What the Hoggard verdict highlights about consent and sexual violence victims

Guest: Alyshah Hasham, courts reporter

Warning: Contains graphic content.

After six days of intense deliberations and being deadlocked twice, a jury has found Canadian rock star Jacob Hoggard guilty on one of three charges. Despite similarities between the accounts of his accusers, jurors were “really internally struggling” over Hoggard’s charges and Hoggard was found guilty of sexually assaulting a young Ottawa woman but not guilty of raping and groping a teenage fan. Alyshah Hasham, courts reporter for the Star, joins “This Matters” to explain the significance of the verdict and whether it can shine a light on how the justice system — and our society — perceives consent and victims of sexual violence.

This episode was produced by Saba Eitizaz, Alexis Green and Matthew Hearn