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A defendant was declared guilty on appeal of sexually assaulting Gisele Pelicot following she was rendered comatose by her then-husband – and was given his incarceration period raised to ten years.

Retrial Proceedings

The defendant, forty-four, an unemployed builder, who had challenged his initial guilty verdict last year, faced a new trial this week at the higher court in Nîmes.

A jury of four women and five men, sitting with three judges, ruled against Dogan on Thursday of raping the victim in her residence in the south of France in the morning of June 29, 2019.

The testimony revealed that the accused, a family man, reached out to Gisèle Pelicot’s spouse, Dominique Pelicot, in an online chatroom titled “without her knowledge”, where the husband was looking for men to come to his home to assault his wife once he had sedated her into a deep sleep.

We trust the panel will say loud and clear that in this country, human rights are also rights of women – that permission is personal, not transferred,” stated the victim's lawyer, her legal representative. “Permission is received directly and not by proxy from a spouse.”

Context

The ex-husband, one of the worst sexual predators in modern French history, was handed a sentence to twenty years in prison last year for incapacitating his spouse and bringing in numerous individuals to sexually assault her in her home in the community of the village of Mazan over a period of many years of their marriage.

Numerous other individuals were found convicted in a widely publicized trial last year, and the appellant was the only man to appeal against his verdict. He was initially given a sentence to 9 years in prison, a punishment increased on Thursday to 10 years.

The state's attorney, the prosecutor, had contended he should serve twelve years, because he “absolutely refuses to take any blame”.

Evidence Presented

Dogan had first sent the husband sexually explicit photos and then driven an hour from his residence in Provence to rape the victim, after telling his wife he was stepping out, the court heard.

Pelicot, who was transported from isolation in prison to briefly testify at the retrial, told the court that Dogan had understood his wife had been “sedated” and he told to men by phone: “I seek someone to abuse my wife after I’ve put her to sleep without her knowledge.”

The trial became a central issue for a larger conversation on rape culture in society as the defendant continued to claim he was blameless and had not engaged in violation, stating that because Gisèle Pelicot’s husband had invited him into the residence, his actions had been acceptable.

The panel in the higher court was presented with visual proof of the victim's limp body, comatose and snoring in a comatose state, while a grinning Dogan performed assault on several occasions over a period of what investigators stated was 3.5 hours. The judge said she had been at risk of fatal outcome by choking. The prosecution said there was no question that she had been unaware and had not agreed.

Dogan's Claims

Dogan stated to the court the footage were simply “sexual encounters” and rejected it was rape. He said what he did was “a consensual activity”, not assault. He told the court: “I never raped.” He said the victim's husband had brought him to the house, and therefore it was permissible. He said he was influenced by the husband. “I tried to halt,” Dogan informed the court. “I proceeded because he convinced me.”

Questioned if he wanted to make a last words to the court, Dogan said: “I never wanted to hurt that individual.”

Survivor's Statement

Gisèle Pelicot, who was applauded upon leaving court each day by supporters gathered to back her, addressed the defendant in court: “You do not grasp. When will you acknowledge you violated me? It’s a crime to assault an incapacitated woman. At what point did I give you agreement? At no time.”

The victim, seventy-two, became an international feminist hero after she waived her right to anonymity in the trial last year when she said: “The shame should shift.”

Legal Commentary

Sie, turning to the victim in court, said the defendant's refusal to take blame showed that: “Shame has not yet changed sides. The public is perhaps in the midst of that, perhaps propelled by the societal understanding resulting from the revelation of your case.”

Sie said Dogan’s claims of blamelessness showed how rape culture was still common in society as part of “outdated” forms of “gender-based power”. He said: “Now we must change the culture of violence to a ethos of permission.”

The prosecutor addressed the defendant: “As long as you reject it, it’s not just a woman, it’s an complete unpleasant societal structure that you are upholding.”

Defendant's Background

The accused was originated from the country of Turkey and at the age of five came to the nation of France, where his parent worked as a concierge. The testimony revealed that his parent was abusive and that the defendant began consuming marijuana at the age of 10. When Dogan was 17 he was stopped by police for selling narcotics and his parent evicted him of home. He was incarcerated in prison for drug dealing in his young adulthood and had worked as a laborer but had undergone periods of living on the streets.

He was married and had a son with a genetic condition, who he was the main caregiver for, as his wife worked in a school canteen. The court heard his spouse did not know he had regular sexual encounters outside their union. His defence said this was his strategy for managing with his challenging existence. The defendant had informed a court psychologist that annually he looked for paid sex on his special day. His attorneys stated to the court he had arthritis resulting from the anxiety of the original case.