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An individual was convicted on retrial of sexually assaulting Gisèle Pelicot after she was sedated by her then-husband – and has had his jail term raised to 10 years.

Higher Court Case

The defendant, 44, an unemployed builder, who had challenged his initial guilty verdict last year, experienced a retrial this week at the Nîmes court of appeal.

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

The evidence showed that Dogan, a married father, connected with Gisèle Pelicot’s husband at the time, the husband, in an internet forum called “without her consent”, where the husband was seeking men to come to his home to rape his wife after he had drugged her into a comatose state.

We trust the panel will affirm that in this country, human rights are also women’s rights – that consent is personal, not given by another,” stated the victim's lawyer, Antoine Camus. “Consent is obtained directly and not through someone else from a spouse.”

Case History

Dominique Pelicot, among the most severe sex offenders in France's contemporary records, was given a prison term to 20 years in prison last year for drugging his then wife and bringing in multiple perpetrators to sexually assault her in her home in the community of the village of Mazan over a span of nearly ten years of their marriage.

Fifty other men were found guilty in a notable trial last year, and the appellant was the sole individual to appeal against his sentence. He was initially given a sentence to nine years in prison, a sentence increased on Thursday to 10 years.

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

Evidence Presented

Dogan had initially sent Dominique Pelicot inappropriate pictures and then traveled an hour from his village in the region to assault the victim, after informing his wife he was stepping out, the testimony revealed.

The ex-husband, who was brought from isolation in prison to temporarily give evidence at the retrial, informed the court that Dogan 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 sedated her without her knowledge.”

The proceedings became a central issue for a larger conversation on societal attitudes in society as Dogan continued to say he was blameless and had not committed rape, contending that because Gisèle Pelicot’s husband had invited him into the room, his behavior had been justifiable.

The panel in the higher court was presented with recorded footage of Gisèle Pelicot’s unconscious figure, comatose and breathing heavily in a deep sleep, while a smiling Dogan committed rape multiple times over a timeframe of what police said was three and a half hours. The court official said she had been at peril of death by suffocation. The prosecution said there was no question that she had been incapacitated and had not given permission.

Dogan's Claims

Dogan told the court the recordings were simply “sex scenes” and rejected it was violation. He said what he did was “a consensual activity”, not assault. He declared the court: “I am innocent of assault.” He said Gisèle Pelicot’s husband had allowed him to the residence, and therefore it was OK. He said he was manipulated by Dominique Pelicot. “I wanted to stop,” the accused informed the court. “I proceeded because he convinced me.”

Inquired if he wanted to make a closing remarks to the court, Dogan said: “I never wanted to harm that woman.”

Survivor's Statement

The survivor, who was supported upon departing the trial each day by crowds gathered to support her, said to Dogan in court: “You fail to comprehend. When will you acknowledge you violated me? It is unlawful to rape an incapacitated woman. When did I ever give you consent? Not once.”

Gisèle Pelicot, 72, became an international feminist hero after she gave up her right to anonymity in the trial last year when she said: “The shame should shift.”

Prosecutor's Remarks

The prosecutor, speaking to Gisèle Pelicot in court, said Dogan’s refusal to take blame showed that: “The shame remains. The public is possibly in the midst of that, perhaps driven by the public consciousness brought by the revelation of your case.”

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

The prosecutor addressed the defendant: “While you refuse to admit it, it’s not just a individual, it’s an entire sordid cultural framework that you are upholding.”

Defendant's Background

The accused was born in Turkey and at the age of five moved to the nation of France, where his father worked as a building manager. The testimony revealed that his parent was abusive and that Dogan began consuming marijuana at the age of 10. When he was 17 he was caught by police for drug trafficking and his parent evicted him of home. He was incarcerated in prison for narcotics offenses in his young adulthood and had worked as a construction worker but had experienced periods of living on the streets.

He was wed 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 outside their union. His legal team said this was his strategy for managing with his difficult circumstances. The defendant had informed a mental health expert that annually he sought commercial sex on his birthday. His lawyers told the court he had arthritis triggered by the stress of the initial proceedings.