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A defendant has been found guilty on appeal of sexually assaulting Gisele Pelicot following she was drugged unconscious by her spouse – and has had his incarceration period increased to a decade.

Higher Court Case

The defendant, forty-four, an unemployed builder, who had appealed his initial guilty verdict last year, experienced a retrial this week at the appeals court in Nîmes.

A panel of five men and four women, accompanied by three judges, found Dogan guilty on Thursday of sexually assaulting Pelicot in her residence in southern France in the morning of June 29, 2019.

The testimony revealed that the accused, a family man, connected with Gisèle Pelicot’s then husband, Dominique Pelicot, in an internet forum named “unbeknownst to her”, where the husband was seeking men to visit his house to assault his wife after he had sedated her into a comatose state.

“We hope the court will say loud and clear that in this country, human rights are also rights of women – that agreement is individual, not delegated,” stated Gisèle Pelicot’s lawyer, Antoine Camus. “Agreement is received personally and not by proxy from a spouse.”

Case History

The ex-husband, a notorious sex offenders in modern French history, was handed a sentence to twenty years in prison last year for drugging his then wife and bringing in multiple perpetrators to rape her in her home in the community of the village of Mazan over a period of many years of their marriage.

Dozens of additional defendants were found culpable in a high-profile trial last year, and Dogan was the only man to challenge his conviction. He was initially given a sentence to nine years in prison, a punishment increased on Thursday to ten years.

The chief prosecutor, the prosecutor, had contended he should serve twelve years, because he “absolutely refuses 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 telling his wife he was stepping out, the testimony revealed.

The ex-husband, who was brought from segregation in prison to briefly give evidence at the retrial, informed the court that Dogan had been aware his wife had been “sedated” and he said to men by phone: “I’m looking for someone to violate my wife after I’ve put her to sleep without her knowledge.”

The courtroom became a key topic for a larger conversation on sexual violence norms in society as Dogan continued to claim he was not guilty and had not committed rape, stating that because the victim's husband had allowed him into the residence, his actions had been permissible.

The jury in the Nîmes appeals court was displayed visual proof of the victim's unconscious figure, sedated and snoring in a unconscious condition, while a smiling Dogan committed rape repeatedly over a period of what investigators stated was several hours. The presiding judge said she had been at risk of fatal outcome by suffocation. The prosecution said there was absolute certainty that she had been unconscious and had not agreed.

Accused's Testimony

The defendant informed the court the footage were simply “intimate moments” and denied it was assault. He said what he did was “a consensual activity”, not rape. He told the court: “I never raped.” He said the victim's husband had brought him to the home, and therefore it was permissible. He said he was influenced by the husband. “I attempted to cease,” the accused informed 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.”

Survivor's Statement

The survivor, who was cheered upon departing the trial each day by crowds gathered to stand with her, addressed the defendant in court: “You do not grasp. When are you going to recognise you assaulted me? It’s a crime to assault an unaware 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 confidentiality in the trial last year when she said: “Guilt ought to transfer.”

State's Argument

The prosecutor, turning to the victim in court, said Dogan’s unwillingness to take accountability showed that: “The shame remains. The public is maybe in the midst of that, possibly propelled by the societal understanding brought by the revelation of your situation.”

Sie said the defendant's claims of innocence showed how normalized violence was still prevalent in society as part of “old-fashioned” forms of “patriarchal control”. He said: “We need to change rape culture to a culture of consent.”

The prosecutor addressed the defendant: “As long as you deny it, it’s not just a woman, it’s an whole sordid societal structure that you are endorsing.”

Personal History

Dogan was originated from Turkey and at the age of five came to France, where his parent worked as a building manager. The court heard that his father was violent and that Dogan began using drugs at the age of ten. When he was 17 he was apprehended by police for selling narcotics and his father forced him to leave of home. He was incarcerated in prison for narcotics offenses in his early 20s and had worked as a builder but had undergone periods of being unhoused.

He was married and had a child with special needs, 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 beyond their union. His legal team said this was his way of coping with his difficult circumstances. Dogan had stated to a court psychologist that once a year he engaged in paid sex on his special day. His legal representatives stated to the court he had joint inflammation caused by the pressure of the initial proceedings.