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A defendant has been found guilty on higher court review of raping Gisèle Pelicot after she was sedated by her then-husband – and received his jail term raised to a decade.

Retrial Proceedings

The defendant, forty-four, an out-of-work construction worker, who had appealed his initial guilty verdict last year, underwent a retrial this week at the Nîmes court of appeal.

A jury of five men and four women, sitting with three judges, found Dogan guilty on Thursday of raping the victim in her bedroom in southern France in the morning of 29 June 2019.

The testimony revealed that the accused, a married father, made contact with the victim's husband at the time, the husband, in an digital platform titled “without her knowledge”, where the husband was seeking men to enter his residence to assault his wife once he had rendered her unconscious into a deep sleep.

“We hope the panel will affirm that in this nation, human rights are also rights of women – that agreement is personal, not transferred,” declared Gisèle Pelicot’s lawyer, her legal representative. “Consent is obtained personally and not through someone else from a spouse.”

Background

The husband, one of the worst sexual predators in modern French history, was sentenced to 20 years in prison last year for sedating his then wife and bringing in dozens of men to rape her in her home in the community of Mazan over a period of almost a decade of their marriage.

Dozens of additional defendants were found culpable in a notable trial last year, and the appellant was the single defendant to challenge his verdict. He was initially handed a term to nine years in prison, a sentence raised on Thursday to 10 years.

The lead state prosecutor, the prosecutor, had contended he should serve 12 years, because he “completely denies to take any blame”.

Evidence Presented

Dogan had initially sent Dominique Pelicot graphic images and then driven an hour from his residence in Provence to assault Gisèle Pelicot, after telling his wife he was stepping out, the evidence indicated.

The ex-husband, who was brought from solitary confinement in prison to briefly give evidence at the hearing, stated to the court that Dogan had known his wife had been “incapacitated” and he said to men by phone: “I want someone to assault my wife after I’ve put her to sleep 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 committed rape, contending that because the victim's husband had allowed him into the bedroom, his behavior had been acceptable.

The panel in the higher court was shown visual proof of Gisèle Pelicot’s unconscious figure, comatose and breathing heavily in a comatose state, while a grinning Dogan engaged in violation on several occasions over a period of what authorities reported was 3.5 hours. The court official said she had been at peril of fatal outcome by choking. The state's case said there was absolute certainty that she had been unconscious and had not given permission.

Accused's Testimony

Dogan stated to the court the recordings were simply “sexual encounters” and denied it was rape. He said what he did was “a consensual activity”, not assault. He told the court: “I never raped.” He said Gisèle Pelicot’s husband had invited him to the residence, and therefore it was acceptable. He said he was deceived by the husband. “I tried to halt,” the accused informed the court. “I proceeded because he persuaded me.”

Inquired if he wanted to make a last words to the court, Dogan said: “I had no desire to injure that individual.”

Survivor's Statement

The survivor, who was cheered upon exiting the courtroom each day by supporters gathered to back her, addressed the defendant in court: “You do not grasp. When are you going to recognise you raped me? It’s a crime to rape an unconscious woman. How could I have give you consent? At no time.”

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

Prosecutor's Remarks

The prosecutor, speaking to Gisèle Pelicot in court, said Dogan’s unwillingness to take blame showed that: “Guilt has not shifted. Society is perhaps in the process of that, maybe driven by the collective awareness brought by the exposure of your situation.”

The prosecutor said the defendant's claims of non-guilt showed how societal tolerance was still prevalent in society as part of “old-fashioned” forms of “gender-based power”. He said: “Now we must change rape culture to a society based on agreement.”

Sie told the defendant: “For as much as you reject it, it’s not just a woman, it’s an whole sordid social system that you are supporting.”

Biographical Details

The accused was born in Turkey and at the age of 5 moved to France, where his father worked as a concierge. The evidence indicated that his parent was aggressive and that the defendant began using drugs aged 10. When Dogan was 17 he was stopped by police for dealing drugs and his father kicked him out the family house. He was incarcerated in prison for narcotics offenses in his young adulthood and had worked as a laborer but had undergone periods of homelessness.

He was married and had a child with Down’s syndrome, who he was the primary guardian for, as his wife worked in a educational cafeteria. The court heard his wife did not know he had frequent intimate relations outside their marriage. His legal team said this was his strategy for managing with his stressful life. Dogan had informed a court psychologist that annually he engaged in transactional encounters on his special day. His legal representatives told the court he had arthritis resulting from the anxiety of the first trial.