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A defendant was convicted on retrial of sexually assaulting Gisele Pelicot after she was sedated by her spouse – and has had his jail term raised to 10 years.

Higher Court Case

Dogan, forty-four, an out-of-work construction worker, who had challenged his first conviction last year, faced a retrial this week at the Nîmes court of appeal.

A panel of four women and five men, joined by three judges, found Dogan guilty on Thursday of raping Pelicot in her bedroom in southern France in the morning of 29 June 2019.

The court heard that Dogan, a married father, reached out to Gisèle Pelicot’s husband at the time, Dominique Pelicot, in an digital platform named “without her knowledge”, where the husband was recruiting men to come to his home to assault his wife once he had rendered her unconscious into a comatose state.

We trust the court will say loud and clear that in this society, human rights are also women’s rights – that agreement is individual, not given by another,” declared Gisèle Pelicot’s lawyer, her legal representative. “Consent is obtained directly and not via a representative from a husband.”

Background

The ex-husband, a notorious sexual predators in France's contemporary records, was sentenced to 20 years in prison last year for incapacitating his spouse and soliciting numerous individuals to rape her in her home in the Provence village of the village of Mazan over a duration of almost a decade of their union.

Dozens of additional defendants were found culpable in a high-profile trial last year, and Dogan was the sole individual to appeal against his verdict. He was initially handed a term to 9 years in prison, a sentence raised on Thursday to ten years.

The lead state prosecutor, the prosecutor, had stated he should serve twelve years, because he “stubbornly rejects to take any responsibility”.

Testimony and Proof

The defendant had first sent Dominique Pelicot inappropriate pictures and then traveled an hour from his town in the region to rape the victim, after telling his wife he was leaving, the testimony revealed.

Pelicot, who was brought from solitary confinement in prison to briefly testify at the hearing, informed the court that the accused had understood his wife had been “sedated” and he communicated to men by phone: “I’m looking for someone to assault my wife after I’ve rendered her unconscious without her knowledge.”

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 allowed him into the room, his conduct had been acceptable.

The panel in the higher court was shown video evidence of the victim's limp body, unconscious and snoring in a unconscious condition, while a smiling the perpetrator engaged in violation on several occasions over a duration of what investigators stated was 3.5 hours. The court official said she had been at peril of death by asphyxiation. The state's case said there was no doubt that she had been unconscious and had not agreed.

Dogan's Claims

Dogan told the court the recordings were simply “sex scenes” and rejected it was rape. He said what he did was “a sexual act”, not rape. He stated the court: “I am innocent of assault.” He said Gisèle Pelicot’s husband had invited him to the residence, and therefore it was OK. He said he was influenced by Dominique Pelicot. “I tried to halt,” Dogan stated to the court. “I continued because he reassured me.”

Asked if he wanted to make a closing remarks to the court, the defendant said: “I had no desire to harm that individual.”

Victim's Response

The survivor, who was applauded upon exiting the courtroom each day by crowds present to back her, said to Dogan in court: “You do not grasp. When are you going to recognise you assaulted me? It is illegal to assault an unaware woman. At what point did I give you permission? Never.”

The victim, 72, became an international feminist hero after she relinquished her right to confidentiality in the trial last year when she said: “Shame must change sides.”

State's Argument

The prosecutor, speaking to the victim in court, said Dogan’s refusal to take accountability showed that: “Shame has not yet changed sides. The public is possibly in the midst of that, maybe propelled by the societal understanding spurred by the exposure of your situation.”

Sie said the defendant's claims of non-guilt showed how societal tolerance was still prevalent in society as part of “outdated” forms of “gender-based power”. He said: “We need to change rape culture to a society based on agreement.”

Sie told the defendant: “While you reject it, it’s not just a woman, it’s an complete disturbing social system that you are supporting.”

Biographical Details

Dogan was originated from the country of Turkey and at the age of 5 came to France, where his parent worked as a caretaker. The court heard that his father was abusive and that the defendant began consuming marijuana aged 10. When Dogan was 17 he was apprehended by police for dealing drugs and his father kicked him out the family house. He served time in prison for trafficking in his twenties and had worked as a laborer but had faced periods of homelessness.

He was married and had a child with Down’s syndrome, who he was the principal carer for, as his spouse worked in a school canteen. The testimony revealed his spouse did not know he had regular extramarital activities beyond their union. His defence said this was his method of dealing with his difficult circumstances. The defendant had told a mental health expert that annually he engaged in paid sex on his special day. His lawyers informed the court he had joint inflammation triggered by the pressure of the original case.