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A man was declared guilty on retrial of raping Gisèle Pelicot after she was sedated by her then-husband – and received his prison sentence increased to ten years.

Higher Court Case

The defendant, forty-four, an out-of-work construction worker, who had contested his initial guilty verdict last year, experienced a new trial this week at the higher court in Nîmes.

A panel of five men and four women, sitting with three judges, convicted Dogan on Thursday of raping Pelicot in her residence in southern France in the morning of 29 June 2019.

The testimony revealed that the accused, a family man, made contact with Gisèle Pelicot’s spouse, the husband, in an digital platform named “without her consent”, where the husband was seeking men to come to his home to assault his wife after he had sedated her into a comatose state.

We expect the panel will declare that in this society, fundamental rights are also rights of women – that consent is individual, not transferred,” said Gisèle Pelicot’s attorney, her legal representative. “Agreement is received personally and not by proxy from a husband.”

Case History

The ex-husband, one of the worst sex offenders in modern French history, was given a prison term to two decades in prison last year for incapacitating his then wife and soliciting multiple perpetrators to sexually assault her in her home in the town of the village of Mazan over a duration of many years of their marriage.

Dozens of additional defendants were found guilty in a notable trial last year, and the appellant was the single defendant to contest his conviction. He was originally sentenced to nine years in prison, a penalty increased on Thursday to a decade.

The chief prosecutor, Dominique Sie, had argued he should serve twelve years, because he “completely denies to take any responsibility”.

Evidence Presented

The defendant had initially sent the husband inappropriate pictures and then traveled an hour from his residence in the region to assault Gisèle Pelicot, after notifying his wife he was going out, the evidence indicated.

Pelicot, who was brought from solitary confinement in prison to briefly give evidence at the appeal trial, stated to the court that Dogan had understood his wife had been “sedated” and he told to men by phone: “I seek someone to assault my wife after I’ve rendered her unconscious without her knowledge.”

The courtroom became a key topic for a larger conversation on sexual violence norms in society as Dogan continued to say he was not guilty and had not engaged in violation, arguing that because the victim's husband had invited him into the residence, his behavior had been justifiable.

The jury in the higher court was shown visual proof of the victim's unconscious figure, unconscious and breathing heavily in a deep sleep, while a smiling the perpetrator engaged in violation repeatedly over a timeframe of what police said was several hours. The presiding judge said she had been at peril of fatal outcome by suffocation. The state's case said there was no question that she had been unconscious and had not given permission.

Accused's Testimony

The defendant stated to the court the footage were simply “sex scenes” and rejected it was violation. He said what he did was “an intimate behavior”, not rape. He stated 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 deceived by Dominique Pelicot. “I attempted to cease,” Dogan told the court. “I carried on because he reassured me.”

Inquired if he wanted to make a last words to the court, the defendant said: “I did not intend to hurt that lady.”

Survivor's Statement

The survivor, who was supported upon leaving court each day by crowds assembled to back her, said to Dogan in court: “You do not grasp. When are you going to recognise you violated me? It is unlawful to rape an incapacitated woman. When did I ever give you consent? At no time.”

The victim, seventy-two, became an international feminist hero after she waived her right to anonymity in the trial last year when she said: “The shame should shift.”

Prosecutor's Remarks

Sie, speaking to the victim in court, said Dogan’s refusal to take accountability showed that: “Guilt has not shifted. Society is maybe in the process of that, possibly propelled by the societal understanding spurred by the revelation of your ordeal.”

The prosecutor said the defendant's claims of non-guilt showed how rape culture was still widespread in society as part of “outdated” forms of “male domination”. He said: “Now we must change rape culture to a ethos of permission.”

The prosecutor said to the defendant: “While you deny it, it’s not just a individual, it’s an whole disturbing societal structure that you are supporting.”

Biographical Details

The accused was born in Turkey and at the age of five relocated to the nation of France, where his parent worked as a caretaker. The testimony revealed that his parent was aggressive and that the defendant began smoking cannabis aged ten. When Dogan was seventeen he was stopped by authorities for dealing drugs and his father forced him to leave the family house. He was incarcerated in prison for narcotics offenses in his early 20s and had worked as a construction worker but had faced periods of being unhoused.

He was wed and had a child with Down’s syndrome, who he was the primary guardian for, as his spouse worked in a school canteen. The evidence showed his wife did not know he had frequent extramarital activities beyond their marriage. His defence said this was his way of coping with his difficult circumstances. Dogan had told a court psychologist that annually he looked for transactional encounters on his special day. His attorneys informed the court he had a medical condition triggered by the pressure of the initial proceedings.