![](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/1_JS338348405.jpg\")
<\/p>\nThe former DUP leader has denied all 18 offences<\/p>\n
12:04, 02 Feb 2026Updated 12:40, 02 Feb 2026<\/p>\n
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Jeffrey Donaldson leaving Newry Magistrates’ Court on his last appearance in July(Image: Niall Carson\/PA Wire)<\/p>\n
The trial of former DUP leader Sir Jeffrey Donaldson and his wife on charges relating to alleged historical sexual offences is expected to start in May.<\/p>\n
Jeffrey Donaldson,<\/a> 63, has pleaded not guilty to 18 alleged offences.<\/p>\n The charges include one count of rape as well as allegations of indecent assault and gross indecency, and span a time period between 1985 and 2008, involving two alleged victims.<\/p>\n Eleanor Donaldson<\/a>, 59, of Dublinhill Road, Dromore, is facing charges of aiding and abetting, which she denies.<\/p>\n The trial has been delayed as the court awaited reports into Eleanor Donaldson’s medical fitness to stand trial.<\/p>\n A brief review hearing at Newry Crown Court<\/a> on Monday morning was told a timetable had been agreed for the trial.<\/p>\n Lady Eleanor Donaldson<\/p>\n Judge Paul Ramsey was told a trial date of Tuesday May 26 has been agreed as suitable for all parties and witnesses.<\/p>\n The trial is expected to last up to four weeks.<\/p>\n Asked for an update on a medical report on Lady Eleanor Donaldson, defence barrister Ian Turkington said there is \u201cno doubt that Mrs Donaldson is seriously unwell\u201d.<\/p>\n He said under the Mental Health Northern Ireland Order states that fitness to be tried can only be determined on the evidence of two medical practitioners.<\/p>\n \u201cWe have one at the moment suggesting that Mrs Donaldson is unfit, but obviously that is insufficient, we require two, and that being so, presently, fitness to be tried is not an issue that needs to be settled by this court,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n Jeffrey Donaldson, the long-standing MP for Lagan Valley, was arrested and charged at the end of March 2024.<\/p>\n He resigned as DUP leader and was suspended from the party after the allegations emerged.<\/p>\n Weeks before his arrest, he had led the DUP back into Stormont after a two-year boycott of the powersharing institutions.<\/p>\n For all the latest news, visit the Belfast Live homepage here<\/a> and sign up to our daily newsletter<\/a> here.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"The former DUP leader has denied all 18 offences 12:04, 02 Feb 2026Updated 12:40, 02 Feb 2026 Jeffrey…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":403945,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[1343,13445,150807,59,57,58,150808,31040,50,229,56,54,55],"class_list":["post-403944","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-united-kingdom","tag-courts","tag-dup","tag-eleanor-donaldson","tag-gb","tag-great-britain","tag-greatbritain","tag-jeffrey-donaldson","tag-newry","tag-news","tag-politics","tag-uk","tag-united-kingdom","tag-unitedkingdom"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/403944","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=403944"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/403944\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/403945"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=403944"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=403944"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=403944"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}![](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/1_01J1W2KFR64FPD01GSD1TH6DKF.jpg\")
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