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An individual has been found guilty on appeal of raping Gisele Pelicot after she was drugged unconscious by her husband – and was given his jail term increased to ten years.

Higher Court Case

The defendant, 44, an out-of-work construction worker, who had appealed his first conviction last year, experienced a retrial this week at the appeals court in Nîmes.

A jury of five men and four women, joined by three judges, ruled against Dogan on Thursday of raping Pelicot in her residence in the south of France in the morning of June 29, 2019.

The testimony revealed that Dogan, a family man, reached out to the victim's husband at the time, Dominique Pelicot, in an internet forum called “without her consent”, where the husband was looking for men to enter his residence to assault his wife after he had rendered her unconscious into a deep sleep.

We trust the court will say loud and clear that in this nation, fundamental rights are also women’s rights – that agreement is personal, not transferred,” said the victim's attorney, Antoine Camus. “Permission is secured personally and not through someone else from a husband.”

Background

The husband, a notorious sex offenders in France's contemporary records, was given a prison term to two decades in prison last year for incapacitating his spouse and soliciting multiple perpetrators to rape her in her home in the community of the village of Mazan over a period of many years of their union.

Dozens of additional defendants were found culpable in a notable trial last year, and the appellant was the sole individual to challenge his verdict. He was originally given a sentence to 9 years in prison, a sentence raised on Thursday to ten years.

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

Evidence Presented

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

The ex-husband, who was brought from segregation in prison to temporarily provide testimony at the hearing, told the court that Dogan had known his wife had been “sedated” and he said to men by phone: “I’m looking for someone to assault my wife after I’ve rendered her unconscious unbeknownst to her.”

The trial became a key topic for a larger conversation on societal attitudes in society as the defendant continued to assert he was innocent and had not engaged in violation, arguing that because Gisèle Pelicot’s husband had invited him into the room, his behavior had been justifiable.

The jury in the higher court was presented with recorded footage of the victim's unconscious figure, unconscious and snoring in a deep sleep, while a smiling Dogan performed assault multiple times over a period of what investigators stated was several hours. The presiding judge said she had been at danger of death by suffocation. The prosecution said there was no question that she had been unaware and had not consented.

Defendant's Statements

The defendant told the court the recordings were simply “sexual encounters” and rejected it was violation. He said what he did was “a sexual act”, not assault. He declared the court: “I never raped.” He said the victim's husband had allowed him to the house, and therefore it was permissible. He said he was influenced by Dominique Pelicot. “I attempted to cease,” Dogan stated to the court. “I carried on because he persuaded me.”

Questioned if he wanted to make a closing remarks to the court, Dogan said: “I never wanted to injure that woman.”

Victim's Response

The survivor, who was cheered upon departing the trial each day by onlookers present to back her, told Dogan in court: “You do not grasp. When are you going to recognise you raped me? It is illegal to rape an incapacitated woman. When did I ever give you agreement? Never.”

The victim, 72, became an symbol of resistance after she waived her right to privacy in the trial last year when she said: “The shame should shift.”

Legal Commentary

Sie, speaking to the victim in court, said the defendant's refusal to take blame showed that: “Guilt has not shifted. The community is maybe in the process of that, possibly motivated by the societal understanding resulting from the publication of your ordeal.”

The prosecutor said Dogan’s claims of innocence showed how rape culture was still widespread in society as part of “old-fashioned” forms of “patriarchal control”. He said: “We need to change the culture of violence to a ethos of permission.”

The prosecutor said to Dogan: “While you deny it, it’s not just a person, it’s an complete disturbing cultural framework that you are supporting.”

Biographical Details

Dogan was originated from Turkey and at the age of five moved to the nation of France, where his parent worked as a concierge. The court heard that his parent was aggressive and that the defendant began smoking cannabis at the age of 10. When he was seventeen he was caught by police for selling narcotics and his father evicted him the residence. He spent time in prison for trafficking in his early 20s and had worked as a builder but had undergone periods of homelessness.

He was married and had a son with special needs, who he was the main caregiver for, as his wife worked in a educational cafeteria. The evidence showed his wife did not know he had frequent extramarital activities outside their union. His defence said this was his way of coping with his difficult circumstances. The defendant had told a mental health expert that annually he engaged in commercial sex on his birthday. His lawyers told the court he had joint inflammation triggered by the anxiety of the first trial.