Former DUP leader Jeffrey Donaldson to be sentenced for child sexual abuse – latest updates

At Donaldson’s pre-sentencing hearing last month, prosecution barrister Rosemary Walsh spoke of various tariffs for the offences, several of which carried a maximum sentence of two years.

But other offences carried a maximum sentence of between ۱۰ and ۱۴ years under historical tariffs for crimes, she told the court.

She said historical legislation did not differentiate between a child and an adult victim in all the counts, so the disparity in age between Donaldson and his victims should be considered an “aggravating” factor in sentencing.

She said Complainant B was “nine or ۱۰” during some of the offending by Donaldson when he was ۲۵ or ۲۶ years old. She had described how she felt “sick” when he abused her and “wanted to scream out” but thought it was her fault.

Complainant B suffered other types of sexual assault by Donaldson when she was as young as “seven or eight”.

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A prison van believed to be carrying Jeffrey Donaldson has arrived at Newry crown court.

He was being held at Maghaberry prison in his former parliamentary constituency of Lagan Valley in County Antrim awaiting sentencing.

Jeffrey Donaldson, the former leader of the Democratic Unionist party (DUP) in Northern Ireland, will be sentenced today for a string of sex offences against two women when they were children.

Donaldson, ۶۳, will appear in Newry crown court after being found guilty earlier this year of ۱۸ counts of sexual abuse including one count of rape against the women. The offences were committed between ۱۹۸۵ and ۲۰۰۸.

Extracts of the victim impact statements were read out in court by prosecution counsel Rosemary Walsh during a pre-sentencing hearing last month. One of the victims, Complainant B, described how the abuse she suffered as a child “affected her every day” and sometimes she struggled so much she “wishes she could die”. Complainant A wrote in her statement that she felt her childhood had been “stolen from her” and this had led to feelings of shame and anger.

Kieran Vaughan, mitigating for Donaldson, said during that hearing that the former Lagan Valley MP was a man of “previous good character” who “did achieve significant things”.

But he added: “These convictions obliterate all those achievements he has made in his life.”

Judge Paul Ramsey previously told Donaldson that he would face a “lengthy sentence”.

Donaldson led the DUP from ۲۰۲۱ until ۲۰۲۴ when he was charged with historical sexual offences. He denied the charges but a jury convicted him in June of one count of rape, ۱۳ counts of indecent assault and four counts of gross indecency.

Since his conviction, he has been stripped of his knighthood and removed from the privy council.

Donaldson’s wife, Eleanor, ۶۰, was found unfit to stand trial on mental health grounds. She faced a trial of the facts, which can test evidence but not result in a criminal conviction, and was found to have aided and abetted her husband’s offending.

She cannot be given a prison sentence but could be given a treatment order or an absolute discharge. The judge is due to decide on this at a later date.

She has lodged an appeal to have the court conclusions overturned.