🔗 Share this article

An individual was convicted on appeal of sexually assaulting Gisèle Pelicot following she was drugged unconscious by her husband – and has had his jail term increased to a decade.

Higher Court Case

Dogan, forty-four, an out-of-work construction worker, who had challenged his initial guilty verdict last year, experienced a appeal hearing this week at the Nîmes court of appeal.

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

The testimony revealed that Dogan, a married father, connected with Gisèle Pelicot’s spouse, the husband, in an internet forum titled “without her knowledge”, where Pelicot was recruiting men to visit his house to assault his wife after he had rendered her unconscious into a unconscious state.

We expect the panel will declare that in this society, human rights are also rights of women – that consent is personal, not delegated,” declared the victim's lawyer, her legal representative. “Consent is secured personally and not via a representative from a spouse.”

Context

The ex-husband, a notorious sexual predators in France's contemporary records, was given a prison term to twenty years in prison last year for incapacitating his spouse and bringing in dozens of men to sexually assault her in her home in the town of the village of Mazan over a span of nearly ten years of their union.

Dozens of additional defendants were found culpable in a widely publicized trial last year, and Dogan was the only man to contest his verdict. He was first given a sentence to 9 years in prison, a punishment raised on Thursday to ten years.

The state's attorney, Dominique Sie, had argued he should serve twelve years, because he “stubbornly rejects to take any blame”.

Evidence Presented

Dogan had first sent the husband inappropriate pictures and then driven an hour from his town in the region to assault the victim, after telling his wife he was going out, the evidence indicated.

The ex-husband, who was brought from isolation in prison to briefly testify at the retrial, informed the court that the accused had been aware his wife had been “drugged” and he said to men by phone: “I’m looking for someone to violate my wife after I’ve rendered her unconscious without her knowledge.”

The trial became a focus point for a broader debate on societal attitudes in society as Dogan continued to claim he was innocent and had not engaged in violation, arguing that because Gisèle Pelicot’s husband had invited him into the room, his conduct had been justifiable.

The jury in the Nîmes appeals court was presented with recorded footage of the victim's unresponsive form, unconscious and breathing heavily in a comatose state, while a smiling the perpetrator engaged in violation on several occasions over a period of what authorities reported was 3.5 hours. The court official said she had been at risk of death by asphyxiation. The prosecution said there was no question that she had been unconscious and had not given permission.

Accused's Testimony

The defendant informed the court the footage were simply “sex scenes” and denied it was violation. He said what he did was “a sexual act”, not assault. He declared the court: “I never raped.” He said the victim's husband had invited him to the residence, and therefore it was OK. He said he was deceived by the husband. “I tried to halt,” the accused informed the court. “I carried on because he persuaded me.”

Inquired if he wanted to make a closing remarks to the court, Dogan said: “I did not intend to harm that woman.”

Survivor's Statement

The survivor, who was supported upon exiting the courtroom each day by supporters present to support her, addressed the defendant in court: “You fail to comprehend. When will you admit you violated me? It’s a crime to rape an incapacitated woman. How could I have give you permission? Not once.”

Gisèle Pelicot, 72, became an symbol of resistance after she relinquished her right to privacy in the trial last year when she said: “Shame must change sides.”

State's Argument

The prosecutor, speaking to Gisèle Pelicot in court, said the defendant's unwillingness to take accountability showed that: “Guilt has not shifted. The community is perhaps in the midst of that, maybe motivated by the collective awareness spurred by the exposure of your ordeal.”

The prosecutor said Dogan’s claims of blamelessness showed how rape culture was still common in society as part of “archaic” forms of “male domination”. He said: “It is imperative to change the culture of violence to a culture of consent.”

Sie told the defendant: “While you deny it, it’s not just a individual, it’s an entire unpleasant societal structure that you are supporting.”

Biographical Details

The accused was originated from Turkey and at the age of five came to the nation of France, where his father worked as a caretaker. The testimony revealed that his father was violent and that the defendant began smoking cannabis aged ten. When Dogan was seventeen he was stopped by police for dealing drugs and his father forced him to leave the residence. He spent time in prison for trafficking in his young adulthood and had worked as a laborer but had undergone 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 wife worked in a school canteen. The evidence showed his wife did not know he had frequent intimate relations outside their union. His defence said this was his method of dealing with his challenging existence. Dogan had stated to a mental health expert that each year he engaged in paid sex on his special day. His attorneys informed the court he had a medical condition resulting from the anxiety of the initial proceedings.