Hedley frontman Jacob Hoggard enters not-guilty plea at Ontario sexual assault trial

· iNFOnews.ca
Canadian musician Jacob Hoggard has pleaded not guilty to sexual assault in a northeastern Ontario court as his trial gets underway. Justice Robin Tremblay, left to right, Assistant Crown Attorney Peter Keen, Crown Attorney Lilly Gates, Hoggard's lawyers Kally Ho, Megan Savard and Hoggard are shown in a courtroom sketch in Haileybury, Ont., Monday, Sept. 23, 2024. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Alexandra Newbould

Original Publication Date September 23, 2024 - 8:31 AM

HAILEYBURY, Ont. - Canadian musician Jacob Hoggard has pleaded not guilty to sexual assault in a northeastern Ontario court as his trial gets underway.

The former Hedley frontman, dressed in a dark suit, stood up to enter his not-guilty plea on Monday.

A jury has been selected in the trial taking place in Haileybury, a community within Temiskaming Shores, Ont.

Hoggard is facing a sexual assault charge for an incident alleged to have happened on June 25, 2016, in nearby Kirkland Lake.

He elected at the end of last year to be tried in the Superior Court of Justice by a jury.

The trial is set to continue with opening arguments on Tuesday.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 23, 2024.