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An individual was declared guilty on higher court review of sexually assaulting Gisèle Pelicot following she was rendered comatose by her then-husband – and has had his incarceration period extended to a decade.

Higher Court Case

Dogan, 44, an out-of-work construction worker, who had contested his initial guilty verdict last year, faced a retrial this week at the Nîmes court of appeal.

A panel of four women and five men, accompanied by three judges, ruled against Dogan on Thursday of raping Pelicot in her bedroom in southern France in the early hours of 29 June 2019.

The evidence showed that the accused, a family man, connected with the victim's spouse, the husband, in an online chatroom named “without her consent”, where the husband was looking for men to visit his house to assault his wife once he had sedated her into a deep sleep.

We trust the panel will say loud and clear that in this society, fundamental rights are also women’s rights – that permission is individual, not transferred,” said the victim's lawyer, Antoine Camus. “Agreement is obtained personally and not via a representative from a husband.”

Case History

The ex-husband, among the most severe sexual predators in recent French history, was given a prison term to two decades in prison last year for incapacitating his spouse and soliciting dozens of men to rape her in her home in the town of the village of Mazan over a period of many years of their marriage.

Dozens of additional defendants were found convicted in a high-profile trial last year, and the appellant was the only man to appeal against his conviction. He was initially given a sentence to 9 years in prison, a punishment increased on Thursday to a decade.

The chief prosecutor, the prosecutor, had contended he should serve twelve years, because he “completely denies to take any responsibility”.

Evidence Presented

Dogan had first sent Dominique Pelicot sexually explicit photos and then traveled an hour from his residence in Provence to assault Gisèle Pelicot, after telling his wife he was going out, the court heard.

The ex-husband, who was transported from solitary confinement in prison to temporarily testify at the hearing, informed the court that Dogan had known his wife had been “drugged” and he told to men by phone: “I seek someone to assault my wife after I’ve put her to sleep unbeknownst to her.”

The trial became a focus point for a wider discussion on sexual violence norms in society as the defendant continued to say he was not guilty and had not engaged in violation, arguing that because Gisèle Pelicot’s husband had allowed him into the bedroom, his conduct had been justifiable.

The panel in the higher court was presented with recorded footage of Gisèle Pelicot’s limp body, unconscious and snoring in a comatose state, while a grinning the perpetrator performed assault on several occasions over a timeframe of what police said was three and a half hours. The court official said she had been at risk of fatal outcome by choking. The state prosecution said there was no doubt that she had been unconscious and had not given permission.

Defendant's Statements

Dogan told the court the recordings were simply “sexual encounters” and rejected it was assault. He said what he did was “an intimate behavior”, not rape. He stated the court: “I never raped.” He said Gisèle Pelicot’s husband had allowed him to the home, and therefore it was acceptable. He said he was deceived by the husband. “I attempted to cease,” Dogan told the court. “I proceeded because he persuaded me.”

Asked if he wanted to make a final statement to the court, Dogan said: “I never wanted to injure that individual.”

Victim's Response

The survivor, who was supported upon departing the trial each day by supporters assembled to stand with her, said to the defendant in court: “You haven’t understood. When are you going to recognise you violated me? It’s a crime to assault an unconscious woman. At what point did I give you agreement? Never.”

The victim, seventy-two, became an global icon after she waived her right to privacy in the trial last year when she said: “Guilt ought to transfer.”

Legal Commentary

The prosecutor, turning to Gisèle Pelicot in court, said the defendant's unwillingness to take blame showed that: “The shame remains. Society is maybe in the course of that, possibly driven by the public consciousness brought by the revelation of your ordeal.”

Sie said Dogan’s claims of innocence 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 ethos of permission.”

The prosecutor said to Dogan: “For as much as you reject it, it’s not just a woman, it’s an entire unpleasant social system that you are supporting.”

Personal History

Dogan was originated from Turkey and at the age of 5 relocated to France, where his parent worked as a caretaker. The testimony revealed that his father was violent and that the defendant began smoking cannabis aged 10. When he was seventeen he was stopped by authorities for selling narcotics and his father kicked him out the residence. He was incarcerated in prison for trafficking in his twenties and had worked as a builder but had undergone periods of being unhoused.

He was married and had a child with a genetic condition, who he was the main caregiver for, as his spouse worked in a institution's dining hall. The testimony revealed his wife did not know he had frequent intimate relations outside their marriage. His legal team said this was his way of coping with his difficult circumstances. Dogan had told a mental health expert that once a year he engaged in paid sex on his special day. His attorneys told the court he had arthritis caused by the stress of the original case.