🔗 Share this article

A man has been found guilty on retrial of sexually assaulting Gisele Pelicot following she was sedated by her husband – and has had his prison sentence increased to a decade.

Higher Court Case

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

A jury of five men and four women, accompanied by three judges, convicted Dogan on Thursday of raping the victim in her residence in the south of France in the morning of 29 June 2019.

The evidence showed that the accused, a family man, made contact with Gisèle Pelicot’s spouse, the husband, in an digital platform named “without her knowledge”, where the husband was looking for men to come to his home to assault his wife once he had sedated her into a deep sleep.

“We hope the jury will say loud and clear that in this nation, fundamental rights are also rights of women – that permission is personal, not given by another,” declared Gisèle Pelicot’s attorney, Antoine Camus. “Consent is secured personally and not by proxy from a husband.”

Context

The ex-husband, among the most severe sex offenders in modern French history, was sentenced to 20 years in prison last year for incapacitating his spouse and bringing in dozens of men to sexually assault her in her home in the Provence village of the village of Mazan over a duration of nearly ten years of their marriage.

Fifty other men were found culpable in a high-profile trial last year, and Dogan was the only man to appeal against his sentence. He was first given a sentence to 9 years in prison, a punishment raised on Thursday to a decade.

The state's attorney, the prosecutor, had stated he should serve twelve years, because he “stubbornly rejects to take any blame”.

Testimony and Proof

Dogan had first sent the husband sexually explicit photos and then driven an hour from his village in Provence to assault Gisèle Pelicot, after telling his wife he was leaving, the evidence indicated.

The ex-husband, who was brought from segregation in prison to temporarily testify at the hearing, stated to the court that Dogan had known his wife had been “incapacitated” and he said to men by phone: “I seek someone to abuse my wife after I’ve rendered her unconscious unbeknownst to her.”

The trial became a focus point for a wider discussion on sexual violence norms in society as Dogan continued to claim he was not guilty and had not engaged in violation, contending that because Gisèle Pelicot’s husband had allowed him into the room, his behavior had been justifiable.

The jury in the Nîmes appeals court was presented with recorded footage of Gisèle Pelicot’s limp body, comatose and snoring in a comatose state, while a grinning the perpetrator performed assault repeatedly over a duration of what police said was several hours. The judge said she had been at risk of fatal outcome by choking. The state's case said there was no doubt that she had been unaware and had not agreed.

Accused's Testimony

Dogan informed the court the recordings were simply “sex scenes” and rejected it was rape. He said what he did was “a sexual act”, not assault. He told the court: “I did not commit rape.” He said Gisèle Pelicot’s husband had invited him to the home, and therefore it was OK. He said he was influenced by Dominique Pelicot. “I attempted to cease,” Dogan stated to the court. “I proceeded because he persuaded me.”

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

Survivor's Statement

The survivor, who was cheered upon departing the trial each day by supporters assembled to back her, addressed Dogan in court: “You do not grasp. When are you going to recognise you raped me? It is unlawful to assault an incapacitated woman. When did I ever give you permission? Not once.”

The victim, seventy-two, became an symbol of resistance after she gave up her right to confidentiality in the trial last year when she said: “The shame should shift.”

State's Argument

Sie, addressing the victim in court, said the defendant's refusal to take accountability showed that: “Guilt has not shifted. The community is maybe in the course of that, perhaps driven by the societal understanding resulting from the revelation of your situation.”

The prosecutor said Dogan’s claims of non-guilt showed how societal tolerance was still widespread in society as part of “archaic” forms of “patriarchal control”. He said: “We need to change the culture of violence to a culture of consent.”

Sie said to the defendant: “While you reject it, it’s not just a woman, it’s an complete sordid societal structure that you are supporting.”

Defendant's Background

Dogan was originated from Turkey and at the age of five relocated to France, where his parent worked as a concierge. The evidence indicated that his parent was violent and that Dogan began consuming marijuana at the age of ten. When he was seventeen he was caught by authorities for drug trafficking and his parent kicked him out the family house. He served time in prison for narcotics offenses in his early 20s and had worked as a construction worker but had faced periods of being unhoused.

He was wed and had a son with Down’s syndrome, who he was the main caregiver for, as his wife worked in a school canteen. The court heard his spouse did not know he had frequent intimate relations beyond their marriage. His legal team said this was his way of coping with his stressful life. Dogan had informed a mental health expert that once a year he engaged in paid sex on his special day. His attorneys stated to the court he had joint inflammation caused by the stress of the initial proceedings.