Allegations Against Jacob Hoggard

 

Jacob Hoggard is on trial for two allegations of sexual assault from 2016.  He has not been found guilty by a Court of Law.  

However, he has admitted to having consensual sex with each of the complainants.  Both complainants essentially had just turned 16 which is the age of consent in Ontario.  Both complainants also allege a web based relationship with Hoggard prior to the assaults.  Someone could make the argument that Hoggard had been grooming them prior to them reaching the age of consent.  

Sadly, I have personal experience testifying about a sexual assault.  It was horrible.  The defence counsel has a job to do and victims are prepped for cross examination but it is never good enough.  Victims feel like they are on trial.  They are sharing details about their life they wish no one would ever know.  Unfortunately, no matter how much you feel like you want closure or how prepared you are or how deep your resolve, testifying is traumatic.  

Which is one of the reasons why sexual assaults rarely get to the Court stage.  

In this case, the alleged assaults took place in 2016.  This is 2022.  That is six years.  Six years that these two young women have been living in limbo.  Six years when you are 16.  They are now 22.  We all know a lot of emotional maturity happens in those years.  Sadly, these two young women won't have experienced this and their growth will essentially be stunted.  

Equally, sadly, the pandemic probably doesn't have a lot to do with why it took 6 years.  It just takes forever.  The wheels of justice are unbearably slow.  

Which is one of the reasons why sexual assaults rarely get to the Court stage.  

Most victims give up long before it reaches the Court stage.  They just want to move on.  Plus the police and Crown only want to lay a charge and take a matter to Court if they are "reasonably sure" that they will get a conviction.  One way to ensure that they are likely to get a conviction is evidence.  Most often, in sexual assault cases there is little evidence.  Victims are often in shock or feel shame or just take time processing what happened to them.  They often don't report immediately.  Even if there are injuries, the alleged perpetrator can claim rough consensual sex.  Prosecutors want perfect witnesses in order to ensure a conviction.  There are no perfect witnesses.  Police and prosecutors take calculated risks and often determine not to take a case to court.  

Which is one of the reasons why sexual assaults rarely get to the Court stage.  

The reality is that there are hundreds of reasons why sexual assaults rarely get to the Court stage.  The reality is it is such a small percentage of assaults that make it to Court and even a small percentage of those cases result in a conviction.  

In this case, the allegations are very similar.  There was grooming activity of young impressionable teenage girls resulting in violent sexual encounters that occurred over several hours.  Two might not constitute a pattern but the consistency of the details suggest that a pattern may exist.  Who knows how many other potential victims were identified and for whatever reason, it was decided to only proceed with these two victims.  

Regardless of the outcome, I am reasonably certain that neither victim will feel that justice has been served.  But, hopefully it can conclude quickly so that they can begin to move on.  

Society still has some work to do on justice for sexual assaults.