WARNING: This article contains graphic content and may affect those who have experienced sexual violence or know someone affected by it.
Canadian rock musician Jacob Hoggard was found guilty of sexual assault with bodily harm after violently raping an Ottawa woman in the fall of 2016, but a Toronto jury acquitted him of sexually assaulting a 16-year-old fan.
The former Hedley frontman was also acquitted of one charge of sexual interference, a crime that refers to touching someone under the age of 16. The charge stemmed from an allegation that the musician had groped the younger complainant at one of her concerts when she was 15 years old.
Hoggard, 37, has pleaded not guilty to all three charges and his trial began in the Ontario Superior Court of Justice on May 5, after multiple delays due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Judge Gillian Roberts gave instructions to the jury on Tuesday. Deliberations lasted more than 40 hours before the jury returned with a decision on Sunday.
Judgment
A conviction for sexual assault carries a maximum prison sentence of 14 years; there is no minimum sentence unless it is a firearm or the complainant is under the age of 16.
The musician was also charged with a third count of sexual assault causing bodily harm, information that was only made public Tuesday to ensure the jury was not swayed by the new allegations.
Earlier this month, the court heard testimony that Hoggard repeatedly raped a young woman and a teenage fan in Toronto-area hotel rooms in separate incidents in the fall of 2016.
Both women testified that they cried and said no during the encounters, which left them bleeding, bruised and sore.
WARNING: This video contains graphic content and may affect those who have experienced sexual violence or know someone affected by it. An Ottawa-area woman is the second accuser to testify about alleged sexual abuse at the hands of Hedley leader Jacob Hoggard.
In her closing arguments, crown counsel Jill Witkin noted that Hoggard testified that he was certain both complainants consented to their sexual encounters, but could not say how they expressed that consent and had no detailed recollection of what happened. .
The Ottawa woman told the court she agreed to meet Hoggard in Toronto for sex on Nov. 22, 2016. But instead of consensual sex, she was raped anally, vaginally and orally, and at one point dragged by legs to the bathroom. she, she told the court.
Both complainants testified that Hoggard spat in their mouths, slapped them, and called them derogatory names. The Ottawa woman testified that Hoggard strangled her so tightly that she feared for her life.
In his testimony, the musician told the court that he had consensual “passionate” sexual relations with each of the complainants.
He acknowledged that some of the acts the women described, including spitting, slapping and calling them profane names, may have occurred because they were part of their sexual repertoire.
Since he was first accused of sexual assault in 2018, Hoggard’s music career has come crashing down and Hedley is no longer together. He said that he now works as a carpenter and is married with a young son.
Support is available to anyone who has been sexually assaulted. You can access crisis lines and local support services through this Government of Canada website or the Canadian Partnership to End Violence Database. If you are in immediate danger or fear for your safety or the safety of those around you, call 911.
Reference-www.cbc.ca