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An individual was declared guilty on higher court review of sexually assaulting Gisele Pelicot after she was rendered comatose by her then-husband – and has had his jail term increased to 10 years.

Appeal Trial

Dogan, 44, an out-of-work construction worker, who had contested his first conviction last year, experienced a retrial this week at the higher court in Nîmes.

A panel of four women and five men, sitting with three judges, ruled against Dogan on Thursday of sexually assaulting Pelicot in her bedroom in Provence in the early hours of June 29, 2019.

The evidence showed that the accused, a married father, reached out to the victim's spouse, Dominique Pelicot, in an internet forum named “without her knowledge”, where the husband was looking for men to come to his home to rape his wife after he had drugged her into a unconscious state.

We trust the jury will affirm that in this society, human rights are also women’s rights – that agreement is personal, not delegated,” said Gisèle Pelicot’s attorney, her legal representative. “Consent is obtained directly and not through someone else from a spouse.”

Context

The husband, among the most severe sexual predators in modern French history, was sentenced to twenty years in prison last year for drugging his wife at the time and bringing in numerous individuals to rape her in her home in the town of Mazan over a span of nearly ten years of their marriage.

Dozens of additional defendants were found convicted in a notable trial last year, and the appellant was the single defendant to challenge his sentence. He was initially given a sentence to nine years in prison, a penalty increased on Thursday to 10 years.

The state's attorney, Dominique Sie, had contended he should serve 12 years, because he “completely denies to take any accountability”.

Courtroom Details

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

The ex-husband, who was transported from segregation in prison to temporarily provide testimony at the hearing, stated to the court that the accused had known his wife had been “incapacitated” and he said to men by phone: “I seek someone to violate my wife after I’ve put her to sleep unbeknownst to her.”

The courtroom became a key topic for a wider discussion on societal attitudes in society as the defendant continued to assert he was innocent and had not perpetrated assault, contending that because the victim's husband had invited him into the room, his actions had been acceptable.

The jury in the Nîmes appeals court was displayed visual proof of the victim's unconscious figure, unconscious and snoring in a unconscious condition, while a smiling Dogan committed rape on several occasions over a timeframe of what investigators stated was three and a half hours. The court official said she had been at danger of death by choking. The prosecution said there was no question that she had been unconscious and had not consented.

Accused's Testimony

The defendant told the court the recordings 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 brought him to the residence, and therefore it was acceptable. He said he was deceived by the husband. “I wanted to stop,” Dogan told the court. “I continued because he persuaded me.”

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

Victim's Response

The survivor, who was supported upon leaving court each day by onlookers assembled to support her, addressed the defendant in court: “You haven’t understood. When will you admit you raped me? It is illegal to rape an unaware woman. How could I have give you agreement? Never.”

The victim, 72, became an global icon after she gave up her right to privacy in the trial last year when she said: “Shame must change sides.”

Prosecutor's Remarks

Sie, addressing the victim in court, said the defendant's refusal to take responsibility showed that: “The shame remains. Society is perhaps in the process of that, possibly propelled by the societal understanding brought by the exposure of your situation.”

The prosecutor said Dogan’s claims of blamelessness showed how societal tolerance was still prevalent in society as part of “old-fashioned” forms of “male domination”. He said: “Now we must change the culture of violence to a ethos of permission.”

The prosecutor told the defendant: “While you reject it, it’s not just a individual, it’s an complete unpleasant social system that you are upholding.”

Biographical Details

The accused was originated from the country of Turkey and at the age of 5 moved to the nation of France, where his parent worked as a caretaker. The court heard that his father was violent and that the defendant began using drugs at the age of 10. When he was 17 he was apprehended by authorities for drug trafficking and his parent kicked him out the family house. He spent time in prison for narcotics offenses in his young adulthood and had worked as a laborer but had faced periods of being unhoused.

He was married and had a child with Down’s syndrome, who he was the main caregiver for, as his wife worked in a institution's dining hall. The testimony revealed his spouse did not know he had regular intimate relations beyond their union. His legal team said this was his way of coping with his challenging existence. The defendant had told a evaluator that once a year he looked for paid sex on his special day. His attorneys informed the court he had a medical condition resulting from the stress of the first trial.