🔗 Share this article

An individual was convicted on retrial of raping Gisèle Pelicot following she was rendered comatose by her husband – and was given his incarceration period extended to 10 years.

Higher Court Case

The defendant, 44, an unemployed builder, who had contested his first conviction last year, experienced a appeal hearing this week at the Nîmes court of appeal.

A panel of nine jurors, joined by three judges, convicted Dogan on Thursday of raping the victim in her home in the south of France in the early hours of June 29, 2019.

The court heard that Dogan, a married father, made contact with Gisèle Pelicot’s then husband, Dominique Pelicot, in an internet forum named “without her consent”, where Pelicot was looking for men to visit his house to assault his wife once he had rendered her unconscious into a deep sleep.

We trust the court will affirm that in this nation, human rights are also rights of women – that consent is personal, not delegated,” stated Gisèle Pelicot’s lawyer, Antoine Camus. “Consent is secured directly and not through someone else from a spouse.”

Context

Dominique Pelicot, one of the worst sex offenders in modern French history, was sentenced to 20 years in prison last year for sedating his spouse and bringing in multiple perpetrators to sexually assault her in her home in the town of the village of Mazan over a period of nearly ten years of their union.

Numerous other individuals were found culpable in a widely publicized trial last year, and the appellant was the sole individual to appeal against his sentence. He was first given a sentence to 9 years in prison, a penalty increased on Thursday to ten years.

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

Courtroom Details

Dogan had initially sent Dominique Pelicot graphic images and then traveled an hour from his village in Provence to assault Gisèle Pelicot, after telling his wife he was stepping out, the testimony revealed.

Pelicot, who was transported from segregation in prison to briefly give evidence at the retrial, informed the court that Dogan had understood his wife had been “incapacitated” and he told to men by phone: “I’m looking for someone to abuse my wife after I’ve rendered her unconscious without her knowledge.”

The courtroom became a key topic for a broader debate on societal attitudes in society as the defendant continued to claim he was innocent and had not perpetrated assault, arguing that because Gisèle Pelicot’s husband had allowed him into the residence, his actions had been justifiable.

The jury in the Nîmes appeals court was displayed recorded footage of the victim's limp body, unconscious and snoring in a comatose state, while a smiling Dogan performed assault multiple times over a timeframe of what police said was 3.5 hours. The presiding judge said she had been at peril of death by asphyxiation. The state's case said there was no question that she had been unconscious and had not agreed.

Defendant's Statements

The defendant told the court the footage were simply “sexual encounters” and denied it was violation. He said what he did was “an intimate behavior”, not rape. He stated the court: “I am innocent of assault.” He said Gisèle Pelicot’s husband had brought him to the home, and therefore it was OK. He said he was influenced by the husband. “I attempted to cease,” Dogan stated to the court. “I carried on because he persuaded me.”

Inquired if he wanted to make a final statement to the court, the defendant said: “I never wanted to injure that lady.”

Victim's Response

The survivor, who was applauded upon departing the trial each day by onlookers assembled to support her, said to the defendant in court: “You do not grasp. When are you going to recognise you raped me? It is illegal to assault an incapacitated woman. How could I have give you agreement? Not once.”

The victim, seventy-two, became an international feminist hero after she relinquished her right to confidentiality in the trial last year when she said: “The shame should shift.”

State's Argument

Sie, speaking to the victim in court, said Dogan’s unwillingness to take accountability showed that: “Guilt has not shifted. Society is perhaps in the midst of that, maybe propelled by the public consciousness resulting from the exposure of your ordeal.”

The prosecutor said Dogan’s claims of innocence showed how normalized violence was still prevalent in society as part of “outdated” forms of “gender-based power”. He said: “We need to change rape culture to a culture of consent.”

Sie addressed Dogan: “As long as you deny it, it’s not just a woman, it’s an complete sordid societal structure that you are supporting.”

Defendant's Background

The accused was born in Turkey and at the age of five moved to the nation of France, where his parent worked as a concierge. The testimony revealed that his father was abusive and that the defendant began using drugs aged ten. When he was 17 he was stopped by police for selling narcotics and his father kicked him out of home. He spent time in prison for drug dealing in his early 20s 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 primary guardian for, as his spouse worked in a educational cafeteria. The testimony revealed his spouse did not know he had frequent sexual encounters beyond their marriage. His legal team said this was his way of coping with his challenging existence. Dogan had told a mental health expert that once a year he looked for paid sex on his birthday. His attorneys informed the court he had joint inflammation triggered by the stress of the original case.