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A man was convicted on higher court review of sexually assaulting Gisele Pelicot following she was drugged unconscious by her husband – and has had his prison sentence increased to ten years.

Retrial Proceedings

The defendant, forty-four, an unemployed builder, who had appealed his first conviction last year, faced a new trial this week at the Nîmes court of appeal.

A jury of nine jurors, accompanied by three judges, convicted Dogan on Thursday of sexually assaulting Pelicot in her home in the south of France in the early hours of 29 June 2019.

The testimony revealed that Dogan, a married father, reached out to Gisèle Pelicot’s then husband, Dominique Pelicot, in an digital platform called “without her consent”, where Pelicot was seeking men to come to his home to assault his wife after he had sedated her into a comatose state.

We trust the jury will declare that in this nation, human rights are also women’s rights – that agreement is personal, not transferred,” said Gisèle Pelicot’s attorney, Antoine Camus. “Consent is obtained personally and not by proxy from a husband.”

Background

Dominique Pelicot, one of the worst sexual predators in recent French history, was given a prison term to two decades in prison last year for drugging his spouse and soliciting multiple perpetrators to rape her in her home in the town of Mazan over a span of many years of their union.

Dozens of additional defendants were found guilty in a notable trial last year, and the appellant was the single defendant to challenge his conviction. He was initially sentenced to 9 years in prison, a punishment enhanced on Thursday to 10 years.

The state's attorney, Dominique Sie, had stated he should serve 12 years, because he “absolutely refuses to take any accountability”.

Evidence Presented

The defendant had first sent Dominique Pelicot graphic images and then driven an hour from his town in Provence to assault the victim, after informing his wife he was going out, the court heard.

The ex-husband, who was transported from isolation in prison to briefly provide testimony at the retrial, told the court that the accused had been aware his wife had been “incapacitated” and he said to men by phone: “I seek someone to abuse my wife after I’ve sedated her without her consent.”

The trial became a key topic for a wider discussion on rape culture in society as the defendant continued to say he was blameless and had not committed rape, stating that because the victim's husband had invited him into the residence, his conduct had been justifiable.

The panel in the higher court was presented with recorded footage of Gisèle Pelicot’s unconscious figure, unconscious and snoring in a unconscious condition, while a grinning Dogan engaged in violation on several occasions over a duration of what investigators stated was three and a half hours. The judge said she had been at risk of death by choking. The prosecution said there was no question that she had been unconscious and had not given permission.

Accused's Testimony

The defendant informed the court the footage were simply “sexual encounters” and rejected it was assault. He said what he did was “a sexual act”, not assault. He told the court: “I did not commit rape.” He said the victim's husband had brought him to the house, and therefore it was acceptable. He said he was deceived by Dominique Pelicot. “I tried to halt,” the accused stated to the court. “I continued because he persuaded me.”

Asked if he wanted to make a last words to the court, Dogan said: “I never wanted to hurt that individual.”

Pelicot's Words

The survivor, who was cheered upon departing the trial each day by supporters gathered to stand with her, told Dogan in court: “You do not grasp. When will you acknowledge you raped me? It’s a crime to assault an unaware woman. At what point did I give you permission? Never.”

The victim, seventy-two, became an global icon after she waived her right to confidentiality in the trial last year when she said: “Shame must change sides.”

Prosecutor's Remarks

The prosecutor, addressing Gisèle Pelicot in court, said the defendant's failure to take responsibility showed that: “The shame remains. Society is possibly in the midst of that, maybe motivated by the collective awareness resulting from the publication of your situation.”

Sie said Dogan’s claims of blamelessness showed how rape culture was still prevalent in society as part of “archaic” forms of “patriarchal control”. He said: “We need to change the culture of violence to a ethos of permission.”

The prosecutor told Dogan: “For as much as you refuse to admit it, it’s not just a woman, it’s an entire unpleasant social system that you are endorsing.”

Personal History

Dogan was born in Turkey and at the age of five moved to France, where his parent worked as a building manager. The evidence indicated that his father was violent and that the defendant began consuming marijuana aged 10. When he was seventeen he was stopped by authorities for drug trafficking and his parent forced him to leave the family house. He was incarcerated in prison for narcotics offenses in his young adulthood and had worked as a laborer but had experienced periods of being unhoused.

He was married and had a child with special needs, who he was the main caregiver for, as his spouse worked in a school canteen. The court heard his wife did not know he had frequent sexual encounters beyond their marriage. His legal team said this was his way of coping with his difficult circumstances. Dogan had stated to a court psychologist that each year he looked for paid sex on his birthday. His attorneys told the court he had arthritis resulting from the pressure of the initial proceedings.