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A defendant has been found guilty on higher court review of sexually assaulting Gisèle Pelicot following she was drugged unconscious by her then-husband – and was given his jail term increased to a decade.

Higher Court Case

The defendant, forty-four, an out-of-work construction worker, who had challenged his first conviction last year, experienced a appeal hearing this week at the appeals court in Nîmes.

A panel of four women and five men, sitting with three judges, convicted Dogan on Thursday of raping Pelicot in her residence in the south of France in the morning of 29 June 2019.

The testimony revealed that the accused, a family man, reached out to Gisèle Pelicot’s then husband, Dominique Pelicot, in an internet forum called “without her consent”, where Pelicot was recruiting men to visit his house to rape his wife once he had drugged her into a unconscious state.

“We hope the jury will say loud and clear that in this country, fundamental rights are also women’s rights – that agreement is individual, not transferred,” declared Gisèle Pelicot’s attorney, her legal representative. “Permission is obtained directly and not via a representative from a spouse.”

Context

The husband, one of the worst sexual predators in recent French history, was given a prison term to twenty years in prison last year for incapacitating his wife at the time and bringing in multiple perpetrators to rape her in her home in the Provence village of Mazan over a span of nearly ten years of their marriage.

Dozens of additional defendants were found culpable in a high-profile trial last year, and Dogan was the single defendant to challenge his verdict. He was first handed a term to 9 years in prison, a penalty raised on Thursday to a decade.

The lead state prosecutor, the prosecutor, had argued he should serve twelve years, because he “stubbornly rejects to take any accountability”.

Courtroom Details

Dogan had initially sent the husband sexually explicit photos and then traveled an hour from his residence in Provence to assault Gisèle Pelicot, after telling his wife he was going out, the evidence indicated.

Pelicot, who was brought from solitary confinement in prison to temporarily provide testimony at the hearing, informed the court that the accused had been aware his wife had been “sedated” and he said to men by phone: “I want someone to violate my wife after I’ve sedated her without her consent.”

The courtroom became a key topic for a broader debate on societal attitudes in society as Dogan continued to claim he was blameless and had not committed rape, stating that because the victim's husband had invited him into the bedroom, his behavior had been justifiable.

The jury in the higher court was displayed video evidence of the victim's limp body, comatose and breathing heavily in a unconscious condition, while a smiling the perpetrator engaged in violation multiple times over a period of what authorities reported was 3.5 hours. The presiding judge said she had been at risk of death by suffocation. The state's case said there was absolute certainty that she had been unconscious and had not agreed.

Dogan's Claims

Dogan told the court the recordings were simply “sexual encounters” and denied it was violation. He said what he did was “a sexual act”, not rape. He told the court: “I did not commit rape.” He said the victim's husband had brought him to the home, and therefore it was acceptable. He said he was influenced by Dominique Pelicot. “I tried to halt,” Dogan informed the court. “I proceeded because he convinced me.”

Questioned if he wanted to make a last words to the court, Dogan said: “I did not intend to harm that woman.”

Victim's Response

Gisèle Pelicot, who was supported upon departing the trial each day by crowds present to support her, addressed Dogan in court: “You fail to comprehend. When will you acknowledge you violated me? It’s a crime to assault an unaware woman. At what point did I give you agreement? Never.”

The victim, seventy-two, became an global icon after she relinquished her right to confidentiality in the trial last year when she said: “Shame must change sides.”

Legal Commentary

The prosecutor, addressing Gisèle Pelicot in court, said Dogan’s unwillingness to take responsibility showed that: “The shame remains. Society is perhaps in the course of that, maybe driven by the collective awareness spurred by the publication of your case.”

Sie said Dogan’s claims of innocence showed how rape culture was still prevalent in society as part of “old-fashioned” forms of “patriarchal control”. He said: “Now we must change rape culture to a society based on agreement.”

The prosecutor said to the defendant: “As long as you deny it, it’s not just a woman, it’s an entire sordid cultural framework that you are upholding.”

Defendant's Background

The accused was originated from Turkey and at the age of five moved to France, where his parent worked as a building manager. The testimony revealed that his father was abusive and that Dogan began smoking cannabis aged 10. When Dogan was 17 he was apprehended by authorities for selling narcotics and his parent evicted him the family house. He served time in prison for drug dealing in his early 20s and had worked as a construction worker but had undergone periods of being unhoused.

He was married and had a son with Down’s syndrome, who he was the primary guardian for, as his wife worked in a institution's dining hall. The testimony revealed his wife did not know he had repeated sexual encounters beyond their union. His defence said this was his way of coping with his difficult circumstances. Dogan had stated to a mental health expert that once a year he engaged in commercial sex on his birthday. His lawyers informed the court he had arthritis triggered by the anxiety of the initial proceedings.