Jeffrey Donaldson sentencing: 'For years I carried shame, anger and guilt, and questioned if I was worthy of being loved' said victim
One of Jeffrey Donaldson’s victims said she learned to survive the trauma of his crimes by “shutting away” her emotions, trusting no one and expecting people to hurt her.
The former DUP leader, aged 63, was sentenced to 15 years for 18 charges of non-recent child sexual abuse offences, including the rape of a child under the age of 13.
He will also be placed on the Sex Offenders Register indefinitely, and is subject to a 10-year Sexual Offences Prevention Order (SOPO).
His 60-year-old wife Eleanor Donaldson was also found, following a trial of the facts, to have done the acts alleged in relation to five charges including four of aiding and abetting her husband’s abuse
The victims, now adults, were only seven years old when the sexual abuse against them both began during the years 1985-2008.
Following sentencing of the former Lagan Valley MP, both victims released anonymised statements through the PSNI.
Victim A said: “My childhood was stolen from me and I will never get it back. The effects of the Donaldsons’ actions have bled into every part of my life.
"Although the offences happened in the past, their impact did not end when the abuse ended.
"For years I carried shame, anger and guilt, and questioned whether I was worth protecting or worthy of being loved. I learnt to survive by shutting away my emotions, trusting no one and expecting people to hurt me.
"I became strong, resilient and fiercely independent, but those qualities came at a cost. I should never have had to become this strong.
The woman described the last few years as “nothing short of a battle”.
She continued: “The conviction does not erase the abuse or undo the impact of what happened to me, and I will always carry the consequences of it.
"But those responsible do not control me now. They forever changed me, but they will not take my future. The cycle is being broken and it ends with me.”
Victim B said said that what happened to her as a child has affected everything since then, every day and every relationship she have ever had.
"At times I wonder who I would be if this hadn’t happened to me,” she said.
"What would it be like not to be afraid at night, not to wake up shaking, not to have nightmares and not to lock away every feeling I have?
"What happened took away my ability to trust people and, in all honesty, I don’t think I really know what trust or love truly is. Nothing can ever change what was done to me. I wish it could.
"I stood up, many years later, because for me this is about drawing a line in the sand and knowing that the Donaldson’s can no longer hurt anyone else,” the woman said.
"Many people get to look ahead and plan their lives with hope, I’ve never known what that feels like. My hope was taken away from me a long time ago.”