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An individual was declared guilty on retrial of sexually assaulting Gisele Pelicot following she was sedated by her spouse – and received his incarceration period increased to 10 years.

Appeal Trial

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

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

The court heard that Dogan, a married father, made contact with Gisèle Pelicot’s husband at the time, Dominique Pelicot, in an digital platform titled “without her knowledge”, where Pelicot was recruiting men to visit his house to assault his wife once he had rendered her unconscious into a deep sleep.

We expect the court will affirm that in this country, fundamental rights are also rights of women – that permission is individual, not transferred,” stated Gisèle Pelicot’s attorney, Antoine Camus. “Permission is secured directly and not via a representative from a husband.”

Context

The ex-husband, a notorious sex offenders in recent French history, was sentenced to 20 years in prison last year for sedating his wife at the time and bringing in numerous individuals to sexually assault her in her home in the Provence village of the village of Mazan over a period of many years of their marriage.

Numerous other individuals were found convicted in a high-profile trial last year, and the appellant was the single defendant to appeal against his verdict. He was initially sentenced to 9 years in prison, a penalty raised on Thursday to a decade.

The chief prosecutor, the prosecutor, had contended he should serve twelve years, because he “absolutely refuses to take any accountability”.

Courtroom Details

Dogan had first sent the husband inappropriate pictures and then traveled an hour from his residence in the region to rape Gisèle Pelicot, after telling his wife he was going out, the court heard.

Pelicot, who was brought from solitary confinement in prison to briefly give evidence at the retrial, informed the court that Dogan had been aware his wife had been “drugged” and he communicated to men by phone: “I want someone to assault my wife after I’ve put her to sleep without her knowledge.”

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

The jury in the Nîmes appeals court was shown video evidence of the victim's limp body, comatose and breathing heavily in a unconscious condition, while a grinning Dogan committed rape on several occasions over a duration of what police said was several hours. The judge said she had been at risk of fatal outcome by suffocation. The prosecution said there was no question that she had been unconscious and had not agreed.

Defendant's Statements

Dogan informed the court the footage were simply “sexual encounters” and disputed it was assault. He said what he did was “an intimate behavior”, not rape. He told the court: “I am innocent of assault.” He said Gisèle Pelicot’s husband had allowed him to the house, and therefore it was OK. He said he was manipulated by Dominique Pelicot. “I wanted to stop,” Dogan stated to the court. “I carried on because he reassured me.”

Asked if he wanted to make a closing remarks to the court, the defendant said: “I did not intend to harm that individual.”

Victim's Response

The survivor, who was applauded upon exiting the courtroom each day by supporters assembled to back her, said to Dogan in court: “You fail to comprehend. When will you admit you assaulted me? It is unlawful to rape an unconscious woman. At what point did I give you consent? Not once.”

The victim, 72, became an global icon after she gave up her right to anonymity in the trial last year when she said: “Guilt ought to transfer.”

Legal Commentary

The prosecutor, addressing the victim in court, said Dogan’s unwillingness to take responsibility showed that: “Guilt has not shifted. Society is perhaps in the course of that, perhaps driven by the societal understanding spurred by the publication of your case.”

Sie said Dogan’s claims of non-guilt showed how rape culture was still prevalent in society as part of “archaic” forms of “gender-based power”. He said: “It is imperative to change rape culture to a culture of consent.”

Sie addressed the defendant: “For as much as you refuse to admit it, it’s not just a individual, it’s an whole disturbing social system that you are supporting.”

Personal History

The accused was originated from Turkey and at the age of five relocated to the nation of France, where his father worked as a concierge. The testimony revealed that his father was violent and that the defendant began smoking cannabis aged ten. When Dogan was 17 he was stopped by authorities for dealing drugs and his parent forced him to leave the residence. He served time in prison for narcotics offenses in his twenties and had worked as a construction worker but had undergone periods of being unhoused.

He was wed and had a child with Down’s syndrome, who he was the principal carer for, as his wife worked in a school canteen. The evidence showed his spouse did not know he had frequent extramarital activities beyond their union. His legal team said this was his way of coping with his difficult circumstances. Dogan had told a court psychologist that once a year he looked for commercial sex on his birthday. His legal representatives stated to the court he had joint inflammation caused by the anxiety of the initial proceedings.