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A man was declared guilty on higher court review of raping Gisèle Pelicot following she was drugged unconscious by her spouse – and was given his incarceration period increased to a decade.

Higher Court Case

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

A jury of five men and four women, joined by three judges, convicted Dogan on Thursday of sexually assaulting Pelicot in her bedroom in Provence in the morning of June 29, 2019.

The evidence showed that the accused, a married father, made contact with Gisèle Pelicot’s husband at the time, the husband, in an digital platform titled “without her consent”, where Pelicot was looking for men to enter his residence to rape his wife after he had rendered her unconscious into a deep sleep.

“We hope the panel will declare that in this society, fundamental rights are also women’s rights – that permission is personal, not given by another,” declared Gisèle Pelicot’s lawyer, Antoine Camus. “Permission is received directly and not through someone else from a husband.”

Background

The husband, one of the worst sexual predators in France's contemporary records, was sentenced to two decades in prison last year for sedating his spouse and soliciting dozens of men to rape her in her home in the town of Mazan over a period of many years of their marriage.

Fifty other men were found guilty in a high-profile trial last year, and the appellant was the only man to appeal against his conviction. He was first given a sentence to 9 years in prison, a punishment raised on Thursday to a decade.

The state's attorney, the prosecutor, had contended he should serve twelve years, because he “absolutely refuses to take any blame”.

Evidence Presented

Dogan had initially sent Dominique Pelicot graphic images and then driven an hour from his residence in Provence to rape the victim, after notifying his wife he was leaving, the court heard.

Pelicot, who was brought from isolation in prison to briefly give evidence at the retrial, told the court that the accused had known his wife had been “drugged” and he communicated to men by phone: “I seek someone to assault my wife after I’ve rendered her unconscious without her knowledge.”

The proceedings became a focus point for a broader debate on societal attitudes in society as Dogan continued to say 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 permissible.

The jury in the higher court was displayed visual proof of Gisèle Pelicot’s unconscious figure, comatose and breathing heavily in a deep sleep, while a smiling Dogan committed rape multiple times over a duration of what police said was 3.5 hours. The court official said she had been at peril of fatal outcome by suffocation. The state prosecution said there was no doubt that she had been unaware and had not given permission.

Dogan's Claims

The defendant stated to the court the footage were simply “intimate moments” and rejected it was violation. He said what he did was “an intimate behavior”, not assault. He stated the court: “I never raped.” He said Gisèle Pelicot’s husband had allowed him to the home, and therefore it was permissible. He said he was influenced by the husband. “I attempted to cease,” Dogan informed the court. “I proceeded because he reassured me.”

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

Victim's Response

The victim, who was supported upon departing the trial each day by crowds assembled to support her, told Dogan in court: “You do not grasp. When are you going to recognise you raped me? It’s a crime to assault an unaware woman. When did I ever give you agreement? At no time.”

Gisèle Pelicot, 72, became an international feminist hero after she gave up her right to anonymity in the trial last year when she said: “Guilt ought to transfer.”

State's Argument

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

The prosecutor said Dogan’s claims of non-guilt showed how societal tolerance 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.”

The prosecutor told Dogan: “While you refuse to admit it, it’s not just a person, it’s an entire unpleasant cultural framework that you are upholding.”

Biographical Details

The accused was originated from Turkey and at the age of five came to France, where his parent worked as a concierge. The testimony revealed that his parent was abusive and that the defendant began using drugs aged 10. When Dogan was 17 he was apprehended by police for dealing drugs and his father kicked him out the residence. He served time in prison for drug dealing in his twenties and had worked as a laborer but had experienced periods of homelessness.

He was married and had a son with Down’s syndrome, who he was the main caregiver for, as his spouse worked in a institution's dining hall. The testimony revealed his spouse did not know he had repeated sexual encounters beyond their marriage. His legal team said this was his way of coping with his difficult circumstances. Dogan had told a mental health expert that once a year he engaged in commercial sex on his special day. His lawyers informed the court he had arthritis resulting from the pressure of the initial proceedings.