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An individual was declared guilty on higher court review of sexually assaulting Gisèle Pelicot following she was rendered comatose by her then-husband – and has had his prison sentence raised to ten years.

Retrial Proceedings

The defendant, 44, an out-of-work construction worker, who had appealed his initial guilty verdict last year, experienced a retrial this week at the Nîmes court of appeal.

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

The evidence showed that Dogan, a married father, connected with Gisèle Pelicot’s spouse, Dominique Pelicot, in an internet forum called “without her knowledge”, where the husband was looking for men to come to his home to rape his wife after he had drugged her into a deep sleep.

“We hope the court will say loud and clear that in this country, fundamental rights are also rights of women – that agreement is individual, not given by another,” said the victim's lawyer, Antoine Camus. “Agreement is obtained personally and not through someone else from a husband.”

Context

The ex-husband, a notorious sex offenders in recent French history, was handed a sentence to two decades in prison last year for sedating his spouse and inviting dozens of men to sexually assault her in her home in the town of the village of Mazan over a duration of almost a decade of their union.

Dozens of additional defendants were found guilty in a notable trial last year, and Dogan was the single defendant to challenge his conviction. He was initially sentenced to nine years in prison, a sentence increased on Thursday to ten years.

The lead state prosecutor, the prosecutor, had stated he should serve 12 years, because he “stubbornly rejects to take any blame”.

Testimony and Proof

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

The ex-husband, who was transported from isolation in prison to briefly give evidence at the appeal trial, stated to the court that Dogan had understood his wife had been “drugged” and he communicated to men by phone: “I want someone to abuse my wife after I’ve sedated her without her consent.”

The proceedings became a key topic for a larger conversation on sexual violence norms in society as the defendant continued to assert he was not guilty and had not committed rape, contending that because the victim's husband had allowed him into the bedroom, his behavior had been justifiable.

The jury in the Nîmes appeals court was shown recorded footage of Gisèle Pelicot’s unconscious figure, unconscious and breathing heavily in a comatose state, while a grinning the perpetrator committed rape repeatedly over a period of what police said was 3.5 hours. The judge said she had been at danger of death by suffocation. The state prosecution said there was no doubt that she had been unaware and had not given permission.

Accused's Testimony

The defendant informed the court the footage were simply “sexual encounters” and rejected it was violation. He said what he did was “an intimate behavior”, not assault. He declared the court: “I never raped.” He said the victim's husband had invited him to the home, and therefore it was acceptable. He said he was manipulated by the husband. “I attempted to cease,” Dogan informed the court. “I continued because he persuaded me.”

Inquired if he wanted to make a last words to the court, the defendant said: “I never wanted to hurt that individual.”

Pelicot's Words

Gisèle Pelicot, who was cheered upon leaving court each day by onlookers assembled to stand with her, addressed Dogan in court: “You haven’t understood. When will you acknowledge you raped me? It is illegal to rape an unconscious woman. How could I have give you permission? Not once.”

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

Prosecutor's Remarks

The prosecutor, turning to Gisèle Pelicot in court, said the defendant's unwillingness to take responsibility showed that: “Guilt has not shifted. Society is maybe in the course of that, perhaps propelled by the public consciousness brought by the revelation of your ordeal.”

The prosecutor said Dogan’s claims of innocence showed how normalized violence was still prevalent in society as part of “old-fashioned” forms of “male domination”. He said: “Now we must change the culture of violence to a culture of consent.”

The prosecutor said to Dogan: “For as much as you deny it, it’s not just a person, it’s an complete unpleasant social system that you are upholding.”

Defendant's Background

The accused was originated from Turkey and at the age of 5 moved to the nation of France, where his father worked as a concierge. The testimony revealed that his parent was violent and that the defendant began consuming marijuana aged ten. When Dogan was seventeen he was apprehended by authorities for selling narcotics and his parent kicked him out of home. He spent time in prison for drug dealing in his twenties and had worked as a builder but had experienced periods of living on the streets.

He was married and had a child with a genetic condition, who he was the principal carer for, as his wife worked in a institution's dining hall. The evidence showed his wife did not know he had repeated sexual encounters beyond their union. His legal team said this was his way of coping with his challenging existence. Dogan had stated to a evaluator that each year he engaged in paid sex on his special day. His attorneys stated to the court he had joint inflammation triggered by the pressure of the first trial.