Rugby star Stuart Hogg given payback order for home abuse

Former Scotland rugby union captain Stuart Hogg has been given a one-year neighborhood payback order after he admitted a home abuse cost in opposition to his estranged spouse.

The 32-year-old, who’s within the technique of a divorce, was beforehand given a five-year non-harassment order and fined £600 after breaching bail conditions.

He had admitted shouting and swearing and appearing in an abusive method in the direction of his spouse Gillian.

Showing at Selkirk Sheriff Courtroom, he was given the payback order – which means he can be supervised locally – and a non-harassment order was imposed once more.

Sheriff Peter Paterson informed Hogg the sentence was a substitute for custody.

The payback order can be reviewed for compliance on 25 March at Jedburgh Sheriff Courtroom.

He made no remark as he left courtroom accompanied by his mother and father.

Lynne Barrie, procurator fiscal for Lothian and Borders, mentioned Hogg had now been “held accountable for subjecting his estranged spouse to years of home abuse”.

She mentioned the Crown Workplace recognised the “devastating influence of home abuse” and was dedicated to the “sturdy prosecution of offences, no matter who the offender is”.

“No-one ought to must reside in concern of a companion or former companion,” she added.

“The trauma suffered by victims – and youngsters who witness these crimes – is important.

“I might urge anybody affected by related offending to come back ahead and report it.”

Final yr, Hogg, who performs for French membership Montpellier, admitted a single cost which associated to repeated abusive behaviour in the direction of his now estranged spouse.

Over a five-year interval, as much as August final yr, he engaged in a course of conduct which induced her concern or alarm.

The courtroom beforehand heard how he recurrently shouted and swore at his spouse whereas they lived in Hawick, in addition to after they lived in Exeter when Hogg performed for Exeter Chiefs.

He would use offensive language and criticise her for not being “enjoyable”.

The courtroom was informed this was usually in response to her wanting to remain upstairs taking care of their youngsters somewhat than going to drink with him and his associates.

Hogg, who was described as being “offended” and “controlling” through the relationship, left his sufferer scared by his behaviour when he had been consuming.

She reported “wishing for it to be morning as rapidly as potential in order that he would sober up and issues would cease”.

The cost additionally concerned Hogg monitoring his spouse’s actions via the Discover My Cellphone app after they’d cut up up in 2023, and him sending her typically a whole bunch of textual content messages within the area of some hours.

The courtroom heard that Hogg now lives overseas and is within the technique of a divorce.

Following the sentencing, Det Sgt Jade Wardell mentioned that the power wouldn’t tolerate home abuse “of any sort”.

She added: “With out the sufferer coming ahead and reporting these incidents to us, we’d not have been ready to make sure that Hogg faces the results.”

Dr Marsha Scott, chief government of Scottish Ladies’s Help, mentioned she was not stunned by the sentence.

“I believe we now have a protracted historical past of sentencing home abuse perpetrators to what are actually fairly trivial sentences within the grand scheme of issues,” she mentioned.

“I am unable to think about that anybody would assume {that a} £600 high-quality and a yr’s price of supervision is proportionate to a regime of terror for 5 years.”

Nevertheless, she mentioned she believed probably the most welcome factor could be the non-harassment order and applauded his estranged spouse for taking the case ahead.

The previous Glasgow Warriors fullback amassed a century of senior caps for his nation and was concerned in three British and Irish Lions excursions.

He stays considered one of Scotland’s all-time main strive scorers and was awarded an MBE within the 2024 New Yr honours checklist for companies to rugby union.

Hogg got here out of retirement final summer season to signal a two-year contract with Montpellier.