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A man was convicted on appeal of sexually assaulting Gisele Pelicot following she was rendered comatose by her then-husband – and has had his incarceration period increased to a decade.

Retrial Proceedings

Dogan, forty-four, an out-of-work construction worker, who had appealed his first conviction last year, experienced a retrial this week at the appeals court in Nîmes.

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

The evidence showed that Dogan, a married father, reached out to Gisèle Pelicot’s husband at the time, Dominique Pelicot, in an digital platform named “without her knowledge”, where the husband was seeking men to visit his house to rape his wife after he had rendered her unconscious into a comatose state.

“We hope the court will declare that in this nation, human rights are also rights of women – that permission is personal, not given by another,” said Gisèle Pelicot’s attorney, her legal representative. “Permission is obtained personally and not by proxy from a spouse.”

Context

The ex-husband, among the most severe sex offenders in France's contemporary records, was handed a sentence to twenty years in prison last year for drugging his spouse and inviting multiple perpetrators to sexually assault her in her home in the community of Mazan over a duration of nearly ten years of their union.

Numerous other individuals were found guilty in a widely publicized trial last year, and the appellant was the only man to challenge his sentence. He was initially sentenced to nine years in prison, a penalty raised on Thursday to a decade.

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

Testimony and Proof

Dogan had initially sent the husband graphic images and then driven an hour from his village in the region to rape Gisèle Pelicot, after informing his wife he was leaving, the evidence indicated.

The ex-husband, who was transported from segregation in prison to briefly give evidence at the appeal trial, told the court that the accused had understood his wife had been “drugged” and he communicated to men by phone: “I’m looking for someone to assault my wife after I’ve put her to sleep without her knowledge.”

The trial became a key topic for a broader debate on rape culture in society as the defendant continued to claim he was innocent and had not committed rape, arguing that because Gisèle Pelicot’s husband had welcomed him into the residence, his behavior had been justifiable.

The panel in the higher court was shown visual proof of the victim's unresponsive form, sedated and snoring in a unconscious condition, while a smiling the perpetrator engaged in violation repeatedly over a duration of what authorities reported was several hours. The presiding judge said she had been at danger of death by suffocation. The state prosecution said there was no doubt that she had been unconscious and had not consented.

Accused's Testimony

The defendant told the court the footage were simply “sex scenes” and rejected it was assault. He said what he did was “an intimate behavior”, not assault. 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 OK. He said he was influenced by the husband. “I attempted to cease,” the accused told the court. “I carried on because he persuaded me.”

Questioned if he wanted to make a final statement to the court, Dogan said: “I had no desire to injure that lady.”

Survivor's Statement

The victim, who was applauded upon departing the trial each day by onlookers present to support her, told Dogan in court: “You haven’t understood. When are you going to recognise you violated me? It’s a crime to rape an unconscious woman. When did I ever give you agreement? Never.”

The victim, 72, became an international feminist hero after she gave up her right to anonymity in the trial last year when she said: “Guilt ought to transfer.”

Prosecutor's Remarks

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 public is maybe in the course of that, possibly motivated by the societal understanding brought by the revelation of your situation.”

Sie said Dogan’s claims of innocence showed how rape culture was still prevalent in society as part of “outdated” forms of “gender-based power”. He said: “Now we must change the culture of violence to a culture of consent.”

The prosecutor told the defendant: “While you reject it, it’s not just a person, it’s an whole disturbing societal structure that you are upholding.”

Personal History

The accused was originated from Turkey and at the age of five came to France, where his father worked as a building manager. The court heard that his parent was violent and that the defendant began smoking cannabis at the age of ten. When he was seventeen he was stopped by authorities for drug trafficking and his parent kicked him out the family house. He served time in prison for drug dealing in his twenties and had worked as a builder but had experienced periods of homelessness.

He was married and had a child with Down’s syndrome, who he was the main caregiver for, as his wife worked in a school canteen. The court heard his wife did not know he had regular sexual encounters beyond their marriage. His defence said this was his way of coping with his stressful life. The defendant had stated to a mental health expert that each year he sought commercial sex on his birthday. His attorneys told the court he had a medical condition caused by the pressure of the first trial.