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An individual was declared guilty on retrial of sexually assaulting Gisèle Pelicot following she was rendered comatose by her then-husband – and has had his jail term extended to a decade.

Appeal Trial

Dogan, 44, an out-of-work construction worker, who had challenged his initial guilty verdict last year, underwent a appeal hearing this week at the higher court in Nîmes.

A jury of four women and five men, accompanied by three judges, found Dogan guilty on Thursday of raping the victim in her residence in Provence in the early hours of 29 June 2019.

The evidence showed that the accused, a family man, reached out to the victim's spouse, the husband, in an internet forum titled “unbeknownst to her”, where Pelicot was seeking men to visit his house to rape his wife after he had drugged her into a deep sleep.

We trust the jury will declare that in this country, human rights are also rights of women – that agreement is personal, not delegated,” stated Gisèle Pelicot’s lawyer, her legal representative. “Agreement is secured directly and not through someone else from a husband.”

Context

Dominique Pelicot, among the most severe sexual predators in recent French history, was given a prison term to 20 years in prison last year for incapacitating his then wife and soliciting multiple perpetrators 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 union.

Dozens of additional defendants were found guilty in a notable trial last year, and Dogan was the only man to contest his verdict. He was initially handed a term to 9 years in prison, a penalty raised on Thursday to a decade.

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

Courtroom Details

The defendant had initially sent Dominique Pelicot graphic images and then driven an hour from his residence in Provence to assault the victim, after notifying his wife he was leaving, the court heard.

Pelicot, who was transported from segregation in prison to temporarily give evidence at the appeal trial, informed the court that the accused had understood his wife had been “sedated” and he said to men by phone: “I want someone to assault my wife after I’ve put her to sleep without her knowledge.”

The proceedings became a focus point for a broader debate on societal attitudes in society as the defendant continued to assert he was not guilty and had not perpetrated assault, arguing that because Gisèle Pelicot’s husband had welcomed him into the room, his conduct had been permissible.

The jury in the Nîmes appeals court was presented with recorded footage of Gisèle Pelicot’s unresponsive form, unconscious and snoring in a deep sleep, while a smiling Dogan performed assault multiple times over a period of what police said was several hours. The judge said she had been at peril of death by asphyxiation. The state's case said there was no doubt that she had been unaware and had not consented.

Dogan's Claims

Dogan told the court the videos were simply “sexual encounters” and disputed it was assault. He said what he did was “a consensual activity”, not rape. He declared the court: “I did not commit rape.” He said the victim's husband had brought him to the residence, and therefore it was OK. He said he was influenced by Dominique Pelicot. “I attempted to cease,” the accused stated to the court. “I continued because he reassured me.”

Inquired if he wanted to make a closing remarks to the court, the defendant said: “I had no desire to injure that individual.”

Survivor's Statement

The survivor, who was supported upon exiting the courtroom each day by onlookers gathered to back her, addressed the defendant in court: “You do not grasp. When are you going to recognise you raped me? It is illegal to rape an incapacitated woman. At what point did I give you consent? Never.”

Gisèle Pelicot, 72, became an global icon after she gave up her right to anonymity in the trial last year when she said: “Guilt ought to transfer.”

Prosecutor's Remarks

The prosecutor, addressing Gisèle Pelicot in court, said Dogan’s unwillingness to take accountability showed that: “Guilt has not shifted. The public is possibly in the process of that, maybe driven by the public consciousness spurred by the revelation of your situation.”

The prosecutor said the defendant's claims of blamelessness showed how societal tolerance was still common in society as part of “old-fashioned” forms of “male domination”. He said: “We need to change rape culture to a culture of consent.”

Sie addressed the defendant: “As long as you reject it, it’s not just a person, it’s an whole disturbing cultural framework that you are upholding.”

Personal History

Dogan was originated from Turkey and at the age of five moved to the nation of France, where his parent worked as a building manager. The evidence indicated that his parent was abusive and that the defendant began smoking cannabis at the age of 10. When Dogan was seventeen he was stopped by police for dealing drugs and his father forced him to leave of home. He spent time in prison for trafficking in his twenties and had worked as a laborer but had experienced periods of being unhoused.

He was married and had a son with a genetic condition, who he was the principal carer for, as his spouse worked in a educational cafeteria. The testimony revealed his spouse did not know he had repeated extramarital activities beyond their union. His legal team said this was his way of coping with his difficult circumstances. The defendant had stated to a evaluator that each year he looked for commercial sex on his special day. His legal representatives stated to the court he had a medical condition triggered by the anxiety of the initial proceedings.