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A defendant was convicted on appeal of sexually assaulting Gisèle Pelicot after she was drugged unconscious by her then-husband – and was given his jail term raised to a decade.

Retrial Proceedings

Dogan, 44, an unemployed builder, who had contested his first conviction last year, experienced a appeal hearing this week at the appeals court in Nîmes.

A panel of nine jurors, accompanied by three judges, convicted Dogan on Thursday of raping Pelicot in her residence in the south of France in the early hours of 29 June 2019.

The court heard that Dogan, a married father, made contact with the victim's then husband, Dominique Pelicot, in an online chatroom named “without her knowledge”, where the husband was recruiting men to enter his residence to rape his wife once he had drugged her into a deep sleep.

We trust the court will affirm that in this society, fundamental rights are also women’s rights – that permission is individual, not transferred,” stated the victim's attorney, her legal representative. “Agreement is secured personally and not via a representative from a husband.”

Context

The husband, one of the worst sex offenders in France's contemporary records, was sentenced to 20 years in prison last year for drugging his wife at the time and inviting dozens of men to rape her in her home in the town of the village of Mazan over a duration of many years of their union.

Fifty other men were found convicted in a high-profile trial last year, and the appellant was the sole individual to contest his conviction. He was initially handed a term to 9 years in prison, a sentence raised on Thursday to 10 years.

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

Courtroom Details

Dogan had first sent Dominique Pelicot sexually explicit photos and then driven an hour from his residence in Provence to assault Gisèle Pelicot, after informing his wife he was stepping out, the testimony revealed.

Pelicot, who was transported from solitary confinement in prison to briefly provide testimony at the retrial, informed the court that the accused had known his wife had been “drugged” and he told to men by phone: “I seek someone to violate my wife after I’ve put her to sleep unbeknownst to her.”

The proceedings became a key topic for a larger conversation on sexual violence norms in society as the defendant continued to assert he was innocent and had not committed rape, contending that because Gisèle Pelicot’s husband had allowed him into the room, his actions had been acceptable.

The panel in the Nîmes appeals court was displayed recorded footage of Gisèle Pelicot’s limp body, unconscious and breathing heavily in a deep sleep, while a smiling the perpetrator committed rape on several occasions over a period of what police said was three and a half hours. The court official said she had been at peril of death by asphyxiation. The state prosecution said there was no doubt that she had been unaware and had not given permission.

Accused's Testimony

The defendant told the court the videos were simply “sex scenes” and disputed it was violation. He said what he did was “a consensual activity”, not assault. He told the court: “I am innocent of assault.” He said Gisèle Pelicot’s husband had brought him to the home, and therefore it was acceptable. He said he was deceived by the husband. “I wanted to stop,” Dogan told the court. “I proceeded because he reassured me.”

Questioned if he wanted to make a closing remarks to the court, Dogan said: “I did not intend to hurt that woman.”

Survivor's Statement

Gisèle Pelicot, who was applauded upon leaving court each day by supporters gathered to support her, said to the defendant in court: “You haven’t understood. When will you admit you violated me? It’s a crime to assault an unconscious woman. How could I have give you permission? At no time.”

Gisèle Pelicot, 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.”

Legal Commentary

Sie, addressing the victim in court, said Dogan’s unwillingness to take responsibility showed that: “Shame has not yet changed sides. The public is possibly in the course of that, maybe propelled by the public consciousness spurred by the revelation of your case.”

The prosecutor said Dogan’s claims of blamelessness showed how normalized violence was still widespread in society as part of “outdated” forms of “patriarchal control”. He said: “We need to change rape culture to a culture of consent.”

The prosecutor addressed the defendant: “For as much as you reject it, it’s not just a woman, it’s an entire sordid cultural framework that you are endorsing.”

Defendant's Background

Dogan was originated from the country of Turkey and at the age of 5 relocated to the nation of France, where his father worked as a caretaker. The testimony revealed that his father was violent and that the defendant began smoking cannabis at the age of 10. When Dogan was seventeen he was caught by police for drug trafficking and his parent forced him to leave the residence. He spent time in prison for trafficking in his young adulthood and had worked as a laborer but had experienced periods of living on the streets.

He was wed and had a child with Down’s syndrome, who he was the primary guardian for, as his wife worked in a school canteen. The evidence showed his wife did not know he had frequent sexual encounters outside their union. His legal team said this was his method of dealing with his stressful life. Dogan had stated to a mental health expert that once a year he sought paid sex on his special day. His legal representatives informed the court he had joint inflammation caused by the pressure of the initial proceedings.