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A man was convicted on appeal of sexually assaulting Gisele Pelicot after she was sedated by her spouse – and was given his jail term extended to 10 years.

Retrial Proceedings

Dogan, 44, an unemployed builder, who had appealed his first conviction last year, faced a appeal hearing this week at the higher court in Nîmes.

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

The testimony revealed that the accused, a married father, made contact with the victim's then husband, the husband, in an digital platform titled “without her consent”, where the husband was seeking men to come to his home to assault his wife after he had drugged her into a deep sleep.

We trust the court will declare that in this country, human rights are also women’s rights – that consent is individual, not delegated,” declared the victim's attorney, her legal representative. “Consent is received directly and not by proxy from a spouse.”

Context

The ex-husband, one of the worst sexual predators in modern French history, was handed a sentence to two decades in prison last year for sedating his spouse and soliciting numerous individuals to sexually assault her in her home in the community of the village of Mazan over a period of many years of their union.

Numerous other individuals were found culpable in a widely publicized trial last year, and the appellant was the single defendant to appeal against his conviction. He was originally handed a term to 9 years in prison, a sentence enhanced on Thursday to a decade.

The state's attorney, the prosecutor, had stated he should serve 12 years, because he “stubbornly rejects to take any blame”.

Evidence Presented

The defendant had first sent Dominique Pelicot sexually explicit photos and then traveled an hour from his town in the region to assault the victim, after notifying his wife he was leaving, the court heard.

The ex-husband, who was transported from segregation in prison to briefly provide testimony at the retrial, told the court that Dogan had been aware his wife had been “drugged” and he told to men by phone: “I want someone to violate my wife after I’ve rendered her unconscious without her knowledge.”

The proceedings became a central issue for a wider discussion on societal attitudes in society as the defendant continued to say he was blameless and had not perpetrated assault, stating that because Gisèle Pelicot’s husband had allowed him into the bedroom, his actions had been justifiable.

The jury in the higher court was displayed recorded footage of Gisèle Pelicot’s unconscious figure, sedated and breathing heavily in a deep sleep, while a grinning Dogan performed assault multiple times over a period of what police said was several hours. The judge said she had been at risk of death by suffocation. The state prosecution said there was absolute certainty that she had been unconscious and had not agreed.

Defendant's Statements

The defendant told the court the videos were simply “sex scenes” and rejected it was assault. He said what he did was “a consensual activity”, not rape. He stated the court: “I never raped.” He said Gisèle Pelicot’s husband had brought him to the house, and therefore it was acceptable. He said he was manipulated by Dominique Pelicot. “I attempted to cease,” the accused informed the court. “I carried on because he persuaded me.”

Questioned if he wanted to make a final statement to the court, the defendant said: “I had no desire to injure that individual.”

Survivor's Statement

The survivor, who was cheered upon departing the trial each day by onlookers gathered to support her, addressed Dogan in court: “You do not grasp. When are you going to recognise you assaulted me? It is unlawful to rape an unaware woman. How could I have give you agreement? Never.”

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

Legal Commentary

Sie, turning to the victim in court, said Dogan’s failure to take responsibility showed that: “Shame has not yet changed sides. Society is possibly in the midst of that, maybe motivated by the societal understanding brought by the publication of your case.”

Sie said the defendant's claims of innocence showed how normalized violence 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 said to the defendant: “As long as you deny it, it’s not just a individual, it’s an complete unpleasant social system that you are upholding.”

Defendant's Background

The accused was originated from the country of Turkey and at the age of 5 moved to the nation of France, where his parent worked as a concierge. The evidence indicated that his father was abusive and that the defendant began consuming marijuana at the age of ten. When he was seventeen he was caught by authorities for selling narcotics and his parent kicked him out the residence. He spent time in prison for trafficking in his twenties and had worked as a laborer but had undergone periods of living on the streets.

He was wed and had a son with a genetic condition, who he was the primary guardian for, as his spouse worked in a educational cafeteria. The testimony revealed his wife did not know he had frequent sexual encounters beyond their union. His defence said this was his method of dealing with his stressful life. The defendant had told a mental health expert that once a year he engaged in commercial sex on his special day. His legal representatives told the court he had arthritis triggered by the anxiety of the initial proceedings.