By Bob Mackin, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, Prince George Citizen

Assault

Acquittal for man charged with assaulting his ex-girlfriend

Nov 15, 2025 | 12:18 PM

PRINCE GEORGE — A man accused of assaulting his ex-girlfriend was found not guilty on Nov. 10 in Prince George Provincial Court.

Judge Peter McDermick concluded the Crown had not met its duty to prove the case against Robert Douglas Hoggan and the judge believed the accused man was acting in self-defence.

Hoggan shared a house with the complainant, with whom he began dating in July 2020. They broke up in January 2024, but continued to live in different parts of the house and care for two dogs. The woman and her daughter would only stay in the house when Hoggan was not there.

On March 5, 2024, the woman was surprised when she arrived and found Hoggan, who worked a rotating two-week schedule, standing at the garage door. They had a verbal dispute which escalated into a pushing and slapping match. The complainant testified he grabbed her by the hair and slammed her on the ground.

McDermick called the woman a good witness and that he was “slightly troubled” by Hoggan’s purported belief that she was there to take the dogs.

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Hoggan testified in his own defence and disavowed any wrongdoing, “noting that any contact by him was in self-defence.” McDermick said the Crown conceded there was an “air of reality to the self-defence” and noted that the complainant struck Hoggan in the face twice with a closed fist.

Hoggan and the complainant gave materially differing accounts, leaving McDermick to gauge their reliability and credibility. He said he would “easily conclude that Mr. Hoggan probably assaulted [the woman], just like she said he did,” but that is not the threshold.

“Although I have concerns with Mr. Hoggan’s testimony, I don’t reject it outright,” McDermick said. “Even though I do not necessarily fully accept the accused’s evidence, nevertheless, after considering it in conjunction with the full body of evidence before me, I believe, or have a reasonable doubt, that he was acting in lawful self-defence.”