Pandemic restrictions have once again delayed the sexual assault trial of Hedley frontman Jacob Hoggard.
The 37-year-old singer was scheduled to face a jury in January 2021 but the trial was postponed to April 2021 because Hoggard got a new lawyer and then it was pushed to January 2022 due to COVID-19.
Now, Ontario has put a hold on jury trials until at least Feb. 7 due to the spread of the Omicron variant.
Hoggard, who was charged in July 2018, has pleaded not guilty to two counts of sexual assault causing bodily harm and one count of sexual interference. He is accused of sexually assaulting two women on separate occasions in 2016. One of the alleged victims was under 16, the age of consent.
Jacob Hoggard: iHeartRadio Music News Coverage
Accusations of inappropriate behaviour with female fans began to surface online in early 2018, causing Hedley to be dumped from the Juno Awards and the band’s songs to be scrapped from radio playlists.
Hoggard said in a statement: “I have never engaged in non-consensual sexual behaviour in my life. Ever.” But, he admitted that he hasn’t treated women well. “For this,” he said, “I am truly sorry.”
Hoggard tied the knot with Rebekah Asselstine on New Year’s Eve 2018. He was previously married from 2005 to 2009.
The B.C. native placed third on the second season of Canadian Idol before breaking out as lead singer of Hedley. The band released seven studio albums between 2005 and 2017 that spawned hits like "On My Own," "Cha-Ching," "Kiss You Inside Out" and “Perfect."
Hedley has been on "an indefinite hiatus" since the end of its Cageless tour in March 2018.