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A man has been found guilty on retrial of raping Gisèle Pelicot following she was rendered comatose by her husband – and was given his prison sentence increased to a decade.

Higher Court Case

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

A panel of five men and four women, sitting with three judges, ruled against Dogan on Thursday of sexually assaulting Pelicot in her bedroom in Provence in the early hours of June 29, 2019.

The court heard that Dogan, a family man, connected with the victim's spouse, the husband, in an internet forum titled “without her knowledge”, where Pelicot was recruiting men to enter his residence to assault his wife once he had sedated her into a deep sleep.

“We hope the court will declare that in this society, fundamental rights are also rights of women – that consent is individual, not transferred,” said the victim's lawyer, Antoine Camus. “Agreement is obtained personally and not by proxy from a husband.”

Background

Dominique Pelicot, among the most severe sex offenders in modern French history, was handed a sentence to 20 years in prison last year for drugging his spouse and inviting dozens of men to rape her in her home in the Provence village of Mazan over a span of nearly ten years of their marriage.

Numerous other individuals were found guilty in a notable trial last year, and Dogan was the single defendant to challenge his conviction. He was originally sentenced to 9 years in prison, a sentence increased on Thursday to ten years.

The chief prosecutor, Dominique Sie, had argued he should serve 12 years, because he “completely denies to take any responsibility”.

Testimony and Proof

Dogan had initially sent Dominique Pelicot inappropriate pictures and then traveled an hour from his village in Provence to assault the victim, after telling his wife he was leaving, the court heard.

Pelicot, who was brought from segregation in prison to temporarily give evidence at the hearing, informed the court that Dogan had been aware his wife had been “sedated” and he said to men by phone: “I want someone to assault my wife after I’ve sedated her without her consent.”

The proceedings became a central issue for a broader debate on rape culture in society as Dogan continued to claim he was blameless and had not perpetrated assault, contending that because Gisèle Pelicot’s husband had invited him into the bedroom, his behavior had been justifiable.

The jury in the higher court was displayed visual proof of the victim's limp body, sedated and breathing heavily in a deep sleep, while a smiling the perpetrator performed assault multiple times over a duration of what investigators stated was several hours. The judge said she had been at danger of fatal outcome by suffocation. The state's case said there was absolute certainty that she had been incapacitated and had not agreed.

Defendant's Statements

Dogan told the court the videos were simply “intimate moments” and rejected it was rape. He said what he did was “an intimate behavior”, not rape. He told the court: “I am innocent of assault.” He said the victim's husband had invited him to the residence, and therefore it was permissible. He said he was influenced by Dominique Pelicot. “I tried to halt,” Dogan told the court. “I continued because he persuaded me.”

Inquired if he wanted to make a last words to the court, the defendant said: “I never wanted to harm that woman.”

Survivor's Statement

Gisèle Pelicot, who was applauded upon leaving court each day by onlookers gathered to stand with her, addressed Dogan in court: “You haven’t understood. When will you acknowledge you violated me? It’s a crime to assault an unconscious woman. How could I have give you agreement? Never.”

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

Legal Commentary

Sie, addressing Gisèle Pelicot in court, said the defendant's unwillingness to take responsibility showed that: “The shame remains. The community is perhaps in the process of that, possibly propelled by the societal understanding spurred by the exposure of your case.”

The prosecutor said the defendant's claims of innocence showed how normalized violence was still prevalent in society as part of “outdated” forms of “gender-based power”. He said: “We need to change rape culture to a ethos of permission.”

The prosecutor addressed the defendant: “While you deny it, it’s not just a individual, it’s an whole sordid social system that you are endorsing.”

Defendant's Background

The accused was originated from the country of Turkey and at the age of 5 moved to France, where his father worked as a caretaker. The evidence indicated that his father 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 forced him to leave the family house. He was incarcerated in prison for narcotics offenses in his early 20s and had worked as a construction worker but had experienced periods of homelessness.

He was married and had a child with special needs, who he was the primary guardian for, as his spouse worked in a school canteen. The evidence showed his wife did not know he had frequent intimate relations beyond their marriage. His legal team said this was his method of dealing with his challenging existence. The defendant had told a evaluator that each year he looked for commercial sex on his birthday. His lawyers told the court he had arthritis caused by the pressure of the first trial.