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A man was declared guilty on appeal of raping Gisele Pelicot following she was rendered comatose by her then-husband – and has had his incarceration period raised to ten years.

Higher Court Case

Dogan, forty-four, an out-of-work construction worker, who had challenged his first conviction last year, experienced a appeal hearing this week at the higher court in Nîmes.

A panel of five men and four women, joined by three judges, convicted Dogan on Thursday of sexually assaulting Pelicot in her residence in the south of France in the early hours of June 29, 2019.

The testimony revealed that Dogan, a family man, reached out to the victim's husband at the time, Dominique Pelicot, in an online chatroom named “without her consent”, where the husband was looking for men to enter his residence to rape his wife after he had drugged her into a deep sleep.

We expect the jury will affirm that in this nation, human rights are also women’s rights – that permission is personal, not transferred,” stated Gisèle Pelicot’s attorney, Antoine Camus. “Consent is received directly and not by proxy from a husband.”

Case History

The ex-husband, a notorious sex offenders in France's contemporary records, was sentenced to 20 years in prison last year for incapacitating his wife at the time and inviting dozens of men to sexually assault her in her home in the Provence village of the village of Mazan over a period of nearly ten years of their marriage.

Dozens of additional defendants were found convicted in a widely publicized trial last year, and Dogan was the single defendant to challenge his verdict. He was initially sentenced to nine years in prison, a sentence raised on Thursday to ten years.

The chief prosecutor, the prosecutor, had argued he should serve twelve years, because he “stubbornly rejects to take any blame”.

Courtroom Details

Dogan had first sent the husband sexually explicit photos and then driven an hour from his residence in Provence to rape Gisèle Pelicot, after informing his wife he was going out, the court heard.

The ex-husband, who was transported from solitary confinement in prison to temporarily provide testimony at the hearing, stated to the court that Dogan had been aware his wife had been “sedated” and he communicated to men by phone: “I seek someone to assault my wife after I’ve sedated her without her knowledge.”

The trial became a focus point for a broader debate on sexual violence norms in society as Dogan continued to assert he was innocent and had not perpetrated assault, arguing that because Gisèle Pelicot’s husband had invited him into the bedroom, his conduct had been permissible.

The panel in the higher court was presented with video evidence of Gisèle Pelicot’s unconscious figure, unconscious and breathing heavily in a comatose state, while a grinning Dogan engaged in violation repeatedly over a duration of what investigators stated was 3.5 hours. The presiding judge said she had been at peril of fatal outcome by choking. The state's case said there was no question that she had been incapacitated and had not consented.

Accused's Testimony

The defendant stated to the court the recordings were simply “sexual encounters” and disputed it was violation. He said what he did was “an intimate behavior”, not rape. He stated the court: “I am innocent of assault.” He said Gisèle Pelicot’s husband had allowed him to the house, and therefore it was acceptable. He said he was manipulated by Dominique Pelicot. “I tried to halt,” the accused informed the court. “I continued because he reassured me.”

Inquired if he wanted to make a closing remarks to the court, Dogan said: “I never wanted to hurt that individual.”

Victim's Response

The victim, who was cheered upon departing the trial each day by supporters present to stand with her, addressed Dogan in court: “You haven’t understood. When will you admit you raped me? It is unlawful to assault an unaware woman. At what point did I give you permission? At no time.”

The victim, seventy-two, 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, speaking to Gisèle Pelicot in court, said the defendant's refusal to take accountability showed that: “The shame remains. Society is possibly in the process of that, possibly motivated by the public consciousness resulting from the exposure of your case.”

Sie said Dogan’s claims of non-guilt showed how societal tolerance was still widespread in society as part of “outdated” forms of “gender-based power”. He said: “It is imperative to change rape culture to a ethos of permission.”

The prosecutor told Dogan: “As long as you reject it, it’s not just a individual, it’s an entire disturbing cultural framework that you are upholding.”

Personal History

Dogan was born in the country of Turkey and at the age of five came to the nation of France, where his father worked as a concierge. The evidence indicated that his parent was abusive and that the defendant began smoking cannabis aged ten. When Dogan was seventeen he was stopped by police for dealing drugs and his father kicked him out of home. He spent time in prison for trafficking in his young adulthood and had worked as a construction worker but had experienced periods of being unhoused.

He was wed and had a son with a genetic condition, who he was the main caregiver for, as his wife worked in a school canteen. The evidence showed his spouse did not know he had repeated sexual encounters beyond their marriage. His legal team said this was his way of coping with his challenging existence. The defendant had told a evaluator that once a year he engaged in transactional encounters on his special day. His attorneys informed the court he had joint inflammation caused by the pressure of the original case.