Former Hollywood star with 109 convictions jailed for attacking his ex
A former Hollywood actor has been jailed after a shocking attack on his ex in the middle of a street.
Jason Hoganson had a leading role in the 1988 film Empire State, alongside Irish actor Ray McAnally, Jamie Foreman and US star Martin Landau.
But as his movie career started to take off, Hoganson struggled with being in the spotlight and fell into a life of drink, drugs and crime.
His face that once made him a silver screen star is now criss-crossed with angry scars and his head is covered in large, distinctive tattoos.
Newcastle Crown Court heard Hoganson, who now has 109 convictions on his record, was caught on a doorbell video camera when he attacked his former partner in Newcastle on December 11 last year.
Prosecutor Amy Levitt said Hoganson already had a restraining order to keep him away from the woman when he attacked her.
Miss Levitt told the court: ‘Footage shows the defendant assaulting the complainant. He slaps her to the face and she walks away. He walks after her.
‘There are further hits and a push, where she falls to the floor.
‘The assault continues while she’s lying on the floor.
‘She describes him, having pushed her, hit her, kicked her and put his body weight on her.
‘The assault lasted around three minutes.’
Miss Levitt said Hoganson had been given a restraining order to keep him away from the victim after he was convicted of offences of battery and criminal damage in May last year.
Hoganson, 53, of no fixed address, admitted assault by beating and breach of a restraining order.
Ian Crook, defending, told the court: ‘He was an accomplished actor. He actually secured a role, quite a leading role, in a film, a crime thriller.
‘At that point the future was bright.’
Mr Crook said Hoganson already had personal struggles at that point and added: ‘Being thrown into the spotlight wasn’t easy for him to cope with. He turned to drink and drugs and that led to a downward spiral.’
Hoganson has a complex mental health history but has been a mentor for others while in prison on remand, he added.
Judge Tim Gittins sentenced Hoganson to 18 months behind bars, most of which he has already served on remand.
In 1987, the producers of a low-budget film contacted Hoganson’s drama teacher to say they were looking for Geordie actors.
After auditioning more than 100 teenage hopefuls, he was offered a part in Empire State, a gritty drama set in 1980s London.
He played the role of Geordie drifter Pete, in the movie directed by Ron Peck.
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