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An individual was declared guilty on appeal of raping Gisèle Pelicot after she was drugged unconscious by her then-husband – and has had his incarceration period extended to 10 years.

Retrial Proceedings

The defendant, forty-four, an out-of-work construction worker, who had contested his initial guilty verdict last year, underwent a appeal hearing this week at the appeals court in Nîmes.

A panel of five men and four women, joined by three judges, found Dogan guilty on Thursday of raping the victim in her bedroom in southern France in the early hours of 29 June 2019.

The court heard that the accused, a married father, reached out to Gisèle Pelicot’s husband at the time, Dominique Pelicot, in an digital platform named “without her consent”, where the husband was seeking men to come to his home to rape his wife after he had sedated her into a deep sleep.

We expect the court will say loud and clear that in this society, fundamental rights are also women’s rights – that permission is personal, not transferred,” stated the victim's lawyer, Antoine Camus. “Consent is obtained personally and not through someone else from a husband.”

Case History

Dominique Pelicot, one of the worst sexual predators in France's contemporary records, was handed a sentence to 20 years in prison last year for incapacitating his spouse and soliciting multiple perpetrators to rape her in her home in the town of Mazan over a duration of many years of their union.

Dozens of additional defendants were found convicted in a notable trial last year, and Dogan was the single defendant to appeal against his verdict. He was originally sentenced to nine years in prison, a sentence increased on Thursday to ten years.

The lead state prosecutor, the prosecutor, had contended he should serve twelve years, because he “completely denies to take any responsibility”.

Testimony and Proof

The defendant had initially sent the husband graphic images and then traveled an hour from his town in the region to assault Gisèle Pelicot, after telling his wife he was leaving, the evidence indicated.

The ex-husband, who was transported from segregation in prison to briefly testify at the hearing, told the court that the accused had understood his wife had been “drugged” and he told to men by phone: “I want someone to abuse my wife after I’ve rendered her unconscious unbeknownst to her.”

The trial became a focus point for a wider discussion on societal attitudes in society as Dogan continued to assert he was not guilty and had not engaged in violation, contending that because the victim's husband had invited him into the residence, his actions had been acceptable.

The panel in the Nîmes appeals court was shown video evidence of Gisèle Pelicot’s limp body, sedated and breathing heavily in a deep sleep, while a grinning the perpetrator performed assault multiple times over a timeframe of what investigators stated was 3.5 hours. The presiding judge said she had been at risk of fatal outcome by suffocation. The prosecution said there was no doubt that she had been unconscious and had not consented.

Dogan's Claims

Dogan stated to the court the footage were simply “sex scenes” and rejected it was assault. He said what he did was “a consensual activity”, not rape. He stated the court: “I did not commit rape.” He said Gisèle Pelicot’s husband had invited him to the home, and therefore it was permissible. He said he was deceived by Dominique Pelicot. “I tried to halt,” the accused told the court. “I proceeded because he reassured me.”

Asked if he wanted to make a last words to the court, the defendant said: “I had no desire to hurt that woman.”

Survivor's Statement

The victim, who was applauded upon exiting the courtroom each day by onlookers assembled to back her, said to Dogan in court: “You fail to comprehend. When are you going to recognise you violated me? It is illegal to assault an incapacitated woman. When did I ever give you permission? Not once.”

The victim, seventy-two, became an international feminist hero after she gave up her right to confidentiality in the trial last year when she said: “Guilt ought to transfer.”

State's Argument

The prosecutor, speaking to Gisèle Pelicot in court, said the defendant's unwillingness to take accountability showed that: “Shame has not yet changed sides. The community is perhaps in the course of that, possibly motivated by the collective awareness spurred by the exposure of your situation.”

The prosecutor said Dogan’s claims of non-guilt showed how normalized violence was still common in society as part of “outdated” forms of “gender-based power”. He said: “Now we must change the culture of violence to a ethos of permission.”

The prosecutor told Dogan: “For as much as you refuse to admit it, it’s not just a woman, it’s an whole sordid societal structure that you are supporting.”

Personal History

Dogan was born in the country of Turkey and at the age of five moved to France, where his father worked as a building manager. The evidence indicated that his parent was violent and that Dogan began using drugs aged ten. When he was 17 he was caught by authorities for dealing drugs and his father evicted him the family house. He spent time in prison for drug dealing in his early 20s and had worked as a construction worker but had experienced periods of living on the streets.

He was married and had a son with special needs, who he was the primary guardian for, as his spouse worked in a educational cafeteria. The court heard his wife did not know he had frequent extramarital activities beyond their marriage. His defence said this was his method of dealing with his difficult circumstances. The defendant had stated to a court psychologist that each year he engaged in paid sex on his special day. His lawyers stated to the court he had joint inflammation resulting from the anxiety of the original case.