这名护士所在的新生儿病房发生一连串死亡事件曝光以来,这起持续数年的案件一直困扰着英国。这名护士名叫露西·莱特比,33岁。她被指控在2015年6月至2016年6月期间,在英格兰西北部切斯特市的切斯特伯爵夫人医院工作期间,杀害了7名婴儿,并试图杀害另外10名婴儿。她于2020年首次被指控。据检察官称,在对她的审判中,陪审团没有对其他六项谋杀未遂指控作出裁决。她的两项谋杀未遂指控被判无罪。
段二
The guilty verdicts make Ms. Letby the most prolific serial killer of children in modern British history. Over the course of the trial at Manchester Crown Court, which began in October, jurors heard that Ms. Letby had harmed the babies in her care in a number of ways, including by overfeeding them with milk and injecting them with air and insulin. She denied those accusations. Prosecutors called it a “horrifying case” and said Ms. Letby had intended to kill the babies while blaming natural causes for their conditions.
prolific adj.(植物,动物,人)多产的,多育的;
serial killer 连环杀手;
over the course of 在……的过程中;
juror n. 陪审员,陪审团成员;
overfeed vt. 给……喂得太多;
inject vt. 注射;(给……)添加,增加(某品质);投入(金钱或资源);
insulin n. 胰岛素;
accusation n. 控告,指责,谴责;(尚未证实的被控告的)罪名,罪状;
horrifying adj. 令人极其震惊的(或厌恶的、恐惧的);
blame vt. 责怪,归咎于;
参考译文
有罪判决使莱特比女士成为英国现代史上杀害儿童最多的连环杀手。在曼彻斯特刑事法院(Manchester Crown Court)去年10月开始的审判过程中,陪审员们听说莱特比以多种方式伤害了她所照顾的婴儿,包括给他们过量喂奶,给他们注射空气和胰岛素。她否认了这些指控。检察官称这是一起“骇人听闻的案件”,并表示莱特比女士打算杀死这些婴儿,同时将他们的状况归咎于自然原因。
段三
“She perverted her learning and weaponized her craft to inflict harm, grief and death,” said one of the prosecutors, Pascale Jones, adding that innocuous substances became lethal in her hands. “Her attacks were a complete betrayal of the trust placed in her.”
pervert vt. 使走样,败坏;腐蚀,使堕落;使性欲反常,使性变态;歪曲,曲解;
weaponize vt. 使……武器化;
craft n. 工艺,手艺;技艺;行业,职业;
inflict vt. 使遭受,使承受;
grief n.(尤指因某人去世引起的)悲伤,悲痛;伤心事,悲痛事;
innocuous adj. 无害的;无伤大雅的;
lethal adj. 致命的,致死的;危害极大的,破坏性的;极成功的,极有效的;
betrayal n. 背叛,出卖;
参考译文
其中一名检察官帕斯卡尔·琼斯(Pascale Jones)说:“她扭曲了自己的学习,并将自己的技艺武器化,以制造伤害、悲伤和死亡。”她补充说,无害的物质在她手中变得致命。“她的攻击完全辜负了人们对她的信任。”
精听党每日单词
be convicted of
 被判定有罪;
newborn
 /ˈnuːbɔːrn/ n. 婴儿;新生儿;
be found guilty
 被判有罪;
attempted
 /əˈtemptɪd/ adj. 企图的;未遂的;
yearslong
 /jɪrzlɔːŋ/ adj. 长年的,持续多年的;
haunt
 /hɔːnt/ vt.(鬼魂)出没;萦绕在……心头;(长期)困扰;常去(某地);
a string of
 一系列,一串;
neonatal
 /ˌniːoʊˈneɪtl/ adj. 新生的;初生的;
come to light
 暴露;真相大白;众所周知;
be accused of
 被指控;
charge
 /tʃɑːrdʒ/ vt. 控告,指控;
trial
 /ˈtraɪəl/ n. 审判,审理;
reach verdicts
 作出判决;作出裁决;
count
 /kaʊnt/ n.(被指控的)罪状,事项;
prolific
 /prəˈlɪfɪk/ adj.(植物,动物,人)多产的,多育的;
serial killer
 连环杀手;
over the course of
 在……的过程中;
juror
 /ˈdʒʊrər/ n. 陪审员,陪审团成员;
overfeed
 /ˌoʊvərˈfiːd/ vt. 给……喂得太多;
inject
 /ɪnˈdʒekt/ vt. 注射;(给……)添加,增加(某品质);投入(金钱或资源);
insulin
 /ˈɪnsəlɪn/ n. 胰岛素;
accusation
 /ˌækjuˈzeɪʃ(ə)n/ n. 控告,指责,谴责;(尚未证实的被控告的)罪名,罪状;
horrifying
 /ˈhɔːrɪfaɪɪŋ/ adj. 令人极其震惊的(或厌恶的、恐惧的);
blame
 /bleɪm/ vt. 责怪,归咎于;
pervert
 /pərˈvɜːrt/ vt. 使走样,败坏;腐蚀,使堕落;使性欲反常,使性变态;歪曲,曲解;
weaponize
 /ˈwepənaɪz/ vt. 使……武器化;
craft
 /krɑːft/ n. 工艺,手艺;技艺;行业,职业;
inflict
 /ɪnˈflɪkt/ vt. 使遭受,使承受;
grief
 /ɡriːf/ n.(尤指因某人去世引起的)悲伤,悲痛;伤心事,悲痛事;
innocuous
 /ɪˈnɑːkjuəs/ adj. 无害的;无伤大雅的;
lethal
 /ˈliːθ(ə)l/ adj. 致命的,致死的;危害极大的,破坏性的;极成功的,极有效的;
betrayal
 /bɪˈtreɪəl/ n. 背叛,出卖;
精听党文化拓展
露西·莱特比家境优渥,是家里的独生女,也是家族里的佼佼者(家族里第一个考上大学的人),家境富裕的露西·莱特比毕业后成为一家医院的护士,进入利物浦妇女医院和切斯特伯爵夫人医院工作,同时顺利拿到五级护士资格证,持有这项资格证的护士才能进入重症监护室照顾婴儿。
露西·莱特比的工作为她的恶魔行为提供了便利,自2015年起,在露西·莱特比照顾的婴儿中就出现了多名死亡的事件,起初只是在2015年6月的2周内,院内有3名婴儿死亡(在该医院这是极不正常的,之前平均每年才死亡3个婴儿),院内相关负责的科室主任以及护理顾问、主任召开会议后发现死亡的婴儿均是由露西负责。
大约是露西平凡又柔美的外表迷惑了大家,这样的巧合并没有受到重视,悲剧在2015年10月再次到来,当月露西照顾的2名婴儿再次死亡。可悲的是相关科室领导再次召开院内紧急会议,院方高层并不重视,不愿怀疑露西,认为这只是一个“不幸”的巧合,同时因担心医院名誉问题,并未报警。
时间来到2016年,露西负责的三胞胎中又有2名婴儿死亡,而院内高层只是进行了内部清查,认为多名婴儿死亡的原因是因为医院管理混乱,并要求怀疑露西的相关负责人对露西以及其家属进行道歉。
但不认可院方调查结果的小部分人,坚持报警,最终柴郡警方介入,露西前后被三次逮捕。一开始露西坚持自己是无辜的,随着调查的推进,露西最终放弃抵抗,只是在法庭上落泪。她杀害这些婴儿的手法和杀害后记录自己心情的便利贴也被公布。
精听党每日美句
Success usually comes to those who are too busy to be looking for it.
成功通常会降临于那些忙到无暇寻找成功的人。
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