Warning: Contains graphic details of alleged sexual assault
The complainant in ex-Hedley frontman Jacob Hoggard’s northern Ontario sexual assault trial is lying and “very badly†wants the jury to believe she didn’t want to have sex with a famous pop star, the singer’s defence lawyer suggested Thursday as she cross-examined the woman.Ìý
“You don’t want the jury to think that you knew or were hoping to have sex with him,†lawyer Megan Savard put to the witness on her third day of testimony at the Haileybury, Ont. courthouse.Ìý
“False,†the woman said, a word she would return to when responding to Savard’s suggestions.Ìý
The complainant, whose identity is covered by a standard publication ban, is alleging that Hoggard sexually assaulted her — including slapping, choking and urinating on her — in a Kirkland Lake hotel room in June 2016 when she was 19 years old.Ìý
Hoggard has pleaded not guilty. He admits to having sexual contact with the woman, with the question of consent being the issue in dispute.Ìý
During emotional and at times tense cross-examination Thursday, Savard highlighted inconsistencies between what the complainant told police and the jury and questioned how much of her evidence are independent memories versus recollections refreshed by what she may have googled or seen in the media.Ìý
The complainant told the jury earlier this week that she met Hoggard after a Hedley concert in Kirkland Lake, when she attended a bonfire behind a local hotel that included other members of the band and teen girls. She testified that as the sun came up and the other girls left, Hoggard insisted that she stay, telling her they would “play some music and have a casual conversation.â€Ìý
She testified she thought it would be cool to have some one-on-one time with Hoggard, and that there had been no prior discussion about having sex. She followed him back to his hotel room where he allegedly took her clothes off, sexually assaulted her on the bed, and then urinated on her in the bathroom where she had gone to throw up and shower.Ìý
“My suggestion is the one-on-one time that you wanted and expected was a one-night stand with the leader of a band you liked,†Savard charged.
The lawyer also pointed out that the first time the complainant ever mentioned “music and casual conversation†as Hoggard’s reason for wanting her to stay was in court this week.
“The reason I suggest this wording is made up is because you’ve been experimenting with the right way to tell this particular lie for years now,†the defence lawyer said.Ìý
“You want the jury very badly to think that you had no idea and no wish to engage in sex on that night.â€Ìý
Earlier on Thursday, the complainant conceded that after she began testifying on Tuesday, she used Google Maps to look up the trail behind the hotel leading up to a hill where the bonfire took place, and then texted the officer in charge of the case about it.Ìý
“Yes I looked up the trail ... to see how the van possibly got up there because I self-doubted,†the woman testified.Ìý
“My memory of the night doesn’t change, but yes the visual of the hill, I see it more clearly in my head now because I’ve seen an image of it.â€
Savard pressed her on what else she may have researched, questioning which parts of her testimony were independent memories.Ìý
“I haven’t looked up anything, I find that looking up things brings up too much trauma, and it is very difficult for me to do,†said the complainant.Ìý
“My memory is my memory and the facts are the facts and that’s enough.â€
Savard showed her a screengrab of a CBC News piece from this week about the start of Hoggard’s trial, depicting a hotel room with black and brown circles on the carpet, the same kind of carpet the complainant testified she saw in Hoggard’s hotel room. While she also conceded she had read news reports this week about the trial, the complainant denied seeing the CBC item and rejected the defence’s suggestion that her recollection of the carpet is based on that news piece.Ìý
“So your independent memory is of a carpet with brown and black circles in the hotel room, but you can’t even remember if there were doors on the other side of the hallway?†Savard asked her; the complainant said, yes.Ìý
“Your confidence in coming forward to the police is not affected in any way by the research you did into Mr. Hoggard, the band, and the other details of this incident?†Savard asked her, to which she replied: “I’m confident in my memories.â€
Savard also probed the woman’s level of knowledge about the band; the complainant agreed that she understood Hoggard in 2016 to be a “rich and famous†person, but said she’s not sure if she holds that belief about him today.
When Savard asked her if she was exposed to celebrity gossip from time to time, the woman replied: “I heard that he was gay.â€
Cross-examination of the complainant continues Friday.
