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An individual has been found guilty on higher court review of sexually assaulting Gisèle Pelicot following she was rendered comatose by her then-husband – and received his incarceration period extended to ten years.

Appeal Trial

The defendant, forty-four, an unemployed builder, who had challenged his initial guilty verdict last year, faced a appeal hearing this week at the appeals court in Nîmes.

A jury of four women and five men, joined by three judges, found Dogan guilty on Thursday of raping the victim in her bedroom in southern France in the morning of 29 June 2019.

The evidence showed that the accused, a family man, made contact with the victim's spouse, Dominique Pelicot, in an digital platform called “without her consent”, where the husband was recruiting men to enter his residence to rape his wife once he had rendered her unconscious into a unconscious state.

“We hope the panel will say loud and clear that in this society, human rights are also rights of women – that permission is personal, not delegated,” stated the victim's lawyer, her legal representative. “Consent is secured directly and not via a representative from a spouse.”

Context

Dominique Pelicot, among the most severe sex offenders in recent French history, was handed a sentence to two decades in prison last year for sedating his wife at the time and bringing in multiple perpetrators to rape her in her home in the community of the village of Mazan over a period of many years of their marriage.

Numerous other individuals were found guilty in a widely publicized trial last year, and the appellant was the single defendant to contest his conviction. He was first handed a term to 9 years in prison, a punishment enhanced on Thursday to 10 years.

The chief prosecutor, the prosecutor, had argued he should serve 12 years, because he “completely denies to take any accountability”.

Courtroom Details

The defendant had first sent the husband graphic images and then traveled an hour from his village in the region to rape Gisèle Pelicot, after notifying his wife he was stepping out, the court heard.

The ex-husband, who was brought from solitary confinement in prison to briefly testify at the hearing, told the court that Dogan had been aware his wife had been “incapacitated” and he told to men by phone: “I want someone to abuse my wife after I’ve sedated her without her consent.”

The trial became a key topic for a broader debate on rape culture in society as the defendant continued to say he was blameless and had not perpetrated assault, contending that because Gisèle Pelicot’s husband had welcomed him into the room, his actions had been acceptable.

The jury in the higher court was displayed recorded footage of Gisèle Pelicot’s unconscious figure, unconscious and breathing heavily in a unconscious condition, while a grinning Dogan performed assault on several occasions over a duration of what police said was several hours. The presiding judge said she had been at danger of fatal outcome by choking. The state's case said there was absolute certainty that she had been unconscious and had not agreed.

Dogan's Claims

The defendant told the court the footage were simply “intimate moments” and rejected it was rape. 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 brought him to the residence, and therefore it was permissible. He said he was manipulated by the husband. “I tried to halt,” the accused stated to the court. “I carried on because he reassured me.”

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

Victim's Response

The survivor, who was applauded upon departing the trial each day by crowds assembled to stand with her, addressed Dogan in court: “You do not grasp. When are you going to recognise you assaulted me? It is illegal to assault an unaware woman. When did I ever give you permission? Not once.”

The victim, 72, became an symbol of resistance after she relinquished her right to anonymity in the trial last year when she said: “The shame should shift.”

State's Argument

Sie, addressing Gisèle Pelicot in court, said Dogan’s unwillingness to take accountability showed that: “The shame remains. The public is maybe in the midst of that, perhaps motivated by the public consciousness spurred by the publication of your ordeal.”

The prosecutor said Dogan’s claims of innocence showed how rape culture was still common in society as part of “archaic” forms of “patriarchal control”. He said: “It is imperative to change rape culture to a ethos of permission.”

Sie addressed Dogan: “While you refuse to admit it, it’s not just a individual, it’s an complete disturbing social system that you are upholding.”

Defendant's Background

Dogan was born in the country of Turkey and at the age of five came to the nation of France, where his parent worked as a caretaker. The testimony revealed that his parent was abusive and that Dogan began smoking cannabis at the age of ten. When he was 17 he was stopped by police for drug trafficking and his parent forced him to leave the residence. He served time in prison for trafficking in his young adulthood and had worked as a laborer but had undergone periods of living on the streets.

He was wed and had a child with special needs, who he was the main caregiver for, as his spouse worked in a educational cafeteria. The testimony revealed his wife did not know he had repeated sexual encounters beyond their marriage. His legal team said this was his method of dealing with his challenging existence. Dogan had informed a mental health expert that each year he looked for paid sex on his birthday. His lawyers informed the court he had arthritis caused by the anxiety of the original case.