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A man has been found guilty on appeal of sexually assaulting Gisele Pelicot following she was drugged unconscious by her then-husband – and received his incarceration period increased to 10 years.

Higher Court Case

Dogan, 44, an unemployed builder, who had contested his initial guilty verdict last year, underwent a new trial this week at the appeals court in Nîmes.

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

The testimony revealed that the accused, a married father, reached out to the victim's then husband, Dominique Pelicot, in an digital platform titled “unbeknownst to her”, where Pelicot was seeking men to visit his house to rape his wife after he had rendered her unconscious into a deep sleep.

“We hope the jury will say loud and clear that in this nation, fundamental rights are also rights of women – that permission is individual, not given by another,” stated Gisèle Pelicot’s lawyer, Antoine Camus. “Consent is secured directly and not through someone else from a husband.”

Context

Dominique Pelicot, one of the worst sex offenders in modern French history, was given a prison term to two decades in prison last year for sedating his then wife and soliciting multiple perpetrators to sexually assault her in her home in the town of the village of Mazan over a span of many years of their union.

Numerous other individuals were found culpable in a widely publicized trial last year, and the appellant was the only man to challenge his sentence. He was initially sentenced to 9 years in prison, a punishment increased on Thursday to ten years.

The chief prosecutor, Dominique Sie, had stated he should serve twelve years, because he “completely denies to take any blame”.

Testimony and Proof

The defendant had initially sent Dominique Pelicot graphic images and then driven an hour from his town in Provence to rape Gisèle Pelicot, after informing his wife he was stepping out, the testimony revealed.

Pelicot, who was brought from isolation in prison to briefly provide testimony at the retrial, stated to the court that Dogan had understood his wife had been “incapacitated” and he communicated to men by phone: “I seek someone to abuse my wife after I’ve put her to sleep without her consent.”

The proceedings became a central issue for a broader debate on societal attitudes in society as Dogan continued to assert he was blameless and had not engaged in violation, stating that because Gisèle Pelicot’s husband had welcomed him into the room, his conduct had been permissible.

The panel in the Nîmes appeals court was presented with video evidence of Gisèle Pelicot’s unconscious figure, unconscious and snoring in a deep sleep, while a smiling the perpetrator engaged in violation multiple times over a period of what authorities reported was three and a half hours. The presiding judge said she had been at danger of fatal outcome by suffocation. The state's case said there was no question that she had been incapacitated and had not consented.

Accused's Testimony

The defendant informed the court the recordings were simply “sexual encounters” and disputed it was violation. He said what he did was “a consensual activity”, not assault. He declared the court: “I did not commit rape.” He said the victim's husband had brought him to the home, and therefore it was acceptable. He said he was manipulated by the husband. “I wanted to stop,” Dogan stated to the court. “I continued because he persuaded me.”

Inquired if he wanted to make a last words to the court, the defendant said: “I did not intend to hurt that woman.”

Pelicot's Words

Gisèle Pelicot, who was applauded upon departing the trial each day by onlookers gathered to support her, told the defendant in court: “You do not grasp. When are you going to recognise you assaulted me? It is illegal to rape an incapacitated woman. At what point did I give you permission? Not once.”

Gisèle Pelicot, seventy-two, became an international feminist hero after she relinquished her right to privacy in the trial last year when she said: “Guilt ought to transfer.”

Legal Commentary

The prosecutor, addressing Gisèle Pelicot in court, said the defendant's unwillingness to take accountability showed that: “Guilt has not shifted. Society is maybe in the midst of that, perhaps motivated by the societal understanding spurred by the publication of your case.”

The prosecutor said Dogan’s claims of blamelessness showed how rape culture was still prevalent in society as part of “archaic” forms of “male domination”. He said: “We need to change rape culture to a society based on agreement.”

The prosecutor addressed Dogan: “For as much as you reject it, it’s not just a person, it’s an complete unpleasant cultural framework that you are endorsing.”

Biographical Details

Dogan was born in the country of Turkey and at the age of 5 moved to the nation of France, where his father worked as a building manager. The testimony revealed that his parent was violent and that Dogan began using drugs aged ten. When Dogan was 17 he was stopped by authorities for selling narcotics and his parent kicked him out of home. He served time in prison for narcotics offenses in his early 20s and had worked as a laborer but had undergone periods of living on the streets.

He was wed and had a child with a genetic condition, who he was the principal carer for, as his spouse worked in a school canteen. The evidence showed his wife did not know he had regular extramarital activities beyond their union. His defence said this was his way of coping with his difficult circumstances. The defendant had informed a court psychologist that each year he engaged in transactional encounters on his birthday. His lawyers told the court he had a medical condition resulting from the stress of the initial proceedings.