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Chapter 1: What were the verdicts delivered in the Jeffrey Donaldson case?
Jeffrey Donaldson has been found guilty. The jury reached a verdict at lunchtime on Monday. The judge said prison was inevitable for the now convicted child rapist. The jury of seven men and five women had considered their verdicts for more than nine hours over two days. The 63-year-old former MP had pleaded not guilty to 18 offences, including one of rape.
His wife, Eleanor Donaldson, was found guilty of all charges, including eating and abetting. She was facing a trial of the facts and can't go to jail. Our reporter Kyle Fraser joins us. Kyle, you're very welcome to the Belltel. Geoffrey Donaldson, former MP, former leader of the DUP, he was found guilty on all charges.
Chapter 2: What charges was Jeffrey Donaldson found guilty of?
Well, that's right, Ciarán. Yesterday was the verdict of Sir Geoffrey Donaldson after that very long trial in Newry Crown Court that we've been covering in detail here at the Belltel. The jury found him guilty. It was a jury of seven men and five women who had considered their verdicts for more than nine hours over the two-day period of deliberation.
The 63-year-old former MP had pleaded not guilty to 18 offences, including one count of rape, but was found guilty on all charges. So that was a charge of rape, that was 13 charges of indecent assault and four charges of gross indecency, Ciarán.
And the judge has told Jeffrey Donaldson that he will be placed on the sex offenders register.
That's right. For, at the moment, an amount of time that we don't know. That will be decided in the future.
Chapter 3: What was the role of Eleanor Donaldson in the trial?
Now, Eleanor Donaldson, she was facing a trial of the facts. Now, the word guilty was used by the jury and it was repeated by the judge. Kyle, just to clarify... As a trial of the facts, whether we use the word guilty or not, in terms of she has been found, it has been found by the jury that beyond reasonable doubt that she did what she was accused of.
But she cannot be convicted and therefore cannot go to jail.
That's correct. So a trial of the facts is essentially where the jury will deliberate based on the evidence that has been presented throughout the trial. They will deliberate whether or not she did she do it or did she not. So the use of the word guilty would imply a criminal conviction. But we know that because of a trial of the facts that that's not going to happen.
Chapter 4: What does a trial of the facts mean for Eleanor Donaldson?
But that was the language that the judge used today in Newry Court was that she had been found guilty guilty. Now, it is massive that she's faced a trial of the facts in the first instance. She's only the second person in the history of the state to do so.
However, to be found guilty is an interesting choice of language, especially when you look at the charges that are placed against her husband, Sir Geoffrey Donaldson. Those charges were of aiding and abetting Sir Geoffrey Donaldson. So, as you said, this is a trial of the facts that Lady Eleanor Donaldson did face. And let's be clear, she...
underwent a trial of the facts, not a full criminal trial, because she was deemed to be mentally unfit to undergo that process. Technically, it's still Sir Geoffrey Donaldson and Lady Eleanor Donaldson. I know members of the public have referred to that.
Chapter 5: What background information is important about Geoffrey Donaldson?
There's a lot of dissatisfaction about that, but that is technically the truth. And it is hard to get out of the habit. Of course, it will be. That is another thing which will be looked at, I have no doubt, in the future. But just for the listener, perhaps, who's listening in the United States of America or Australia, can you just remind us about...
the background to this case in order that they can fully appreciate the gravity of it.
So Geoffrey Donaldson is a former long-standing Member of Parliament for Lackin Valley and he was the leader of the DUP. He was arrested and charged at the end of March 2024 and was suspended from the party after the allegations emerged. Now, Geoffrey Donaldson was accused of rape and several counts of gross indecency and of indecent assault, to which he pled not guilty to.
Chapter 6: What were the jury's deliberation processes during the trial?
The charges span over a time period between 1985 and 2008 and involved two alleged victims. And he was arrested and charged at the end of March 2024.
And the two alleged victims are known only as Witness A and Witness B. And if anyone is interested in the trial, we covered that extensively on a daily basis here on the Belltel. Now, the jury was brought back into court just before lunchtime after on day three of deliberation. It took them just over nine hours to consider the case itself. They had two notes, they had two questions for the judge.
There was a discussion with the barristers involved because they wanted some clarification, both in terms of Jeffrey Donaldson and in terms of Eleanor Donaldson. What exactly happened there?
So the clarification that was sought was to ensure that both the verdicts could be read at the same time. Initially this morning we were thinking as soon as the jury were back in court that this was going to happen quite quickly.
Chapter 7: What are the implications of this verdict for political unionism?
then we realised that both were going to be happening concurrently with one another. So at around 12.45, Mr. Donaldson was dressed in a navy suit and a pink tie. He was brought into court. Shortly afterwards, Mr. Justice Ramsey asked that the jury be brought back into the courtroom.
Now, the judge said he had received two notes from the jury asking for clarification, and he reminded them that they must be satisfied that Jeffrey Donaldson was guilty of the offences for when he was accused beyond reasonable doubt.
He also reminded them, Ciarán, that they must be sure that Mrs. Donaldson assisted or encouraged those evidences by a positive act with words and deeds, saying that standing by was not itself an offense. He then told the jury to return to their deliberations. Then it was at 11 minutes past one this afternoon, but the jury then delivered their verdict just after a quarter past two.
What happens next? So we know that Sir Geoffrey Donaldson will be sentenced on the afternoon of Friday, the 25th of September. That is because of the recess period, which is about to start for the courts.
Although he has been brought immediately into custody, he's on his way to prison. And the judge has told him, jail is inevitable. And he has been placed on the sex offenders register. It is, for a final word for yourself, he was... not only an MP, he was a member of the Privy Council, which is a massive role in British politics. He was, for a long period, the leader of unionism.
This is a massive story.
This is absolutely huge. This could possibly be one of the biggest stories to impact political unionism for years to come. Sir Geoffrey Donaldson was the leader of the DUP. He represented them in Parliament. He had that seat for a very, very long time. And whenever these charges first emerged, Ciarán, it was as if the party couldn't get rid of him quick enough.
It was Gavin Robinson was brought in as the leader of the party and Sir Geoffrey was gone. In hours, within hours. Within hours. And so looking at how the party responded to that, looking at how all of politics responded to the charges that were put against Sir Geoffrey Donaldson and looking at the outcome of this very long trial today, this is going to send seismic waves through unionism.
Having said that, there's no one from the DUP here that dealt with it immediately. They did everything they could. There's no suggestion whatsoever of any wrongdoing. However, we saw in the subsequent election, the DUP suffered a cruel blow, if you want to put it that way. Kyle Fraser, we'll leave it there. Thank you very much. Thank you, Ciarán.
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