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An individual has been found guilty on retrial of raping Gisele Pelicot after she was rendered comatose by her then-husband – and has had his prison sentence extended to a decade.

Appeal Trial

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

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

The evidence showed that the accused, a family man, reached out to the victim's spouse, the husband, in an digital platform titled “without her knowledge”, where the husband was looking for men to enter his residence to rape his wife after he had drugged her into a deep sleep.

We trust the jury will declare that in this country, fundamental rights are also rights of women – that permission is personal, not delegated,” declared Gisèle Pelicot’s attorney, her legal representative. “Agreement is obtained directly and not through someone else from a spouse.”

Background

The husband, a notorious sexual predators in modern French history, was sentenced to twenty years in prison last year for incapacitating his spouse and soliciting dozens of men to sexually assault her in her home in the Provence village of Mazan over a period of almost a decade of their marriage.

Dozens of additional defendants were found culpable in a widely publicized trial last year, and the appellant was the single defendant to contest his conviction. He was first given a sentence to 9 years in prison, a punishment raised on Thursday to 10 years.

The state's attorney, Dominique Sie, had argued he should serve twelve years, because he “completely denies to take any blame”.

Courtroom Details

Dogan had first sent Dominique Pelicot sexually explicit photos and then driven an hour from his village in Provence to rape the victim, after notifying his wife he was stepping out, the court heard.

The ex-husband, who was transported from isolation in prison to briefly give evidence at the retrial, informed the court that the accused had been aware his wife had been “sedated” and he communicated to men by phone: “I want someone to assault my wife after I’ve sedated her without her knowledge.”

The courtroom became a key topic for a wider discussion on societal attitudes in society as Dogan continued to say he was innocent and had not engaged in violation, arguing that because the victim's husband had welcomed him into the room, his actions had been acceptable.

The jury in the higher court was shown recorded footage of Gisèle Pelicot’s limp body, comatose and snoring in a unconscious condition, while a smiling the perpetrator performed assault on several occasions over a timeframe of what authorities reported was 3.5 hours. The court official said she had been at risk of fatal outcome by asphyxiation. The prosecution said there was absolute certainty that she had been unconscious and had not consented.

Accused's Testimony

Dogan told the court the recordings were simply “sexual encounters” and disputed 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 the victim's husband had invited him to the house, and therefore it was OK. He said he was deceived by Dominique Pelicot. “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, Dogan said: “I had no desire to hurt that lady.”

Pelicot's Words

The survivor, who was applauded upon departing the trial each day by crowds gathered to support her, said to the defendant in court: “You fail to comprehend. When will you acknowledge you raped me? It’s a crime to assault an unconscious woman. At what point did I give you agreement? Not once.”

The victim, 72, became an international feminist hero after she gave up her right to anonymity in the trial last year when she said: “Guilt ought to transfer.”

Legal Commentary

The prosecutor, addressing Gisèle Pelicot in court, said Dogan’s failure to take accountability showed that: “Shame has not yet changed sides. The public is maybe in the process of that, perhaps motivated by the collective awareness resulting from the publication of your ordeal.”

The prosecutor said the defendant's claims of blamelessness showed how rape culture was still widespread in society as part of “outdated” forms of “male domination”. He said: “Now we must change rape culture to a society based on agreement.”

The prosecutor addressed the defendant: “For as much as you reject it, it’s not just a individual, it’s an entire disturbing social system that you are endorsing.”

Biographical Details

The accused was originated from the country of Turkey and at the age of 5 moved to the nation of France, where his father worked as a concierge. The evidence indicated that his parent was abusive and that the defendant began using drugs at the age of ten. When he was 17 he was stopped by police for selling narcotics and his parent forced him to leave of home. He was incarcerated in prison for drug dealing in his twenties and had worked as a construction worker but had experienced periods of being unhoused.

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 testimony revealed his wife did not know he had repeated intimate relations beyond their union. His defence said this was his method of dealing with his stressful life. The defendant had stated to a court psychologist that each year he sought commercial sex on his birthday. His lawyers told the court he had arthritis resulting from the pressure of the initial proceedings.