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An individual was declared guilty on higher court review of raping Gisele Pelicot following she was drugged unconscious by her spouse – and received his prison sentence increased to ten years.

Retrial Proceedings

The defendant, 44, an unemployed builder, who had appealed his initial guilty verdict last year, underwent a appeal hearing this week at the Nîmes court of appeal.

A jury of four women and five men, joined by three judges, convicted Dogan on Thursday of sexually assaulting the victim in her home in the south of France in the morning of June 29, 2019.

The evidence showed that Dogan, a family man, connected with Gisèle Pelicot’s then husband, the husband, in an online chatroom named “unbeknownst to her”, where Pelicot was seeking men to enter his residence to rape his wife after he had rendered her unconscious into a deep sleep.

We expect the court will say loud and clear that in this society, fundamental rights are also rights of women – that consent is individual, not transferred,” stated Gisèle Pelicot’s lawyer, Antoine Camus. “Permission is secured personally and not by proxy from a spouse.”

Background

The husband, a notorious sex offenders in recent French history, was handed a sentence to 20 years in prison last year for sedating his then wife and bringing in multiple perpetrators to rape her in her home in the town of Mazan over a duration of almost a decade of their marriage.

Fifty other men were found convicted in a high-profile trial last year, and the appellant was the only man to contest his sentence. He was originally sentenced to nine years in prison, a penalty increased on Thursday to a decade.

The lead state prosecutor, Dominique Sie, had contended he should serve twelve years, because he “absolutely refuses to take any responsibility”.

Testimony and Proof

Dogan had first sent Dominique Pelicot inappropriate pictures and then traveled an hour from his residence in the region to assault the victim, after telling his wife he was leaving, the evidence indicated.

The ex-husband, who was brought from isolation in prison to briefly testify at the appeal trial, informed the court that the accused had known his wife had been “incapacitated” and he said to men by phone: “I’m looking for someone to assault my wife after I’ve rendered her unconscious without her consent.”

The courtroom became a key topic for a broader debate on rape culture in society as the defendant continued to claim he was innocent and had not engaged in violation, arguing that because the victim's husband had invited him into the residence, his conduct had been justifiable.

The jury in the higher court was presented with video evidence of Gisèle Pelicot’s unresponsive form, sedated and breathing heavily in a deep sleep, while a grinning Dogan performed assault on several occasions over a period of what police said was three and a half hours. The judge said she had been at risk of fatal outcome by suffocation. The state's case said there was no doubt that she had been unconscious and had not agreed.

Accused's Testimony

Dogan informed the court the videos were simply “sex scenes” and disputed it was assault. He said what he did was “an intimate behavior”, not rape. He told the court: “I did not commit rape.” He said Gisèle Pelicot’s husband had allowed him to the residence, and therefore it was OK. He said he was deceived by Dominique Pelicot. “I attempted to cease,” Dogan stated to the court. “I proceeded because he convinced me.”

Inquired if he wanted to make a final statement to the court, Dogan said: “I did not intend to injure that individual.”

Victim's Response

The victim, who was cheered upon exiting the courtroom each day by onlookers assembled to back her, addressed Dogan in court: “You haven’t understood. When are you going to recognise you assaulted me? It is unlawful to assault an unaware woman. When did I ever give you agreement? Not once.”

Gisèle Pelicot, seventy-two, became an symbol of resistance after she gave up her right to privacy in the trial last year when she said: “Shame must change sides.”

State's Argument

Sie, addressing the victim in court, said Dogan’s unwillingness to take responsibility showed that: “Guilt has not shifted. The public is perhaps in the process of that, perhaps motivated by the societal understanding spurred by the revelation of your ordeal.”

The prosecutor said Dogan’s claims of non-guilt showed how rape culture was still common in society as part of “old-fashioned” forms of “patriarchal control”. He said: “It is imperative to change the culture of violence to a ethos of permission.”

Sie said to Dogan: “As long as you reject it, it’s not just a person, it’s an whole disturbing cultural framework that you are endorsing.”

Biographical Details

Dogan was born in the country of Turkey and at the age of 5 moved to France, where his father worked as a concierge. The testimony revealed that his parent was violent and that the defendant began consuming marijuana aged 10. When Dogan was seventeen he was apprehended by police for selling narcotics and his father evicted him of home. He was incarcerated in prison for narcotics offenses in his twenties and had worked as a laborer but had faced periods of being unhoused.

He was wed and had a son with Down’s syndrome, who he was the main caregiver for, as his wife worked in a school canteen. The testimony revealed his spouse did not know he had frequent sexual encounters outside their union. His legal team said this was his way of coping with his difficult circumstances. The defendant had informed a evaluator that once a year he engaged in commercial sex on his birthday. His legal representatives stated to the court he had joint inflammation caused by the stress of the first trial.