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A man was declared guilty on appeal of sexually assaulting Gisèle Pelicot after she was drugged unconscious by her husband – and received his incarceration period extended to a decade.

Higher Court Case

Dogan, 44, an unemployed builder, who had challenged his first conviction last year, underwent a appeal hearing this week at the appeals court in Nîmes.

A panel of four women and five men, joined by three judges, found Dogan guilty on Thursday of sexually assaulting Pelicot in her home in southern France in the morning of June 29, 2019.

The evidence showed that the accused, a married father, made contact with the victim's spouse, the husband, in an internet forum called “without her knowledge”, where the husband was looking for men to enter his residence to assault his wife after he had rendered her unconscious into a comatose state.

We expect the court will declare that in this society, fundamental rights are also rights of women – that consent is individual, not delegated,” declared Gisèle Pelicot’s lawyer, her legal representative. “Agreement is received personally and not through someone else from a husband.”

Context

Dominique Pelicot, a notorious sex offenders in France's contemporary records, was sentenced to twenty years in prison last year for sedating his spouse and soliciting multiple perpetrators to sexually assault her in her home in the community of the village of Mazan over a duration of almost a decade 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 conviction. He was initially handed a term to 9 years in prison, a penalty increased on Thursday to a decade.

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

Evidence Presented

The defendant had initially sent the husband graphic images and then driven an hour from his residence in Provence to rape Gisèle Pelicot, after telling his wife he was leaving, the court heard.

Pelicot, who was brought from solitary confinement in prison to temporarily testify at the hearing, stated to the court that the accused had been aware his wife had been “drugged” and he communicated to men by phone: “I’m looking for someone to abuse my wife after I’ve sedated her without her knowledge.”

The proceedings became a key topic for a wider discussion on sexual violence norms in society as Dogan continued to say he was not guilty and had not perpetrated assault, stating that because the victim's husband had invited him into the room, his conduct had been justifiable.

The jury in the higher court was shown visual proof of Gisèle Pelicot’s limp body, sedated and snoring in a unconscious condition, 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 fatal outcome by choking. The state prosecution said there was no doubt that she had been incapacitated and had not agreed.

Defendant's Statements

Dogan told the court the footage were simply “intimate moments” and disputed it was violation. He said what he did was “an intimate behavior”, not rape. He stated the court: “I did not commit rape.” He said Gisèle Pelicot’s husband had invited him to the house, and therefore it was permissible. He said he was influenced by Dominique Pelicot. “I tried to halt,” the accused told the court. “I proceeded because he persuaded me.”

Inquired if he wanted to make a closing remarks to the court, the defendant said: “I never wanted to harm that individual.”

Victim's Response

Gisèle Pelicot, who was cheered upon exiting the courtroom each day by supporters gathered to support her, told Dogan in court: “You haven’t understood. When will you acknowledge you raped me? It is illegal to assault an unaware woman. At what point did I give you consent? Never.”

The victim, seventy-two, became an symbol of resistance after she relinquished her right to anonymity in the trial last year when she said: “The shame should shift.”

Prosecutor's Remarks

The prosecutor, addressing the victim in court, said Dogan’s refusal to take blame showed that: “The shame remains. The public is possibly in the course of that, maybe driven by the public consciousness spurred by the exposure of your situation.”

Sie said Dogan’s claims of blamelessness showed how rape culture was still widespread in society as part of “archaic” forms of “male domination”. He said: “Now we must change rape culture to a ethos of permission.”

The prosecutor addressed the defendant: “For as much as you reject it, it’s not just a person, it’s an whole unpleasant social system that you are supporting.”

Biographical Details

The accused was born in the country of Turkey and at the age of 5 relocated to the nation of France, where his parent worked as a concierge. The testimony revealed that his father was violent and that Dogan began using drugs aged ten. When Dogan was seventeen he was caught by police for drug trafficking and his father kicked him out the family house. He spent time in prison for drug dealing in his early 20s and had worked as a laborer but had faced periods of living on the streets.

He was married and had a child with special needs, who he was the primary guardian for, as his wife worked in a educational cafeteria. The court heard his spouse did not know he had repeated extramarital activities beyond their marriage. His defence said this was his method of dealing with his difficult circumstances. The defendant had informed a court psychologist that once a year he looked for transactional encounters on his birthday. His legal representatives told the court he had a medical condition triggered by the stress of the original case.