Donaldson trial

Barristers for Jeffrey Donaldson and his wife, Eleanor Donaldson, closed their case at Newry Crown Court on Monday, June 15, 2026, regarding sexual offense charges. The former DUP leader and his wife both pleaded not guilty to allegations of abuse involving two women between 1985 and 2008.

Defence Concludes Evidence at Newry Crown Court

The defence team representing the two defendants informed the court on Monday afternoon that they will not be calling any further witnesses or presenting additional evidence. According to BreakingNews.ie, the decision follows a period in which the 63-year-old former DUP leader spent two days in the witness box providing his own testimony.

“now in a position to close my case.

The trial has centered on the testimony of two women, identified as Complainant A and Complainant B, who allege they were abused as children. The Journal reported that the case also involved cross-examination regarding a meeting with a complainant that was allegedly arranged through a Christian group.

Allegations and Charges Against the Defendants

The legal proceedings involve a complex array of charges spanning more than two decades. As <a href="https://www.rte.

One count of rape
13 counts of indecent assault
Four counts of gross indecency

Eleanor Donaldson, 60, faces five separate charges. These counts allege that she aided and abetted her husband’s sexual offending during the period between 1985 and 2008.

The Legal Basis for Eleanor Donaldson’s Trial of the Facts

The trial for Eleanor Donaldson follows a different legal procedure than that of her husband due to her medical condition. Because she has been deemed medically unfit to undergo a conventional criminal trial, the court is conducting a “trial of the facts.”

“She is incapable of giving evidence so we don’t intend to call any further evidence.

In this specific legal framework, a jury of seven men and five women is tasked with determining whether the alleged offenses were committed. However, under the rules of a trial of the facts, the jury does not have the authority to return a criminal conviction against her.

Procedural Timeline for the Final Verdict

The court is now moving toward the final stages of the trial.

Tuesday: The prosecution will deliver its closing submissions.
Wednesday: The defence teams for both Jeffrey and Eleanor Donaldson will present their closing submissions.
Thursday: Judge Paul Ramsey will sum up the case and provide directions to the jury.

Once the judge has completed his directions, the jury will retire to consider their verdict.

<!– /wp:paragraph As the trial continues, the court will review the evidence and testimonies to determine the validity of the charges.

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Former DUP leader Jeffrey Donaldson, 63, appeared at Newry Crown Court this week facing 18 sexual offence charges, including rape, alleged to have occurred between 1985 and 2008. The trial heard testimony regarding a complainant’s reluctance to report the abuse due to fears of destroying the alleged perpetrator’s political reputation.

The shadow of a political career

Newry Crown Court heard details of a disclosure made to a Christian pastor that highlighted the immense pressure of political standing. While Pastor Stephen Matthews is not well enough to give evidence in person, an interview he conducted with the PSNI in April last year was played to the court. The interview detailed how Complainant B shared information that allowed the pastor to form a conclusion about her alleged abuser. Although she did not name the individual directly, she described a man with a growing “political career.” “I think she said he was rising through the ranks of the Official Unionist Party, he had been the assistant to a previous MP and as such would be in a position to become an MP, so it was kind of obvious.”Pastor Stephen Matthews, via RTE.ie According to RTE.ie, the pastor urged the woman to contact the authorities, but she declined because she did not want to “destroy” the “political reputation” of the man involved. She reportedly told him that if he approached the police, she would claim the allegations were untrue. The court also heard from Claire Selfridge, whose parents run the Christian centre in Armoy, Co Antrim, where the pastor met Complainant B. Selfridge testified that the woman had confided in her in her bedroom, a moment she described as being “very shocking, almost like a bomb went off.” Selfridge, who noted that the woman appeared “matter of fact” about the experience, added: “That’s what it felt like to me. She was very troubled, my heart was very raw for her and then you realise when she told me this – that she had been abused – this was clearly why she was as she was.”Claire Selfridge, via RTE.ie

A husband’s testimony and a 2019 disclosure

The emotional weight of the trial intensified during the second week of evidence as the husband of Complainant A took the witness stand. The Irish Times reported that the man broke down in tears while recalling the moment his wife finally spoke about the alleged abuse. The disclosure occurred on December 27, 2019. The man testified that he and his wife were driving when she indicated she “needed to tell me something about Jeffrey Donaldson.” They pulled into a car park, where she revealed that the former MP had abused her on several occasions during her childhood. The witness provided specific details regarding the nature of the alleged contact, stating that the defendant “inappropriately touched her on a number of occasions and that he kissed her. His pushed his tongue around her mouth,” He also described a separate incident in which his wife claimed she was woken by a light only to find the defendant looking at her private parts while she was asleep. Throughout the nearly two-hour testimony, the man described his wife’s state of mind as one of profound fear. “She was worried if she told me it would change my perspective on her. She was scared. She told me she had never told anyone this. I recognised this was massive for her.”Complainant A’s husband, via The Irish Times Feeling “out of my depth,” the man told the jury he eventually sought help from a Presbyterian Church minister in late 2022 to support his wife.

The scope of the allegations and legal proceedings

Jeffrey Donaldson, 63, of Dromore, Co Down, denies all charges brought against him. The prosecution, led by barrister Rosemary Walsh, has outlined a significant list of offences spanning more than two decades.

18 total sexual offence charges
1 count of rape
4 counts of gross indecency with or towards a child
13 counts of indecent assault on a female

The alleged offences are said to have taken place between January 1985 and January 2008. The legal proceedings also involve Eleanor Donaldson, 60, the defendant’s wife. She faces five counts of aiding and abetting in connection with the charges against her husband. The Journal noted that Eleanor Donaldson is not present in court, as she has been ruled unfit to stand trial based on medical evidence. Instead, she is facing a trial of the facts, which is running concurrently with her husband’s trial. As the trial continues at Newry Crown Court, the defense, represented by Kieran Vaughan KC, continues to cross-examine witnesses, including questioning Claire Selfridge on the specific nature of the disclosures made to her.

Defence closes case in Donaldson trial