WARNING: This article contains graphic content and may affect those who have experienced sexual violence or know someone affected by it.
Prosecutors and defense lawyers are expected to make their final pitch today to jurors hearing the sex assault trial of Canadian musician Jacob Hoggard.
Hoggard, 37, has pleaded not guilty to two counts of sexual assault causing bodily harm and one of sexual interference, a charge that refers to the sexual touching of someone under 16.
The Crown alleges Hoggard, the frontman for the band Hedley, repeatedly raped a teenage fan and a young woman in separate incidents in the fall of 2016. Both tested they cried and said no throughout the encounters.
WATCH | Jacob Hoggard testifies that both encounters were consensual:
WARNING: This video contains distressing details | Hedley’s Jacob Hoggard took the stand in his sexual assault trial on Tuesday, denying allegations of rape from two female complainants and insisting both encounters were consensual.
It’s also alleged Hoggard, who was born in BC’s Lower Mainland, groped the younger complainant backstage after a Hedley concert in Toronto in April 2016, when she was still 15.
The defense says the groping never happened, and argues the sexual encounters were consensual.
Hoggard testified earlier this week that he had consensual, “passionate” sex with each of the complainants in Toronto-area hotels.
Support is available for anyone who has been sexually assaulted. You can access crisis lines and local support services through this Government of Canada website or the Ending Violence Association of Canada database. If you’re in immediate danger or fear for your safety or that of others around you, please call 911.
