BELFAST, May 20 (Reuters) – Eleanor Donaldson, the wife of former Northern Ireland politician Jeffrey Donaldson, is unfit to stand trial alongside her husband on charges related to historical sex offences, a judge ruled on Wednesday.
Former Democratic Unionist Party leader Donaldson is due to stand trial next week on one count of rape, 13 counts of indecent assault on a female child and four counts of gross indecency towards a child. He has pleaded not guilty.
The trial of Donaldson and his wife Eleanor has been delayed for more than a year due to Eleanor, whose charges include aiding and abetting rape, being unwell.
Judge Paul Ramsey made the ruling that she was unfit to be tried after hearing medical evidence on Wednesday.
Eleanor will instead face a so-called trial of the facts, where the jury is asked to decide whether or not the accused committed an offence, rather than whether they are guilty or not guilty.
Jeffrey Donaldson, once one of Northern Ireland’s best-known politicians, stepped down suddenly as head of the region’s largest pro-British unionist party in March 2024 after the DUP said he had been charged with allegations of a historical nature.
(Reporting by Amanda Ferguson, writing by Padraic Halpin, Editing by Alex Richardson)
