A 55-year-old Ballynahinch woman, Donna Toman, has pleaded guilty to breaching a lifetime anonymity order by posting information on social media that was likely to reveal the identity of a victim in the Jeffrey Donaldson sex abuse case. Toman appeared at Downpatrick Magistrates' Court on Monday.
A defense lawyer stated that Toman was entering a guilty plea to a charge related to a social media post made earlier this year. The charge specifies that the post "was likely to lead members of the public to identify a person as the person against whom a qualifying offence is alleged to have been committed."
Police had previously stated on July 29 that the woman's arrest was connected to the Jeffrey Donaldson trial. The court heard that the offense carries a maximum sentence of six months. District Judge Magill has requested a pre-sentence report by October 12, describing the offense as "serious."
Jeffrey Donaldson, who served as a Member of Parliament from 1997 to 2024, was convicted in June on 18 counts of sex abuse, including one count of rape. The offenses were committed against two women when they were minors. The judge indicated that Donaldson would receive a lengthy sentence. He has since announced his intention to appeal his convictions.