🔗 Share this article

A defendant has been found guilty on retrial of sexually assaulting Gisele Pelicot after she was rendered comatose by her then-husband – and received his incarceration period increased to ten years.

Appeal Trial

The defendant, 44, an out-of-work construction worker, who had contested his first conviction last year, underwent a new trial this week at the higher court in Nîmes.

A jury of four women and five men, sitting with three judges, convicted Dogan on Thursday of sexually assaulting Pelicot in her home in Provence in the early hours of June 29, 2019.

The testimony revealed that the accused, a family man, made contact with Gisèle Pelicot’s husband at the time, Dominique Pelicot, in an digital platform named “without her consent”, where the husband was recruiting men to come to his home to rape his wife once he had drugged her into a comatose state.

“We hope the jury will declare that in this society, human rights are also rights of women – that agreement is personal, not given by another,” declared Gisèle Pelicot’s attorney, her legal representative. “Permission is obtained personally and not via a representative from a husband.”

Background

Dominique Pelicot, a notorious sexual predators in recent French history, was given a prison term to 20 years in prison last year for drugging his spouse and soliciting dozens of men to rape her in her home in the community of the village of Mazan over a span of many years of their marriage.

Fifty other men were found guilty in a notable trial last year, and Dogan was the sole individual to appeal against his conviction. He was initially given a sentence to 9 years in prison, a punishment raised on Thursday to 10 years.

The lead state prosecutor, Dominique Sie, had contended he should serve 12 years, because he “absolutely refuses to take any responsibility”.

Courtroom Details

Dogan had first sent the husband sexually explicit photos and then driven an hour from his village in the region to assault the victim, after notifying his wife he was leaving, the court heard.

Pelicot, who was transported from isolation in prison to briefly give evidence at the appeal trial, told the court that the accused had been aware his wife had been “drugged” and he told to men by phone: “I want someone to abuse my wife after I’ve sedated her unbeknownst to her.”

The courtroom became a key topic for a wider discussion on sexual violence norms in society as Dogan continued to say he was innocent and had not engaged in violation, arguing that because Gisèle Pelicot’s husband had invited him into the bedroom, his conduct had been justifiable.

The jury in the higher court was shown visual proof of Gisèle Pelicot’s limp body, sedated and breathing heavily in a deep sleep, while a smiling the perpetrator performed assault multiple times over a timeframe of what police said was 3.5 hours. The court official said she had been at peril of fatal outcome by suffocation. The state's case said there was no doubt that she had been unaware and had not consented.

Defendant's Statements

Dogan stated to the court the recordings were simply “sexual encounters” and disputed it was assault. He said what he did was “a consensual activity”, not rape. He stated the court: “I am innocent of assault.” He said Gisèle Pelicot’s husband had brought him to the house, and therefore it was acceptable. He said he was deceived by Dominique Pelicot. “I wanted to stop,” Dogan stated to the court. “I continued because he convinced me.”

Asked if he wanted to make a last words to the court, Dogan said: “I did not intend to injure that lady.”

Victim's Response

The survivor, who was applauded upon leaving court each day by onlookers assembled to back her, told Dogan in court: “You fail to comprehend. When will you acknowledge you assaulted me? It is illegal to rape an unconscious woman. At what point did I give you permission? At no time.”

Gisèle Pelicot, seventy-two, became an symbol of resistance after she gave up her right to confidentiality in the trial last year when she said: “The shame should shift.”

Legal Commentary

The prosecutor, turning to the victim in court, said the defendant's failure to take accountability showed that: “Shame has not yet changed sides. Society is maybe in the process of that, perhaps driven by the collective awareness brought by the exposure of your ordeal.”

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

The prosecutor said to the defendant: “For as much as you deny it, it’s not just a woman, it’s an whole disturbing societal structure that you are endorsing.”

Biographical Details

Dogan was originated from the country of Turkey and at the age of five relocated to France, where his parent worked as a building manager. The court heard that his parent was abusive and that Dogan began consuming marijuana at the age of 10. When Dogan was 17 he was apprehended by police for selling narcotics and his parent forced him to leave the residence. He was incarcerated in prison for narcotics offenses in his twenties and had worked as a builder but had faced periods of homelessness.

He was wed and had a son with Down’s syndrome, who he was the principal carer for, as his wife worked in a educational cafeteria. The court heard his spouse did not know he had repeated intimate relations outside their marriage. His defence said this was his strategy for managing with his difficult circumstances. The defendant had informed a mental health expert that each year he sought paid sex on his special day. His attorneys stated to the court he had arthritis triggered by the stress of the first trial.