Donaldson arrives at court ahead of prosecution opening in sexual offences trial

By Jonathan McCambridge, Press Association

Former DUP leader Jeffrey Donaldson has arrived at court in Newry ahead of the prosecution opening its case in his trial over alleged historical sexual offences.

The start of the case on Wednesday was delayed until after lunch amid legal discussions.

Donaldson, 63, has pleaded not guilty to 18 alleged offences.

The charges include one count of rape and allegations of indecent assault and gross indecency, and span a time period between 1985 and 2008 involving two alleged victims.

Donaldson’s wife Eleanor Donaldson, from Dublinhill Road, Dromore, Co Down, denies several charges of aiding and abetting her husband’s alleged offending.

The 60-year-old is facing a trial of the facts, not a criminal trial, after judge Ramsey ruled her unfit to stand trial on mental health grounds.

The trial of the facts will test the evidence in the case but cannot result in a criminal conviction.

It is being heard by the same jury, with proceedings against both Donaldsons running simultaneously as part of one overall trial process presided over by Judge Ramsey.

The trial is expected to last between three and four weeks.

Jeffrey Donaldson, a former long-standing MP for Lagan Valley, was arrested and charged at the end of March 2024.

He resigned as DUP leader and was suspended from the party after the allegations emerged.

Weeks before his arrest, he had led the DUP back into devolved government at Stormont after a two-year boycott of the powersharing institutions.