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A defendant was convicted on retrial of raping Gisele Pelicot following she was drugged unconscious by her then-husband – and was given his jail term increased to ten years.

Higher Court Case

The defendant, 44, an out-of-work construction worker, who had challenged his first conviction last year, faced a appeal hearing this week at the higher court in Nîmes.

A panel of nine jurors, sitting with three judges, ruled against Dogan on Thursday of raping the victim in her bedroom in Provence in the morning of 29 June 2019.

The evidence showed that the accused, a married father, reached out to the victim's husband at the time, the husband, in an digital platform called “without her knowledge”, where Pelicot was recruiting men to enter his residence to assault his wife after he had drugged her into a deep sleep.

We trust the court will say loud and clear that in this nation, fundamental rights are also rights of women – that consent is individual, not delegated,” stated the victim's attorney, Antoine Camus. “Consent is received directly and not by proxy from a husband.”

Background

The husband, a notorious sexual predators in France's contemporary records, was sentenced to 20 years in prison last year for sedating his then wife and inviting dozens of men to sexually assault her in her home in the Provence village of Mazan over a span of nearly ten years of their marriage.

Dozens of additional defendants were found convicted in a high-profile trial last year, and Dogan was the sole individual to contest his conviction. He was initially sentenced to 9 years in prison, a penalty raised on Thursday to 10 years.

The lead state prosecutor, Dominique Sie, had contended he should serve 12 years, because he “completely denies to take any blame”.

Evidence Presented

Dogan had first sent Dominique Pelicot inappropriate pictures and then driven an hour from his residence in the region to rape Gisèle Pelicot, after informing his wife he was going out, the testimony revealed.

The ex-husband, who was brought from segregation in prison to temporarily give evidence at the retrial, told the court that Dogan had known his wife had been “drugged” and he told to men by phone: “I seek someone to violate my wife after I’ve put her to sleep without her knowledge.”

The proceedings became a key topic for a wider discussion on societal attitudes in society as the defendant continued to assert he was not guilty and had not engaged in violation, contending that because Gisèle Pelicot’s husband had allowed him into the residence, his behavior had been acceptable.

The jury in the Nîmes appeals court was presented with video evidence of Gisèle Pelicot’s unresponsive form, comatose and breathing heavily in a deep sleep, while a grinning the perpetrator performed assault multiple times over a duration of what investigators stated was several hours. The 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.

Defendant's Statements

Dogan informed the court the videos were simply “sex scenes” and rejected it was assault. He said what he did was “a sexual act”, not assault. He stated the court: “I did not commit rape.” He said Gisèle Pelicot’s husband had brought him to the residence, and therefore it was acceptable. He said he was influenced by Dominique Pelicot. “I wanted to stop,” the accused stated to the court. “I proceeded because he reassured me.”

Questioned if he wanted to make a final statement to the court, the defendant said: “I did not intend to hurt that woman.”

Pelicot's Words

The victim, who was cheered upon departing the trial each day by onlookers assembled to back her, told the defendant in court: “You haven’t understood. When will you acknowledge you assaulted me? It’s a crime to assault an unconscious woman. At what point did I give you consent? Not once.”

The victim, seventy-two, became an international feminist hero after she relinquished her right to anonymity in the trial last year when she said: “Shame must change sides.”

Prosecutor's Remarks

Sie, turning to the victim in court, said Dogan’s unwillingness to take blame showed that: “The shame remains. The public is maybe in the process of that, maybe propelled by the public consciousness spurred by the publication of your case.”

The prosecutor said the defendant's claims of innocence showed how societal tolerance was still common in society as part of “outdated” forms of “gender-based power”. He said: “It is imperative to change rape culture to a culture of consent.”

Sie addressed Dogan: “For as much as you refuse to admit it, it’s not just a person, it’s an whole unpleasant social system that you are endorsing.”

Biographical Details

Dogan was originated from Turkey and at the age of five relocated to France, where his parent worked as a concierge. The court heard that his parent was violent and that the defendant began using drugs at the age of ten. When Dogan was seventeen he was apprehended by police for selling narcotics and his parent forced him to leave the residence. He spent time in prison for drug dealing in his early 20s and had worked as a laborer but had faced periods of living on the streets.

He was wed and had a son with special needs, who he was the primary guardian for, as his wife worked in a school canteen. The evidence showed his spouse did not know he had repeated intimate relations beyond their marriage. His legal team said this was his method of dealing with his challenging existence. The defendant had told a evaluator that once a year he engaged in commercial sex on his birthday. His legal representatives stated to the court he had arthritis triggered by the stress of the original case.