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A man was convicted on higher court review of sexually assaulting Gisele Pelicot following she was sedated by her husband – and received his prison sentence raised to a decade.

Retrial Proceedings

Dogan, forty-four, an out-of-work construction worker, who had appealed his first conviction last year, underwent a appeal hearing this week at the higher court in Nîmes.

A jury of nine jurors, accompanied by three judges, ruled against Dogan on Thursday of raping Pelicot in her bedroom in the south of France in the early hours of June 29, 2019.

The court heard that the accused, a married father, reached out to Gisèle Pelicot’s husband at the time, Dominique Pelicot, in an internet forum titled “without her consent”, where Pelicot was recruiting men to visit his house to assault his wife after he had drugged her into a deep sleep.

We expect the panel will declare that in this society, fundamental rights are also women’s rights – that agreement is individual, not given by another,” stated Gisèle Pelicot’s attorney, her legal representative. “Agreement is obtained personally and not by proxy from a spouse.”

Background

The ex-husband, among the most severe sex offenders in modern French history, was given a prison term to 20 years in prison last year for sedating his wife at the time and bringing in multiple perpetrators to rape her in her home in the community of Mazan over a span of nearly ten years of their union.

Fifty other men were found guilty in a widely publicized trial last year, and the appellant was the sole individual to appeal against his verdict. He was first handed a term to 9 years in prison, a sentence raised on Thursday to ten years.

The lead state prosecutor, Dominique Sie, had stated he should serve twelve years, because he “completely denies to take any accountability”.

Testimony and Proof

The defendant had first sent Dominique Pelicot graphic images and then traveled an hour from his village in Provence to rape Gisèle Pelicot, after informing his wife he was stepping out, the evidence indicated.

The ex-husband, who was transported from segregation in prison to briefly testify at the appeal trial, stated to the court that Dogan had been aware his wife had been “sedated” and he told to men by phone: “I seek someone to abuse my wife after I’ve rendered her unconscious without her consent.”

The trial became a central issue for a broader debate on sexual violence norms in society as Dogan continued to assert he was innocent and had not perpetrated assault, arguing that because the victim's husband had invited him into the residence, his conduct had been acceptable.

The jury in the Nîmes appeals court was presented with recorded footage of the victim's unresponsive form, sedated and breathing heavily in a deep sleep, while a grinning Dogan committed rape on several occasions over a duration of what police said was three and a half hours. The presiding judge said she had been at risk of death by asphyxiation. The state's case said there was absolute certainty that she had been unaware and had not consented.

Accused's Testimony

Dogan told the court the recordings were simply “sexual encounters” and denied it was rape. He said what he did was “a consensual activity”, not rape. He declared the court: “I did not commit rape.” He said the victim's husband had allowed him to the residence, and therefore it was acceptable. He said he was manipulated by the husband. “I attempted to cease,” the accused told the court. “I proceeded because he convinced me.”

Questioned if he wanted to make a final statement to the court, the defendant said: “I had no desire to injure that lady.”

Pelicot's Words

The survivor, who was applauded upon departing the trial each day by supporters gathered to back her, told Dogan in court: “You fail to comprehend. When will you admit you violated me? It’s a crime to assault an unconscious woman. When did I ever give you agreement? Never.”

Gisèle Pelicot, 72, became an international feminist hero after she relinquished her right to anonymity in the trial last year when she said: “The shame should shift.”

Prosecutor's Remarks

The prosecutor, speaking to Gisèle Pelicot in court, said Dogan’s unwillingness to take blame showed that: “Guilt has not shifted. Society is perhaps in the course of that, perhaps propelled by the collective awareness brought by the publication of your ordeal.”

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

Sie told Dogan: “As long as you refuse to admit it, it’s not just a woman, it’s an whole unpleasant cultural framework that you are endorsing.”

Biographical Details

The accused was born in the country of Turkey and at the age of five came to France, where his parent worked as a concierge. The testimony revealed that his parent was abusive and that the defendant began using drugs aged ten. When Dogan was 17 he was caught by authorities for drug trafficking and his father evicted him the family house. He was incarcerated in prison for narcotics offenses in his early 20s and had worked as a construction worker but had undergone periods of living on the streets.

He was married and had a son with special needs, who he was the principal carer for, as his spouse worked in a institution's dining hall. The evidence showed his spouse did not know he had repeated extramarital activities beyond their marriage. His legal team said this was his way of coping with his challenging existence. The defendant had stated to a court psychologist that annually he sought paid sex on his special day. His lawyers stated to the court he had joint inflammation resulting from the stress of the original case.