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An individual has been found guilty on appeal of raping Gisèle Pelicot following she was drugged unconscious by her husband – and received his jail term raised to ten years.

Higher Court Case

Dogan, 44, an out-of-work construction worker, who had contested his initial guilty verdict last year, underwent a retrial this week at the Nîmes court of appeal.

A jury of nine jurors, accompanied by three judges, found Dogan guilty on Thursday of sexually assaulting Pelicot in her bedroom in the south of France in the morning of 29 June 2019.

The evidence showed that the accused, a married father, reached out to the victim's husband at the time, the husband, in an internet forum called “without her knowledge”, where the husband was looking for men to come to his home to assault his wife after he had sedated her into a comatose state.

We expect the panel will affirm that in this country, fundamental rights are also rights of women – that agreement is personal, not given by another,” stated the victim's attorney, Antoine Camus. “Agreement is obtained directly and not by proxy from a husband.”

Context

The husband, among the most severe sex offenders in recent French history, was given a prison term to 20 years in prison last year for drugging his spouse and inviting multiple perpetrators to sexually assault her in her home in the Provence village of Mazan over a span of nearly ten years of their union.

Fifty other men were found convicted in a notable trial last year, and the appellant was the only man to appeal against his verdict. He was first handed a term to 9 years in prison, a punishment raised on Thursday to a decade.

The state's attorney, the prosecutor, had argued he should serve twelve years, because he “completely denies to take any responsibility”.

Courtroom Details

The defendant had initially sent the husband graphic images and then traveled an hour from his village in the region to rape Gisèle Pelicot, after informing his wife he was stepping out, the testimony revealed.

Pelicot, who was transported from segregation in prison to temporarily give evidence at the hearing, told the court that the accused had understood his wife had been “sedated” and he said to men by phone: “I want someone to violate my wife after I’ve sedated her unbeknownst to her.”

The trial became a central issue for a larger conversation on societal attitudes in society as the defendant continued to assert he was blameless and had not committed rape, stating that because Gisèle Pelicot’s husband had allowed him into the bedroom, his behavior had been permissible.

The jury in the Nîmes appeals court was displayed visual proof of the victim's limp body, sedated and snoring in a comatose state, while a smiling the perpetrator committed rape repeatedly over a duration of what authorities reported was three and a half hours. The presiding judge said she had been at risk of death by choking. The state prosecution said there was absolute certainty that she had been unconscious and had not given permission.

Defendant's Statements

Dogan told the court the videos were simply “intimate moments” and disputed it was rape. He said what he did was “an intimate behavior”, not assault. He told the court: “I did not commit rape.” He said Gisèle Pelicot’s husband had brought him to the house, and therefore it was acceptable. He said he was influenced by Dominique Pelicot. “I wanted to stop,” Dogan stated to the court. “I proceeded because he convinced me.”

Inquired if he wanted to make a closing remarks to the court, Dogan said: “I never wanted to harm that individual.”

Pelicot's Words

The survivor, who was cheered upon departing the trial each day by onlookers assembled to support her, addressed the defendant in court: “You haven’t understood. When will you admit you violated me? It is unlawful to assault an unconscious woman. At what point did I give you agreement? Not once.”

Gisèle Pelicot, seventy-two, became an symbol of resistance after she waived her right to privacy in the trial last year when she said: “Shame must change sides.”

State's Argument

The prosecutor, addressing the victim in court, said the defendant's refusal to take blame showed that: “Guilt has not shifted. The public is maybe in the process of that, maybe propelled by the collective awareness spurred by the exposure of your situation.”

The prosecutor said the defendant's claims of blamelessness showed how normalized violence was still widespread in society as part of “old-fashioned” forms of “male domination”. He said: “It is imperative to change rape culture to a ethos of permission.”

Sie said to Dogan: “As long as you reject it, it’s not just a individual, it’s an entire disturbing cultural framework that you are upholding.”

Personal History

Dogan was originated from the country of Turkey and at the age of five relocated to France, where his parent worked as a caretaker. The evidence indicated that his parent was aggressive and that the defendant began smoking cannabis aged ten. When Dogan was 17 he was stopped by authorities for selling narcotics and his parent evicted him of home. He spent time in prison for drug dealing in his twenties and had worked as a construction worker but had faced periods of homelessness.

He was wed and had a child with a genetic condition, who he was the main caregiver for, as his wife worked in a school canteen. The evidence showed his spouse did not know he had repeated extramarital activities beyond their marriage. His defence said this was his method of dealing with his challenging existence. Dogan had informed a evaluator that each year he engaged in commercial sex on his special day. His lawyers informed the court he had arthritis caused by the pressure of the original case.