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A man was declared guilty on retrial of sexually assaulting Gisèle Pelicot following she was drugged unconscious by her then-husband – and was given his jail term increased to ten years.

Higher Court Case

The defendant, 44, an unemployed builder, who had appealed his first conviction last year, underwent a new trial this week at the Nîmes court of appeal.

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

The evidence showed that the accused, a family man, made contact with Gisèle Pelicot’s spouse, Dominique Pelicot, in an internet forum named “without her consent”, where Pelicot was looking for men to visit his house to rape his wife once he had rendered her unconscious into a deep sleep.

We trust the panel will affirm that in this society, human rights are also rights of women – that agreement is personal, not given by another,” stated Gisèle Pelicot’s lawyer, her legal representative. “Permission is obtained personally and not by proxy from a husband.”

Background

The ex-husband, a notorious sex offenders in France's contemporary records, was given a prison term to 20 years in prison last year for incapacitating his spouse and soliciting dozens of men to sexually assault her in her home in the town of Mazan over a span of many years of their marriage.

Fifty other men were found guilty in a notable trial last year, and the appellant was the sole individual to challenge his sentence. He was initially handed a term to 9 years in prison, a penalty increased on Thursday to ten years.

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

Courtroom Details

The defendant had first sent the husband sexually explicit photos and then driven an hour from his residence in Provence to assault Gisèle Pelicot, after notifying his wife he was going out, the evidence indicated.

Pelicot, who was brought from isolation in prison to temporarily provide testimony at the hearing, told the court that Dogan had been aware his wife had been “drugged” and he communicated to men by phone: “I want someone to assault my wife after I’ve sedated her unbeknownst to her.”

The courtroom became a focus point for a wider discussion on rape culture in society as Dogan continued to claim he was not guilty and had not committed rape, arguing that because the victim's husband had allowed him into the residence, his conduct had been justifiable.

The panel in the Nîmes appeals court was presented with recorded footage of the victim's limp body, sedated and snoring in a comatose state, while a grinning Dogan engaged in violation repeatedly over a period of what investigators stated was several hours. The court official said she had been at peril of fatal outcome by choking. The state prosecution said there was no doubt that she had been incapacitated and had not consented.

Defendant's Statements

The defendant told the court the recordings were simply “sex scenes” and denied it was violation. He said what he did was “an intimate behavior”, not rape. He told the court: “I am innocent of assault.” He said Gisèle Pelicot’s husband had invited him to the house, and therefore it was permissible. He said he was deceived by Dominique Pelicot. “I tried to halt,” Dogan stated to the court. “I proceeded because he reassured me.”

Asked if he wanted to make a closing remarks to the court, the defendant said: “I did not intend to hurt that individual.”

Pelicot's Words

The survivor, who was supported upon exiting the courtroom each day by crowds gathered to back her, told the defendant in court: “You fail to comprehend. When will you admit you assaulted me? It’s a crime to assault an incapacitated woman. How could I have give you consent? Not once.”

Gisèle Pelicot, seventy-two, became an global icon after she gave up her right to confidentiality in the trial last year when she said: “Guilt ought to transfer.”

Prosecutor's Remarks

Sie, addressing the victim in court, said Dogan’s refusal to take blame showed that: “Guilt has not shifted. Society is possibly in the process of that, possibly driven by the public consciousness resulting from the exposure of your situation.”

Sie said Dogan’s claims of innocence showed how normalized violence was still common in society as part of “old-fashioned” forms of “male domination”. He said: “We need to change rape culture to a culture of consent.”

Sie said to Dogan: “While you refuse to admit it, it’s not just a woman, it’s an entire disturbing cultural framework that you are upholding.”

Biographical Details

Dogan was born in the country of Turkey and at the age of five relocated to France, where his father worked as a concierge. The court heard that his father was aggressive and that Dogan began smoking cannabis aged ten. When he was seventeen he was stopped by police for selling narcotics and his parent kicked him out of home. He spent time in prison for drug dealing in his early 20s and had worked as a builder but had experienced periods of living on the streets.

He was married and had a child with special needs, who he was the principal carer for, as his spouse worked in a institution's dining hall. The court heard his wife did not know he had repeated intimate relations beyond their marriage. His defence said this was his strategy for managing with his challenging existence. The defendant had told a mental health expert that each year he looked for transactional encounters on his birthday. His legal representatives told the court he had arthritis resulting from the anxiety of the first trial.