Northern Irish politician and DUP leader, 2021–2024
The former Democratic Unionist Party leader, Jeffrey Donaldson, is standing trial in Newry Crown Court on 18 charges spanning 1985 to 2008, including a rape count. His wife, Eleanor Donaldson, faces separate charges. Both deny the allegations as the case proceeds.
Former Democratic Unionist Party leader Jeffrey Donaldson has been found guilty on 18 counts of child sex offences, including rape and indecent assault, involving two victims who were children at the time. His wife, Eleanor, is deemed to have aided and abetted some offences but was found unfit for trial on mental health grounds. Sentencing will follow later this year.
Two high-profile UK actors have been found guilty of multiple sexual offences against women between 2004 and 2019. One case involves a former River City star convicted of rape, with sentencing set for July 23. The other case centers on a Glasgow-based actor also convicted of five offences after trial.
The former leader of Northern Ireland’s DUP has been found guilty of 18 historical sexual offences against two women who were children at the time. He has renounced his knighthood and resigned from the Privy Council; honours removal now proceeds under the Forfeiture Committee process, pending royal approval. The case triggers scrutiny of state honours tied to figures found guilty of criminal offences.
Two Independent articles outline the human impact of indefinite IPP detention, showing how uncertainty over sentences and repeated recalls drive despair, with fresh cases prompting calls for urgent reform.
Campaigners say Edwards’s Substack commentary shows a troubling return to public debate around his case, while he says he is trying to rebuild a meaningful life and discuss mental health after pleading guilty in 2024 to possessing indecent images of children.
Conservative MP Patrick Spencer has been found not guilty of two counts of sexual assault after a trial at Southwark Crown Court concerning incidents at the Groucho Club in August 2023. The jury has cleared him; he has maintained innocence and described the proceedings as a test of character.