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A man was declared guilty on retrial of raping Gisèle Pelicot following she was rendered comatose by her husband – and was given his prison sentence extended to ten years.

Retrial Proceedings

Dogan, 44, an out-of-work construction worker, who had challenged his first conviction last year, experienced a appeal hearing this week at the higher court in Nîmes.

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

The court heard that the accused, a married father, made contact with Gisèle Pelicot’s spouse, the husband, in an digital platform called “without her consent”, where Pelicot was seeking men to come to his home to assault his wife after he had sedated her into a deep sleep.

We expect the jury will affirm that in this society, fundamental rights are also women’s rights – that permission is personal, not given by another,” stated the victim's attorney, her legal representative. “Permission is received personally and not through someone else from a spouse.”

Case History

The husband, among the most severe sex offenders in France's contemporary records, was sentenced to two decades in prison last year for incapacitating his then wife and inviting dozens of men to sexually assault her in her home in the community of the village of Mazan over a duration of nearly ten years of their marriage.

Numerous other individuals were found guilty in a notable trial last year, and Dogan was the sole individual to contest his conviction. He was first handed a term to nine years in prison, a punishment enhanced on Thursday to ten years.

The state's attorney, Dominique Sie, had stated he should serve 12 years, because he “completely denies to take any accountability”.

Courtroom Details

Dogan had first sent Dominique Pelicot inappropriate pictures and then traveled an hour from his village in the region to rape Gisèle Pelicot, after telling his wife he was leaving, the testimony revealed.

Pelicot, who was brought from segregation in prison to briefly provide testimony at the appeal trial, told the court that the accused had understood his wife had been “sedated” and he communicated to men by phone: “I’m looking for someone to violate my wife after I’ve rendered her unconscious unbeknownst to her.”

The proceedings became a central issue for a wider discussion on rape culture in society as Dogan continued to claim he was blameless and had not committed rape, contending that because Gisèle Pelicot’s husband had allowed him into the residence, his conduct had been acceptable.

The panel in the Nîmes appeals court was displayed video evidence of the victim's limp body, unconscious and breathing heavily in a deep sleep, while a grinning Dogan committed rape multiple times over a period of what authorities reported was 3.5 hours. The court official said she had been at risk of death by suffocation. The prosecution said there was absolute certainty that she had been unconscious and had not consented.

Defendant's Statements

Dogan stated to the court the footage were simply “sexual encounters” and disputed it was rape. 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 brought him to the residence, and therefore it was acceptable. He said he was manipulated by Dominique Pelicot. “I wanted to stop,” the accused stated to the court. “I carried on because he convinced me.”

Inquired if he wanted to make a final statement to the court, the defendant said: “I had no desire to harm that woman.”

Victim's Response

The victim, who was applauded upon leaving court each day by crowds gathered to stand with her, said to Dogan in court: “You fail to comprehend. When will you admit you violated me? It is illegal to rape an incapacitated woman. When did I ever give you agreement? Not once.”

Gisèle Pelicot, seventy-two, became an global icon after she gave up her right to privacy in the trial last year when she said: “Shame must change sides.”

Prosecutor's Remarks

The prosecutor, addressing the victim in court, said the defendant's refusal to take blame showed that: “Shame has not yet changed sides. The public is perhaps in the process of that, possibly motivated by the societal understanding resulting from 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 “patriarchal control”. He said: “Now we must change the culture of violence to a ethos of permission.”

The prosecutor addressed the defendant: “For as much as you refuse to admit it, it’s not just a person, it’s an whole sordid 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 parent worked as a caretaker. The testimony revealed that his father was abusive and that the defendant began using drugs aged ten. When he was seventeen he was apprehended by authorities for dealing drugs and his parent evicted him of home. He served time in prison for narcotics offenses in his early 20s and had worked as a laborer but had undergone periods of being unhoused.

He was wed and had a child with special needs, who he was the main caregiver for, as his wife worked in a educational cafeteria. The testimony revealed his spouse did not know he had regular intimate relations beyond their marriage. His legal team said this was his method of dealing with his difficult circumstances. Dogan had told a mental health expert that once a year he engaged in transactional encounters on his birthday. His lawyers told the court he had arthritis resulting from the anxiety of the original case.