Jury selection under way in Jeffrey Donaldson sexual offences trial

By Jonathan McCambridge and David Young (Press Association)

The process is under way to select a jury to hear the trial of former DUP leader Sir Jeffrey Donaldson, who is accused of a series of alleged historical sexual offences.

Proceedings at Newry Crown Court began on Tuesday morning.

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 arrived at Newry Courthouse in Co Down shortly after 9am wearing a blue suit with a white shirt and green tie.

He 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.

At the start of proceedings, Donaldson replied “yes” when asked by trial 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’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 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.

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.

Jeffrey Donaldson arrives at Newry Crown Court, where he and his wife Lady Eleanor Donaldson are accused of historical sexual offences  {Picture Liam McBurney/PA Wire)