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An individual was convicted on retrial of sexually assaulting Gisèle Pelicot following she was rendered comatose by her then-husband – and has had his incarceration period increased to a decade.

Higher Court Case

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

A jury of nine jurors, accompanied by three judges, found Dogan guilty on Thursday of raping Pelicot in her home in southern France in the early hours of June 29, 2019.

The court heard that the accused, a family man, made contact with the victim's spouse, the husband, in an online chatroom titled “without her consent”, where the husband was recruiting men to come to his home to assault his wife after he had drugged her into a comatose state.

We expect the panel will affirm that in this nation, human rights are also women’s rights – that agreement is personal, not given by another,” declared Gisèle Pelicot’s lawyer, her legal representative. “Agreement is secured personally and not via a representative from a husband.”

Context

Dominique Pelicot, among the most severe sex offenders in modern French history, was given a prison term to 20 years in prison last year for sedating his wife at the time and soliciting numerous individuals to sexually assault her in her home in the Provence village of Mazan over a period of nearly ten years of their marriage.

Fifty other men were found convicted in a widely publicized trial last year, and the appellant was the single defendant to challenge his sentence. He was first given a sentence to 9 years in prison, a penalty increased on Thursday to 10 years.

The state's attorney, the prosecutor, had argued 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 village in Provence to assault the victim, after telling his wife he was stepping out, the court heard.

The ex-husband, who was transported from solitary confinement in prison to briefly testify at the appeal trial, informed the court that Dogan had known his wife had been “incapacitated” and he said to men by phone: “I want someone to abuse my wife after I’ve put her to sleep unbeknownst to her.”

The proceedings became a key topic for a broader debate on rape culture in society as the defendant continued to assert he was not guilty and had not engaged in violation, stating that because the victim's husband had welcomed him into the room, his conduct had been permissible.

The jury in the Nîmes appeals court was displayed video evidence of Gisèle Pelicot’s unresponsive form, unconscious and snoring in a deep sleep, while a smiling Dogan engaged in violation multiple times over a duration of what police said was three and a half hours. The judge said she had been at danger of fatal outcome by choking. The state prosecution said there was absolute certainty that she had been unconscious and had not given permission.

Defendant's Statements

The defendant informed the court the videos were simply “sexual encounters” and denied it was assault. He said what he did was “a consensual activity”, not rape. He told the court: “I never raped.” He said the victim's husband had brought him to the residence, and therefore it was OK. He said he was manipulated by the husband. “I wanted to stop,” Dogan told the court. “I carried on because he convinced me.”

Asked if he wanted to make a closing remarks to the court, Dogan said: “I had no desire to harm that lady.”

Pelicot's Words

The survivor, who was applauded upon exiting the courtroom each day by supporters gathered to support her, addressed Dogan in court: “You haven’t understood. When will you acknowledge you assaulted me? It is illegal to rape an unaware woman. How could I have give you agreement? At no time.”

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

State's Argument

Sie, speaking to Gisèle Pelicot in court, said Dogan’s failure to take blame showed that: “The shame remains. Society is possibly in the process of that, possibly motivated by the collective awareness resulting from the exposure of your situation.”

The prosecutor said Dogan’s claims of non-guilt showed how rape culture was still widespread in society as part of “archaic” forms of “gender-based power”. He said: “We need to change the culture of violence to a culture of consent.”

Sie told Dogan: “As long as you refuse to admit it, it’s not just a individual, it’s an entire disturbing cultural framework that you are upholding.”

Biographical Details

Dogan was originated from Turkey and at the age of five came to France, where his father worked as a building manager. The testimony revealed that his parent was violent and that the defendant began consuming marijuana at the age of 10. When he was seventeen he was apprehended by authorities for selling narcotics and his parent forced him to leave the family house. He was incarcerated in prison for narcotics offenses in his young adulthood and had worked as a builder but had undergone 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 institution's dining hall. The testimony revealed his wife did not know he had repeated extramarital activities beyond their marriage. His legal team said this was his way of coping with his difficult circumstances. The defendant had stated to a court psychologist that annually he engaged in commercial sex on his special day. His legal representatives informed the court he had a medical condition resulting from the stress of the original case.