See more Daily Mail on Google - save us as a Preferred SourceBy MATT STRUDWICK, SENIOR NEWS REPORTER Published: 10:32 BST, 26 May 2026 | Updated: 17:03 BST, 26 May 2026
The former DUP leader Sir Jeffrey Donaldson has arrived at court for the start of his trial on charges of alleged historical sexual abuse.The 63-year-old clasped a brown satchel and had a Christian fish symbol pinned to the lapel of his blue blazer as he entered Newry Crown Court. He arrived shortly after 9am wearing a blue suit with a white shirt and green tie and was met by his solicitor, John McBurney, who accompanied him into the court building.Police had erected metal barriers at the court entrance prior to his arrival to cordon off the waiting media.A jury has been sworn in and the prosecution will deliver the opening address today. At the start of proceedings, Donaldson replied 'yes' when asked by Judge Paul Ramsey if he was ready for his trial.He then sat in the dock with his arms crossed flanked by two court staff while the process of jury selection began.Addressing potential jurors, the judge said Donaldson is 'well known in public life here in Northern Ireland'.He added: 'He is entitled to the same fair trial as everyone else.' The judge said the allegations against Donaldson were 'of a sexual nature'.A list of witnesses in the trial was then read to potential jurors. The judge said the trial was expected to last between three and four weeks.Donaldson has pleaded not guilty to 18 alleged offences. The former DUP leader Sir Jeffrey Donaldson has arrived at court for the start of his trial on charges of alleged historical sexual abuse The 63-year-old clasped a brown satchel and had a Christian fish symbol pinned to the lapel of his blue blazer as he entered Newry Crown CourtThe 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 Lady 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 Paul 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 will be heard by the same jury, with proceedings against both Donaldsons running simultaneously as part of one overall trial process presided over by Judge Ramsey.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.
