Eleanor Donaldson to appeal trial of the facts finding that she aided her husband
Eleanor Donaldson is to appeal the decision of her trial of the facts, which found she aided and abetted her husband, convicted paedophile Jeffrey Donaldson , on child sex abuse offences. On Thursday, the Northern Ireland Court Service confirmed that an application for leave to appeal has been lodged to the Court of Appeal by Eleanor Donaldson’s legal team. She was deemed medically unfit to take part in a conventional trial alongside her husband, a former leader of the DUP . Instead, she was prosecuted under a trial of the facts at Newry Crown Court in June. A jury unanimously agreed Eleanor Donaldson carried out the acts in relation to the five charges she faced, four of aiding and abetting her husband’s offending and one of child cruelty. Her case ran simultaneously with Jeffrey Donaldson’s criminal trial. She was not present in court but had legal representation as his co-accused in the case. Unlike a criminal trial, jurors cannot find a defendant guilty of any offence during a trial of the facts. Lawyers representing Jeffrey Donaldson have also indicated he intends to appeal his conviction. The former Lagan Valley MP was found guilty of all 18 sex offences, including rape, which were committed against two women when they were children. His offending took place between 1985 and 2008. The development comes as a Stormont review of the legal process used to prosecute Eleanor Donaldson was confirmed. Justice Minister Naomi Long and Health Minister Robbie Butler said they would launch a joint review of the legal framework governing the trial of the facts due to public concern. Ulster Unionist Party leader Jon Burrows released a letter he received from the two Stormont ministers in which they outlined plans to appoint “an independent, external reviewer”. “We are aware of public concern and interest in the legal and procedural framework on trials of the facts in Northern Ireland, ie when an accused in criminal proceedings is found to be unfit to plead,” Long and Butler wrote. “In light of those concerns and having reflected on the issues raised, we have decided to launch a joint review of the position.” The review will begin in the autumn and report before the end of this Assembly mandate, which will be next March. Burrows requested an urgent review of the trial of the facts in July as he said the conclusion of Eleanor Donaldson’s case had left a “profound sense of injustice”. She will not face a prison sentence or be placed on the sex offenders register due to the process. Options available to the judge, instead of a sentence, include Eleanor Donaldson being committed to a secure hospital unit or being subject to a supervision order. An absolute discharge can also be imposed, which means no suitable punishment or order is applicable. Burrows said he hoped the review would address the “real legitimate public concern” about how the legal mechanism operated. UUP to conduct safeguarding review after Jeffrey Donaldson’s child sex offences conviction “That concern has been building for some time, and the recent high-profile case brought it to a head,” he said. There were 60 trials of the facts in Northern Ireland between 2020 and 2025. “The question people are asking is a simple one. Does this procedure strike the right balance between protecting the public, meeting the needs of victims, and serving the wider public interest? Many people no longer believe that it does,” said Burrows. “Consider what victims are left with. A jury can find that serious acts were committed, including against children. No conviction follows. No criminal record exists. “The defendant may suffer no loss of liberty even for the most serious offences. “Whatever the legal reasoning behind that, it does not look like justice, and it does not feel like justice to many people.” ‘The only person telling lies is you’ – the full story of Jeffrey Donaldson’s abuse trial The process is not an “some obscure corner of the law” given the number of recent cases, he added. “This is happening to real families, several times a year, largely out of public view. There is now a significant public interest in reviewing this area of law and practice.”