'Catastrophic descent into disgrace': Jeffrey Donaldson jailed for 15 years for child sex offences with NO remorse shown
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, sat expressionless as Judge Paul Ramsey handed down a 15-year sentence at Newry Crown Court for 18 historical sex offences — committed against two girls — including rape. One victim's impact statement read to court said: 'Every day I pray God will let me die.' His wife Eleanor, 60, was convicted of covering up the abuse for more than two decades, making her a party to his crimes.
Donaldson was found guilty in June of offences spanning 1985 to 2008, among them the rape of one victim at the age of seven or eight.
The judge said Donaldson had 'doubled down on his denials' and offered not 'one word of regret, apology or shame' to his victims.
Under automatic 50% remission, Donaldson will spend just seven-and-a-half years behind bars; his own party said he 'deserves every day' of the sentence.
