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A man was declared guilty on higher court review of raping Gisèle Pelicot following she was rendered comatose by her spouse – and has had his incarceration period raised to a decade.

Retrial Proceedings

The defendant, forty-four, an out-of-work construction worker, who had challenged his first conviction last year, experienced a new trial this week at the appeals court in Nîmes.

A panel of nine jurors, joined by three judges, found Dogan guilty on Thursday of sexually assaulting the victim in her bedroom in Provence in the early hours of June 29, 2019.

The court heard that Dogan, a married father, reached out to the victim's then husband, Dominique Pelicot, in an digital platform called “without her consent”, where the husband was seeking men to visit his house to rape his wife after he had rendered her unconscious into a comatose state.

“We hope the panel will declare that in this country, human rights are also women’s rights – that consent is individual, not delegated,” said Gisèle Pelicot’s lawyer, Antoine Camus. “Agreement is secured personally and not through someone else from a husband.”

Context

The ex-husband, among the most severe sex offenders in France's contemporary records, was sentenced to 20 years in prison last year for sedating his then wife and bringing in multiple perpetrators to sexually assault her in her home in the Provence village of Mazan over a span of many years of their union.

Fifty other men were found culpable 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 nine years in prison, a penalty raised on Thursday to 10 years.

The lead state prosecutor, Dominique Sie, had stated he should serve 12 years, because he “completely denies to take any accountability”.

Courtroom Details

Dogan had first sent the husband inappropriate pictures and then driven an hour from his village in Provence to rape the victim, after notifying his wife he was stepping out, the testimony revealed.

Pelicot, who was transported from segregation in prison to briefly testify at the appeal trial, told the court that Dogan had known his wife had been “drugged” and he said to men by phone: “I seek someone to violate my wife after I’ve put her to sleep without her knowledge.”

The courtroom became a central issue for a wider discussion on societal attitudes in society as Dogan continued to say he was innocent and had not committed rape, stating that because the victim's husband had invited him into the residence, his actions had been acceptable.

The jury in the higher court was displayed visual proof of Gisèle Pelicot’s limp body, unconscious and snoring in a deep sleep, while a smiling Dogan engaged in violation multiple times over a duration of what authorities reported was 3.5 hours. The judge said she had been at risk of fatal outcome by suffocation. The state's case said there was absolute certainty that she had been incapacitated and had not consented.

Defendant's Statements

Dogan informed the court the videos were simply “intimate moments” and rejected it was violation. He said what he did was “a sexual act”, not rape. He stated the court: “I never raped.” He said the victim's husband had allowed him to the residence, and therefore it was OK. He said he was manipulated by the husband. “I wanted to stop,” Dogan informed the court. “I carried on because he reassured me.”

Questioned if he wanted to make a final statement to the court, the defendant said: “I did not intend to hurt that lady.”

Pelicot's Words

The victim, who was cheered upon departing the trial each day by supporters gathered to stand with her, told the defendant in court: “You do not grasp. When are you going to recognise you violated me? It is unlawful to assault an unconscious woman. How could I have give you permission? Never.”

The victim, seventy-two, became an global icon after she waived her right to confidentiality in the trial last year when she said: “The shame should shift.”

Prosecutor's Remarks

The prosecutor, speaking to Gisèle Pelicot in court, said Dogan’s refusal to take accountability showed that: “Shame has not yet changed sides. The public is possibly in the midst of that, possibly propelled by the societal understanding resulting from the publication of your ordeal.”

Sie said the defendant's claims of non-guilt showed how normalized violence was still prevalent in society as part of “archaic” forms of “patriarchal control”. He said: “Now we must change the culture of violence to a culture of consent.”

Sie said to Dogan: “For as much as you reject it, it’s not just a person, it’s an entire disturbing social system that you are endorsing.”

Defendant's Background

Dogan was born in the country of Turkey and at the age of 5 relocated to the nation of France, where his parent worked as a concierge. The court heard that his parent was aggressive and that Dogan began using drugs at the age of ten. When Dogan was 17 he was apprehended by police for dealing drugs and his father evicted him the family house. He was incarcerated in prison for trafficking in his young adulthood and had worked as a builder but had undergone periods of living on the streets.

He was wed and had a child with Down’s syndrome, who he was the main caregiver for, as his wife worked in a educational cafeteria. The court heard his spouse did not know he had repeated intimate relations beyond their marriage. His legal team said this was his way of coping with his stressful life. Dogan had told a court psychologist that once a year he sought paid sex on his special day. His attorneys stated to the court he had arthritis caused by the pressure of the initial proceedings.