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A defendant has been found guilty on higher court review of sexually assaulting Gisele Pelicot after she was drugged unconscious by her husband – and was given his incarceration period raised to a decade.

Retrial Proceedings

The defendant, forty-four, an unemployed builder, who had contested his first conviction last year, experienced a appeal hearing this week at the Nîmes court of appeal.

A jury of nine jurors, accompanied by three judges, convicted Dogan on Thursday of raping Pelicot in her bedroom in southern France in the morning of 29 June 2019.

The evidence showed that Dogan, a family man, reached out to Gisèle Pelicot’s then husband, Dominique Pelicot, in an digital platform titled “without her consent”, where the husband was looking for men to visit his house to assault his wife after he had drugged her into a unconscious state.

“We hope the court will declare that in this country, human rights are also rights of women – that agreement is individual, not given by another,” declared Gisèle Pelicot’s attorney, her legal representative. “Consent is secured directly and not via a representative from a husband.”

Case History

Dominique Pelicot, one of the worst sex offenders in France's contemporary records, was handed a sentence to two decades in prison last year for incapacitating his then wife and soliciting numerous individuals to sexually assault her in her home in the Provence village of the village of Mazan over a span of almost a decade of their union.

Numerous other individuals were found culpable in a widely publicized trial last year, and the appellant was the single defendant to challenge his conviction. He was initially handed a term to nine years in prison, a sentence raised on Thursday to a decade.

The state's attorney, the prosecutor, had contended he should serve twelve years, because he “completely denies to take any blame”.

Courtroom Details

Dogan had initially sent the husband graphic images and then traveled an hour from his town in Provence to rape Gisèle Pelicot, after informing his wife he was leaving, the testimony revealed.

Pelicot, who was brought from isolation in prison to temporarily give evidence at the retrial, told the court that the accused had known his wife had been “sedated” and he said to men by phone: “I seek someone to violate my wife after I’ve sedated her without her knowledge.”

The proceedings became a key topic for a larger conversation on rape culture in society as Dogan continued to assert he was innocent and had not engaged in violation, stating that because the victim's husband had invited him into the residence, his actions had been acceptable.

The jury in the Nîmes appeals court was shown video evidence of Gisèle Pelicot’s unconscious figure, comatose and breathing heavily in a deep sleep, while a smiling the perpetrator engaged in violation on several occasions over a timeframe of what investigators stated was 3.5 hours. The judge said she had been at danger of death by choking. The state's case said there was absolute certainty that she had been unaware and had not consented.

Accused's Testimony

Dogan told the court the footage were simply “intimate moments” and denied it was violation. He said what he did was “a sexual act”, not rape. He told the court: “I never raped.” He said the victim's husband had brought him to the house, and therefore it was acceptable. He said he was influenced by the husband. “I attempted to cease,” the accused told 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 individual.”

Victim's Response

Gisèle Pelicot, who was supported upon departing the trial each day by supporters present to support her, said to the defendant in court: “You do not grasp. When are you going to recognise you assaulted me? It is illegal to rape an incapacitated woman. How could I have give you agreement? At no time.”

The victim, 72, became an global icon after she waived her right to anonymity in the trial last year when she said: “Shame must change sides.”

Legal Commentary

Sie, addressing the victim in court, said Dogan’s refusal to take accountability showed that: “Guilt has not shifted. Society is maybe in the process of that, possibly driven by the public consciousness brought by the publication of your case.”

The prosecutor said the defendant's claims of non-guilt showed how normalized violence was still prevalent in society as part of “old-fashioned” forms of “male domination”. He said: “We need to change rape culture to a society based on agreement.”

The prosecutor told the defendant: “While you deny it, it’s not just a person, it’s an whole disturbing social system that you are upholding.”

Personal History

The accused was originated from Turkey and at the age of 5 relocated to France, where his father worked as a caretaker. The court heard that his father was abusive and that the defendant began smoking cannabis aged ten. When Dogan was seventeen he was caught by authorities for drug trafficking and his parent evicted him the residence. He was incarcerated in prison for narcotics offenses in his young adulthood and had worked as a construction worker but had faced periods of homelessness.

He was wed and had a son with Down’s syndrome, who he was the primary guardian for, as his wife worked in a school canteen. The court heard his spouse did not know he had regular sexual encounters beyond their marriage. His legal team said this was his strategy for managing with his stressful life. Dogan had stated to a mental health expert that once a year he engaged in paid sex on his birthday. His lawyers told the court he had a medical condition triggered by the stress of the initial proceedings.