Canadian musician Jacob Hoggard’s attraction of his sexual assault conviction was heard at Ontario’s high courtroom on Wednesday, as the previous Hedley frontman sought a brand new trial.
Hoggard was sentenced to 5 years behind bars in October 2022 after being discovered responsible of sexual assault inflicting bodily hurt towards an Ottawa lady, an offence the presiding choose known as a “significantly degrading rape.”
The musician was granted bail hours after being sentenced, pending his attraction within the case.
Paperwork filed by Hoggard’s legal professionals with the Court docket of Attraction for Ontario mentioned he’s interesting his conviction on 4 grounds, together with that the trial choose erred by admitting the proof of Lori Haskell, a scientific psychologist, on the neurobiology of trauma.
In addition they argued the trial choose wrongly permitted the Crown to argue that the skilled’s proof supported the credibility of the girl Hoggard was discovered to have sexually assaulted.
“This arrow cuts proper into the guts of the difficulty on this case,” Gerald Chan, one in every of Hoggard’s legal professionals argued in courtroom Wednesday. “This isn’t a peripheral a part of the trial. This isn’t associated to tangential items of proof.”
The trial choose allowed the psychologist, over the objections of the defence, to provide the jury a generic “science” lesson on the neurobiology of trauma so long as she didn’t hyperlink the proof to the complainants, who she didn’t assess, Hoggard’s legal professionals mentioned in courtroom paperwork.
“Dr. Haskell testified that experiencing a traumatic occasion could cause reminiscence to fragment and lack coherent narrative. The relevance of this proof, nevertheless, assumed the existence of the very traumatic occasions at difficulty within the trial — specifically, the alleged sexual assaults,” they argued.
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“Except the jury assumed Hoggard was responsible, Dr. Haskell’s proof was irrelevant. It ought to by no means have been admitted.”
The authorized workforce additional argued that the trial choose delivered an “impermissibly imbalanced” jury cost relating to inconsistencies within the lady’s testimony in comparison with these in Hoggard’s testimony – they argued the choose gave the jury the misimpression that the girl and Hoggard had an equal variety of inconsistencies when “in actuality J.B. had extra.”
The Crown argued in courtroom paperwork that the psychologist’s proof was correctly admitted at trial, and the trial choose pared down the skilled proof on the neurobiology of trauma to the “established science” that the defence didn’t problem on cross-examination.
“It was related to not bolster credibility however to assist the jury assess counter-intuitive behaviour which may be misunderstood owing to myths and stereotypes. It was crucial as a result of the scientific rationalization behind these behaviours is past laypersons’ capability to know,” the Crown wrote.
“With out it there was a threat the complainants’ proof can be unfairly discounted. Though not a neurobiologist, Dr. Haskell had intensive neurobiology of trauma coaching and instructing expertise. Any potential for prejudice was addressed by way of paring down the proof’s scope, the chance for cross-examination and offering customized mid-trial and closing jury directions.”
The Crown – which has requested that the attraction be dismissed – additionally argued that directions to the jury on prior inconsistent statements was balanced and honest to Hoggard.
At trial, Hoggard was discovered responsible of sexual assault inflicting bodily hurt towards an Ottawa lady and acquitted of the identical cost towards a teenage fan. He was additionally discovered not responsible of sexual interference, a cost that refers back to the sexual touching of somebody beneath 16, in relation to the teenager.
The Crown alleged at trial that Hoggard groped the teenager after a Hedley present in Toronto in April 2016, then violently raped her in a Toronto-area lodge room later that yr after she turned 16. They alleged Hoggard then violently raped the Ottawa lady in a downtown Toronto lodge in November 2016.
Hoggard – who had pleaded not responsible to all costs – acknowledged having intercourse with each complainants, however denied sexually assaulting them. Because of this, the case turned on the difficulty of consent.
The musician whose band, Hedley, rose to fame after he got here in third on the truth present Canadian Idol in 2004, was charged in 2018.
The band went on an indefinite hiatus when allegations of sexual misconduct surfaced. Its final present was in Kelowna, B.C., on March 24, 2018.
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