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A defendant was declared guilty on higher court review of raping Gisele Pelicot following she was drugged unconscious by her spouse – and was given his jail term extended to ten years.

Retrial Proceedings

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

A jury of four women and five men, accompanied by three judges, ruled against Dogan on Thursday of sexually assaulting the victim in her residence in southern France in the morning of June 29, 2019.

The testimony revealed that Dogan, a family man, reached out to Gisèle Pelicot’s husband at the time, the husband, in an internet forum titled “without her knowledge”, where the husband was recruiting men to come to his home to rape his wife after he had drugged her into a deep sleep.

“We hope the jury will affirm that in this country, human rights are also rights of women – that consent is personal, not given by another,” stated Gisèle Pelicot’s lawyer, Antoine Camus. “Consent is secured directly and not by proxy from a spouse.”

Background

The husband, one of the worst sexual predators in France's contemporary records, was handed a sentence to two decades in prison last year for drugging his wife at the time and inviting dozens of men to sexually assault her in her home in the community of the village of Mazan over a duration of almost a decade of their marriage.

Numerous other individuals were found convicted in a notable trial last year, and Dogan was the single defendant to appeal against his verdict. He was first handed a term to 9 years in prison, a punishment increased on Thursday to a decade.

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

Evidence Presented

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

Pelicot, who was transported from segregation in prison to temporarily give evidence at the appeal trial, told the court that Dogan had known his wife had been “sedated” and he said 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 societal attitudes in society as the defendant continued to say he was not guilty and had not perpetrated assault, arguing that because Gisèle Pelicot’s husband had allowed him into the room, his conduct had been permissible.

The panel in the Nîmes appeals court was shown visual proof of Gisèle Pelicot’s limp body, unconscious and snoring in a deep sleep, while a grinning Dogan committed rape multiple times over a timeframe of what police said was three and a half hours. The presiding judge said she had been at danger of fatal outcome by asphyxiation. The state's case said there was absolute certainty that she had been incapacitated and had not given permission.

Defendant's Statements

Dogan stated to the court the videos were simply “intimate moments” and rejected it was violation. He said what he did was “an intimate behavior”, not assault. He stated the court: “I am innocent of assault.” He said the victim's husband had brought him to the home, and therefore it was acceptable. He said he was manipulated by the husband. “I tried to halt,” Dogan stated to the court. “I continued because he reassured me.”

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

Survivor's Statement

The victim, who was applauded upon exiting the courtroom each day by supporters assembled to stand with her, told the defendant in court: “You haven’t understood. When will you admit you raped me? It is illegal to rape an unaware woman. At what point did I give you permission? Not once.”

Gisèle Pelicot, seventy-two, became an international feminist hero 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 failure to take blame showed that: “Guilt has not shifted. Society is possibly in the course of that, possibly driven by the collective awareness resulting from the revelation of your ordeal.”

The prosecutor said Dogan’s claims of non-guilt showed how societal tolerance was still common in society as part of “old-fashioned” forms of “male domination”. He said: “Now we must change the culture of violence to a society based on agreement.”

Sie addressed Dogan: “As long as you refuse to admit it, it’s not just a individual, it’s an entire sordid cultural framework that you are upholding.”

Personal History

The accused was originated from the country of Turkey and at the age of 5 relocated to the nation of France, where his parent worked as a concierge. The evidence indicated that his parent was abusive and that Dogan began consuming marijuana at the age of 10. When he was 17 he was stopped by police for dealing drugs and his father kicked him out the family house. He served time in prison for drug dealing in his young adulthood and had worked as a construction worker but had undergone periods of living on the streets.

He was married and had a child with a genetic condition, who he was the main caregiver for, as his spouse worked in a institution's dining hall. The evidence showed his spouse did not know he had frequent extramarital activities outside their union. His legal team said this was his way of coping with his difficult circumstances. Dogan had informed a mental health expert that once a year he looked for commercial sex on his birthday. His attorneys informed the court he had joint inflammation caused by the pressure of the original case.