A woman who claims she was raped as a child by Sir Jeffrey Donaldson has told a court she should have brought the alleged abuse to police years earlier but had “tried not to be a victim”.
Continuing to give evidence at Newry Crown Court, the woman also denied she had raised the allegations as a teenager as a way of getting out of attending a Christian centre in Co Antrim.
The woman, known as complainant B, is the older of two alleged victims who have accused the former DUP leader of sexual abuse.
The court has previously heard details of her claim that she was raped when of primary school age by the former politician. Ten of the 18 sex abuse charges Donaldson denies relate to complainant B, with the offences allegedly committed between 1985 and 1991.
Eleanor Donaldson, from Dublinhill Road, Dromore, Co Down, denies several charges of aiding and abetting her husband’s alleged offending. She is facing a trial of the facts.
Cross-examination continues
On Wednesday morning, barrister for Jeffrey Donaldson, Kieran Vaughan KC, resumed his cross-examination of complainant B at Newry Crown Court. Donaldson sat in the dock at the back of the courtroom.
Mr Vaughan said that complainant B had been sent to the Christian Family Centre in Armoy after she had started to take drugs in her teenage years. She told the court that she had taken ecstasy and marijuana, but denied that she was addicted to the substances.
He said: “That is the background to how you ended up in Armoy.” She responded: “Yes.” He said: “You didn’t enjoy being taken to Armoy at that time?” She said: “I didn’t know anybody … it was so far away.”
Complainant B added that she originally thought her issues could have been “dealt with at home”, but said going there “turned out probably one of the best things that ever happened to me”.
The barrister said while at the centre, complainant B had spoken to a woman at the facility. The witness confirmed she had told her about alleged abuse by Donaldson, but did not go into details.
Mr Vaughan said: “Did you tell her it was sexual abuse?” She said: “I am pretty sure I did.” When asked if she had told her about the alleged rape, the woman said she had never told anybody about that before she told police.
The barrister asked: “Was this in some way a part of you trying to get out of Armoy?” She responded: “No, I had friends up there … it wasn’t that in any way whatsoever.” Asked if it was an attempt to deflect, she said “definitely not”.
Conversation with pastor
The barrister said she had then spoken to a pastor at the centre about the allegations. She said: “I felt he was a safe person to say this to.” Mr Vaughan asked why her conversation with the pastor was not in her statement to police. She said: “It was just something I forgot about … I should have remembered.”
The barrister asked her if she remembered the pastor saying he would go to the police. She said: “I don’t remember that.” The barrister asked her if she had told the pastor not to go to police, and that if he did, she would say it was “all a lie”. She said: “I don’t remember that … if I did it would have been the stupidest thing I ever said.”
Complainant B added: “I should have said ‘please go, I will go with you’.” “I should have, I was so afraid of this, of what this is. I didn’t want it to be made a thing of, I was so embarrassed.”
She added: “I tried to move on, to be the bigger person. I tried not to be the victim, I tried to build a life.”
Complainant B said she blamed herself for the later alleged abuse of the other complainant in the case. She said: “It is my fault what happened.”
The court had previously heard complainant B state that Donaldson had met her at the Christian centre and apologised. The barrister asked her if she remembered saying during this meeting that Donaldson “hadn’t made her comfortable”. She said she did not remember. He asked her if she remembered Donaldson saying “if that was the way he made her feel, then he apologised”. She said: “The reason why he was there was to apologise … he pushed my legs apart, that is the truth of what had happened.”
After lunch, the complainant will be cross-examined by the barrister representing Eleanor Donaldson. The trial continues.
