The wife of Sir Jeffrey Donaldson has denied aiding her husband in alleged historical sexual offences, stating that the victims are telling the truth about their experiences.
, 60, from Dublinhill Road, Dromore, Co Down, denies several charges of aiding and abetting her husband’s alleged offending. The trial of the facts will test the evidence in the case but cannot result in a criminal conviction.
On Tuesday, Ms Walsh said she had asked Donaldson when he was being cross-examined on several occasions why the two women would make up the claims. View 4 Images Sir Jeffrey Donaldson arriving at Newry Crown Court, where he and his wife Lady Eleanor Donaldson are accused of historical sexual offences. She added: “What the evidence shows when it is pieced together is that they are telling the truth about what happened to them.
“Not because they are promoting a pack of malicious lies for absolutely no good reason, but because this is what happened and they have made a decision to call it out. Ms Walsh said: “The consequences of Mr Donaldson’s actions, and to a much lesser extent his wife’s, are why we are all here today.
“Not because these two women have fabricated their accounts or because they are conjuring up lies to tell. “But because the sexual abuse they suffered has consequences – consequences that cannot be ignored and brushed under the carpet any longer. ”Earlier, Ms Walsh said it was human nature for people to sometimes “lock away” thoughts. The barrister said Complainant A had spent years “shelving and avoiding dealing” with alleged abuse, while Complainant B “kept those memories locked away inside”.
But she said there had been “turning points” for both women which made them come forward and report the alleged abuse to police. She said: “Issues which had been shelved and locked away surfaced, demanding to be seen and demanding to be dealt with. ”Turning to the issue of why A had not reported the alleged abuse before 2024, Ms Walsh said: “This is a woman who has really, properly considered whether she should put her head above the parapet.
“It was a huge, huge decision to make and not one she made lightly. ”Donaldson’s wife, Lady Eleanor Donaldson, has denied aiding and abetting her husband's alleged offencesShe said: “Yes, two voices are better than one… this process is difficult. ” She said it had been a “long and arduous process” which had culminated in several hours of questioning in court. She added: “This is not something they are doing for the fun of it.
” Ms Walsh said: “Today, you see two women at a time when they are ready for this… they have not always been that way. ” The barrister said neither woman has a “full or complete recollection” of the alleged abuse, stating some memories are “fragmentary”. She said both alleged victims remember “distinctive incidents”.while staying at a Christian centre in Armoy in Co Antrim in the 1990s.
She said: “No-one asked this girl exactly what the abuse was she had referred to. Referring to an incident in which Complainant A alleges Donaldson had used a light to look at her genitals, the barrister said Eleanor Donaldson had been told but that the incident was “brushed under the carpet”.
John McBurney solicitor for Sir Jeffrey Donaldson, Ian Turkington, King's Counsel barrister for Lady Eleanor Donaldson, arriving at Newry Crown Court, where Sir Jeffrey and his wife Lady Eleanor are accused of historical sexual offences. She said years later, Complainant A had told her husband about the alleged abuse to give him the “option of walking away” from the relationship if he chose to.
Ms Walsh told the jury they had watched police interviews with both of the alleged victims. Referring to an incident where Complainant B alleges she was raped by Donaldson, Ms Walsh said: “She recalls the breathing, laboured and panting and the hope he would stop and lose interest.
” Recounting an alleged incident where B claimed Donaldson lifted her top and played with her breasts, she said: “In the dark, he treats her like the object she is to him. ” Returning to the meeting at the Co Antrim Christian Centre between Complainant B and Donaldson in the 1990s, Ms Walsh said it was “clear there was very little discussion and very little conversation”.
She said: “This meeting had the potential to be explosive because everyone, including Mr Donaldson, knew it concerned a serious allegation. ” She added: “We say Jeffrey Donaldson shut that meeting down, he knew this was a problem that needed to be dealt with, he took control of that meeting. ”Ms Walsh said: “He was there to manage a problem and he did that very well indeed.
”Referring again to the light incident involving Complainant A, Ms Walsh said the alleged victim was “certain she knew he was looking at her private parts with a light”. The barrister then turned to a letter written by Donaldson to Complainant A in 2020 where he referred to “being in a deep pit of sin” and of causing “deep wounds”. She added that the prosecution say the reference to “deep wounds” in the letter is “highly significant”.
, Ms Walsh said she was “fully aware of the risk Mr Donaldson posed” but “did not intervene but rather facilitated the abuse”.
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