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An individual has been found guilty on retrial of sexually assaulting Gisèle Pelicot following she was drugged unconscious by her then-husband – and was given his incarceration period extended to a decade.

Higher Court Case

The defendant, 44, an out-of-work construction worker, who had contested his first conviction last year, faced a appeal hearing this week at the Nîmes court of appeal.

A panel of nine jurors, sitting with three judges, ruled against Dogan on Thursday of sexually assaulting Pelicot in her bedroom in Provence in the morning of June 29, 2019.

The evidence showed that Dogan, a family man, connected with the victim's husband at the time, Dominique Pelicot, in an online chatroom titled “unbeknownst to her”, where the husband was recruiting men to come to his home to rape his wife after he had sedated her into a unconscious state.

We trust the court will affirm that in this country, fundamental rights are also women’s rights – that consent is personal, not delegated,” declared the victim's attorney, her legal representative. “Agreement is obtained directly and not via a representative from a husband.”

Context

Dominique Pelicot, one of the worst sex offenders in France's contemporary records, was given a prison term to two decades in prison last year for drugging his wife at the time and bringing in multiple perpetrators to rape her in her home in the Provence village of Mazan over a duration of nearly ten years of their marriage.

Numerous other individuals were found convicted in a notable trial last year, and Dogan was the single defendant to contest his sentence. He was originally sentenced to 9 years in prison, a punishment increased on Thursday to 10 years.

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

Evidence Presented

The defendant had initially sent Dominique Pelicot sexually explicit photos and then traveled an hour from his town in the region to rape Gisèle Pelicot, after informing his wife he was stepping out, the evidence indicated.

Pelicot, who was transported from solitary confinement in prison to briefly give evidence at the retrial, told the court that Dogan had been aware his wife had been “incapacitated” and he said to men by phone: “I’m looking for someone to violate my wife after I’ve sedated her unbeknownst to her.”

The proceedings became a key topic for a wider discussion on societal attitudes in society as Dogan continued to claim he was innocent and had not engaged in violation, arguing that because the victim's husband had allowed him into the room, his conduct had been acceptable.

The jury in the higher court was shown video evidence of Gisèle Pelicot’s unresponsive form, comatose and breathing heavily in a unconscious condition, 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 risk of death by suffocation. The state's case said there was no question that she had been incapacitated and had not given permission.

Accused's Testimony

The defendant stated to the court the videos were simply “intimate moments” and disputed it was assault. He said what he did was “a consensual activity”, not assault. He declared the court: “I never raped.” He said the victim's husband had allowed him to the home, and therefore it was OK. He said he was influenced by the husband. “I wanted to stop,” Dogan informed the court. “I continued because he reassured me.”

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

Survivor's Statement

The victim, who was supported upon exiting the courtroom each day by supporters assembled to back her, addressed the defendant in court: “You haven’t understood. When will you acknowledge you assaulted me? It is illegal to assault an unaware woman. When did I ever give you agreement? Not once.”

Gisèle Pelicot, 72, became an international feminist hero after she gave up her right to anonymity in the trial last year when she said: “The shame should shift.”

Legal Commentary

The prosecutor, speaking to Gisèle Pelicot in court, said Dogan’s unwillingness to take accountability showed that: “The shame remains. The public is perhaps in the process of that, maybe motivated by the societal understanding brought by the exposure of your case.”

Sie said Dogan’s claims of blamelessness showed how normalized violence was still prevalent in society as part of “outdated” forms of “gender-based power”. He said: “It is imperative to change the culture of violence to a culture of consent.”

The prosecutor said to Dogan: “As long as you refuse to admit it, it’s not just a individual, it’s an complete sordid societal structure that you are endorsing.”

Personal History

The accused was originated from Turkey and at the age of 5 relocated to France, where his parent worked as a building manager. The testimony revealed that his parent was aggressive and that Dogan began smoking cannabis at the age of 10. When he was seventeen he was caught by police for drug trafficking and his parent kicked him out of home. He spent time in prison for trafficking in his twenties and had worked as a builder 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 wife worked in a school canteen. The evidence showed his wife did not know he had frequent extramarital activities beyond their union. His legal team said this was his method of dealing with his challenging existence. The defendant had stated to a court psychologist that each year he engaged in commercial sex on his special day. His legal representatives told the court he had joint inflammation resulting from the pressure of the initial proceedings.