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An individual was declared guilty on higher court review of raping Gisele Pelicot after she was sedated by her husband – and received his jail term increased to a decade.

Higher Court Case

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

A jury of nine jurors, joined by three judges, ruled against Dogan on Thursday of sexually assaulting the victim in her bedroom in the south of France in the morning of June 29, 2019.

The testimony revealed that Dogan, a married father, reached out to Gisèle Pelicot’s spouse, Dominique Pelicot, in an online chatroom called “without her consent”, where the husband was looking for men to visit his house to assault his wife after he had rendered her unconscious into a unconscious state.

We expect the jury will affirm that in this country, human rights are also rights of women – that permission is individual, not given by another,” declared Gisèle Pelicot’s lawyer, Antoine Camus. “Consent is secured personally and not via a representative from a spouse.”

Case History

The husband, one of the worst sex offenders in recent French history, was sentenced to twenty years in prison last year for incapacitating his spouse and soliciting numerous individuals to sexually assault her in her home in the community of the village of Mazan over a period of many years of their union.

Numerous other individuals were found convicted in a notable trial last year, and Dogan was the only man to appeal against his verdict. He was initially handed a term to 9 years in prison, a punishment increased on Thursday to 10 years.

The lead state prosecutor, Dominique Sie, had stated he should serve 12 years, because he “absolutely refuses to take any blame”.

Courtroom Details

The defendant had first sent the husband inappropriate pictures and then driven an hour from his town in Provence to rape Gisèle Pelicot, after notifying his wife he was stepping out, the evidence indicated.

The ex-husband, who was transported from isolation in prison to temporarily give evidence at the appeal trial, stated to the court that Dogan had understood his wife had been “drugged” and he told to men by phone: “I’m looking for someone to abuse my wife after I’ve rendered her unconscious without her consent.”

The courtroom became a central issue for a larger conversation on sexual violence norms in society as Dogan continued to assert he was not guilty and had not committed rape, contending that because the victim's husband had invited him into the residence, his behavior had been justifiable.

The panel in the higher court was presented with video evidence of the victim's unresponsive form, comatose and breathing heavily in a comatose state, while a smiling Dogan engaged in violation multiple times over a period of what authorities reported was three and a half hours. The judge said she had been at danger of fatal outcome by suffocation. The state prosecution said there was no doubt that she had been incapacitated and had not consented.

Dogan's Claims

The defendant stated to the court the recordings were simply “sexual encounters” and disputed it was rape. He said what he did was “an intimate behavior”, not rape. He told the court: “I never raped.” He said Gisèle Pelicot’s husband had invited him to the residence, and therefore it was permissible. He said he was influenced by the husband. “I attempted to cease,” Dogan informed the court. “I carried on because he convinced me.”

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

Victim's Response

Gisèle Pelicot, who was applauded upon departing the trial each day by supporters assembled to back her, said to Dogan in court: “You fail to comprehend. When will you acknowledge you assaulted me? It is illegal to assault an unaware woman. At what point did I give you permission? At no time.”

The victim, 72, became an global icon after she relinquished her right to anonymity in the trial last year when she said: “Shame must change sides.”

Prosecutor's Remarks

Sie, turning to the victim in court, said Dogan’s refusal to take accountability showed that: “The shame remains. Society is maybe in the midst of that, possibly driven by the public consciousness brought by the publication of your ordeal.”

The prosecutor said the defendant's claims of non-guilt showed how normalized violence was still common in society as part of “outdated” forms of “patriarchal control”. He said: “Now we must change rape culture to a ethos of permission.”

The prosecutor said to Dogan: “While you deny it, it’s not just a woman, it’s an complete sordid social system that you are endorsing.”

Personal History

Dogan was originated from Turkey and at the age of five relocated to France, where his father worked as a concierge. The testimony revealed that his parent was violent and that the defendant began using drugs aged ten. When he was seventeen he was stopped by police for drug trafficking and his father forced him to leave the residence. He spent time in prison for narcotics offenses in his twenties and had worked as a builder but had experienced periods of being unhoused.

He was wed and had a son with Down’s syndrome, 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 intimate relations outside their union. His defence said this was his strategy for managing with his stressful life. Dogan had stated to a court psychologist that once a year he looked for transactional encounters on his birthday. His attorneys told the court he had arthritis resulting from the anxiety of the first trial.