Lady Donaldson 'did nothing' after child abuse claim, Newry Crown Court told

One of Sir Jeffrey Donaldson's alleged victims testified that Lady Donaldson was informed of an incident but failed to act. Sir Jeffrey denies 18 sex abuse charges.

Complainant A tells court Lady Donaldson ignored abuse disclosure

One of the two women alleging childhood sexual abuse by Sir Jeffrey Donaldson told Newry Crown Court that Lady Eleanor Donaldson was informed of an alleged incident involving her husband and "did nothing about it", bbc.com reports.

The witness, referred to as Complainant A, made the claim under cross-examination by Lady Donaldson's barrister, Ian Turkington KC.

Sir Jeffrey, the former leader of the Democratic Unionist Party (DUP), denies 18 charges of sexual abuse, including one count of rape. Lady Donaldson denies five charges of aiding and abetting. She is facing a trial of the facts after being deemed unfit to stand a conventional trial on mental health grounds and is not participating in proceedings.

Complainant A told the jury she had informed Lady Donaldson about an alleged encounter in which Sir Jeffrey had been "acting strangely" and shining a bright light — possibly a torch — on her private parts.

"I knew by the look on her face she knew I was telling the truth," Complainant A said. "Why would I make something like that up? I had no motive. Once she identified I was telling the truth, she did nothing about it."

Turkington put it to the complainant that Lady Donaldson had in fact raised the matter with Sir Jeffrey. Complainant A disputed that this constituted an adequate response.

She also claimed she had separately told Lady Donaldson that Sir Jeffrey had kissed her, describing how he had "put his tongue in my mouth" and "moved his tongue around my mouth". She said both defendants had "laughed off" the disclosure as "just a joke". "I can guarantee you I was not laughing at all," she said.

Turkington challenged Complainant A over her failure to mention during police interviews the full extent of counselling she had received following the alleged abuse. She said she had forgotten to include some of it but had nothing to hide.

The barrister then referred to notes made by a counsellor who had recorded her memory as "really poor, very bad". Complainant A disputed that characterisation. "I think it is unfair to say really bad… his notes are his interpretation," she said.

Turkington also pointed to her use of the phrase "really foggy" in police interviews when describing her recollection of dates. Complainant A acknowledged the difficulty, telling the court: "Many people know with abuse there is an issue with memory. I have tried to remember these events and convey them to the best of my ability."

She concluded her evidence on Monday afternoon with a direct statement to the court: "I'm here to tell the truth and I am telling the truth."

Sir Jeffrey denies acts of gross indecency and indecent assault against Complainant A, alleged to have taken place between 1999 and 2008 when she was a child.

A second alleged victim, Complainant B, is due to begin testifying on Tuesday morning. The jury will be shown a video recording of her police interview from March 2024. Separate charges relating to Complainant B, including a count of rape, date back to 1985 and also involve alleged offences committed when she was a child.

Source: Google News IE — Crime (en)