'Every day I pray to God to let me die': victim's words as Donaldson is jailed for child sex abuse
Jeffrey Donaldson, who led the Democratic Unionist Party before his arrest, faces sentencing today after being convicted of 18 counts of sexual abuse against two victims who were children when the offences took place.Jeffrey Donaldson and his wife Eleanor, who was found to have aided and abetted his crimes but cannot be imprisoned on mental health grounds.
Former DUP leader Jeffrey Donaldson, 63, was handed a 15-year sentence at Newry Crown Court on Thursday after being convicted of 18 historical sex offences — among them one count of rape — carried out against two women during their childhoods. Judge Paul Ramsey said Donaldson had experienced a "catastrophic descent into disgrace" and showed not "one word of regret, apology or shame" for crimes spanning 1985 to 2008. The automatic 50% remission rule means he will serve around seven-and-a-half years before release on licence, with an expected release date of late 2033. He must sign the Sex Offenders Register for life.
The DUP said its former leader deserved every day of his sentence.
Donaldson, who intends to appeal his conviction, is held in Maghaberry Prison's Moyola healthcare unit for his own protection, confined to his cell for up to 18 hours a day.
His wife Eleanor Donaldson, found to have done the acts on five charges including aiding and abetting his offending, will learn her fate in November.
