Donaldson's Letter and Allegations
A letter written by Sir Jeffrey Donaldson to a woman accusing him of sexual abuse was unrelated to her allegations, Newry Crown Court was told.
This assertion was made by Kieran Vaughan KC, the lawyer representing the former Democratic Unionist Party (DUP) leader.
Vaughan continued his cross-examination of one of Sir Jeffrey's two alleged victims, referred to as Complainant A.
Sir Jeffrey is currently on trial facing 18 charges of sexual abuse, including one count of rape, all of which he denies.
Contents of the Letter
In June 2020, Sir Jeffrey wrote a letter to Complainant A, which was read aloud in court on Thursday. In the letter, he expressed "regret" for the "hurt, pain and distress" he had caused.
Complainant A previously testified that she believed the letter was an attempt by Sir Jeffrey "to apologise for perhaps the abuse which had occurred."
However, Vaughan argued that this interpretation was not the "proper context."
The lawyer further claimed that Complainant A did not inform the police about the letter's context when she provided it to them following their interview with her in March 2024.
Lawyer's Position on the Letter
Vaughan questioned Complainant A:
"This has nothing to do with you and sexual assault."
He stated that Sir Jeffrey was apologising for other "behaviour."
Complainant A responded that she believed the letter was "an apology for what he did to me."
"He would never write out what he has done in a letter but he could heavily suggest and hint that he was sorry for it.
In his own way, he's using that letter as a form of apology but it's not an apology.
You can acknowledge that you have sinned. There's no detail of what that sin was."
She added that this was "not enough."
Communications and Allegations
Vaughan later referenced various communications between Complainant A and Sir Jeffrey, suggesting these showed "friendly banter" inconsistent with the abuse allegations.
Complainant A rejected the lawyer's assertions that the alleged sexual abuse incidents did not occur.
She alleges that in three separate incidents, the 63-year-old rubbed her breasts, kissed her inappropriately, and shone a light, possibly a torch, on her genital area.
"The facts are the facts and I'm sticking to those," she said.
Details of Charges
Sir Jeffrey denies charges of gross indecency and indecent assault against Complainant A when she was a child, with the alleged offences occurring between 1999 and 2008.
Other alleged offences, dating back to 1985 and including a charge of rape, involve a second woman, Complainant B, who was also a child at the time.
Related Charges Against Lady Eleanor Donaldson
Sir Jeffrey's wife, Lady Eleanor Donaldson, faces five related charges of aiding and abetting, which she has denied.
She has been found unfit for a conventional trial under the Mental Health (Northern Ireland) Order.
Consequently, a trial of the facts is being conducted in which she will not participate.
