Cliff Notes
- Sheriff Peter Paterson has urged Stuart Hogg to accept the consequences of his domestic abuse conviction and move on from any feelings of injustice.
- Hogg pleaded guilty to domestic abuse against his estranged wife, which included alarming messages and excessive tracking of her movements.
- Following his guilty plea, Hogg received a community payback order and was warned by the sheriff that he must comply with the conditions to avoid custody.
Former Scotland rugby captain Stuart Hogg urged to stop feeling ‘hard done by’ over domestic abuse conviction | UK News
A sheriff is urging former Scotland rugby captain Stuart Hogg to face the consequences of his domestic abuse and “move on” from feeling “hard done by”.
Hogg, 32, last year pleaded guilty to a single charge of domestic abuse of his estranged wife, Gillian Hogg, between 2019 and 2024.
He admitted shouting and swearing, tracking her movements and sending her messages which were alarming and distressing in nature.
A court heard how he berated his ex-partner for “not being fun” after going on drinking binges with his colleagues, and once sent more than 200 text messages to her in the space of a few hours, causing her to suffer a panic attack.
In January, Hogg was handed a community payback order (CPO) with one year of supervision and a five-year non-harassment order.
He had earlier been fined £600 for breaching bail conditions by repeatedly contacting Mrs Hogg when prohibited from doing so.
Sheriff Peter Paterson warned the sentence was an “alternative to custody”.
A review of the CPO took place at Jedburgh Sheriff Court on Tuesday, which Hogg was excused from attending.
His lawyer, Mat Patrick, told the court: “We are just shy of three months into the order and the review report confirms that he is fully complying with the appointments, there have been no missed appointments.
“As far as progress is concerned, it looks like progress requires to be made but it is a 12-month order and is against the background of quite a difficult divorce which is ongoing at the moment and all the emotions that can come with that, and that has played a part.
“Obviously there is work to be done.”
Sheriff Paterson said it was “not entirely surprising” that Hogg might feel “hard done by”, but that he needed to move on.
He said: “He is the one that pleaded guilty and he has to face the consequences of his actions and he has to move on from that.”
The sheriff fixed a further review to take place on 16 June.
He said: “If progress is satisfactory he will not have to attend, but if there is any difficulty he will have to attend.”
Former Glasgow Warriors and Exeter Chiefs full back Hogg, who now plays for French club Montpellier, was awarded an MBE for his services to rugby in last year’s New Year Honours list.
SNP Westminster leader Stephen Flynn has called for the sportsman to be stripped of his MBE in the wake of the court case.