Jury in Jacob Hoggard sex-assault trial deadlocked on ‘some counts,’ court hears

The jury deliberating whether Hedley frontman Jacob Hoggard is guilty of violently raping a teen fan and a young woman, and of sexually touching the fan when she was 15, is deadlocked on some counts," court heard Thursday.

The jury has been deliberating since Tuesday afternoon. Roughly an hour after starting their deliberations on Thursday morning they sent a note to Superior Court Justice Gillian Roberts to say they cannot reach a unanimous verdict on some counts."

Hoggard has pleaded not guilty to two counts of sexual assault causing bodily harm and one count of sexual touching of a minor. All the allegations date back to 2016.

As is typical when a jury says they are deadlocked for the first time, Roberts exhorted" them to continue trying to reach unanimous verdicts on all counts.

She told the jury to try a different approach to their discussions and to keep an open mind as they listen to each other's views. She reminded them if there was a dispute over facts, they could listen back to the evidence.

After the jury filed out, Roberts said there was nothing more to do now than wait.

Alyshah Hasham is a Toronto-based reporter covering crime and court for the Star. Follow her on Twitter: @alysanmati