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An individual has been found guilty on appeal of sexually assaulting Gisele Pelicot after she was rendered comatose by her husband – and has had his jail term increased to a decade.

Appeal Trial

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

A panel of four women and five men, sitting with three judges, found Dogan guilty on Thursday of raping Pelicot in her home in Provence in the early hours of June 29, 2019.

The evidence showed that Dogan, a family man, made contact with the victim's husband at the time, the husband, in an online chatroom called “without her consent”, where the husband was seeking men to come to his home to assault his wife after he had sedated her into a unconscious state.

We expect the panel will say loud and clear that in this society, human rights are also women’s rights – that consent is personal, not transferred,” declared the victim's lawyer, her legal representative. “Agreement is received personally and not by proxy from a husband.”

Context

The ex-husband, a notorious sexual predators in France's contemporary records, was given a prison term to two decades in prison last year for sedating his then wife and bringing in multiple perpetrators to sexually assault her in her home in the town of the village of Mazan over a span of nearly ten years of their union.

Numerous other individuals were found culpable in a high-profile trial last year, and Dogan was the sole individual to challenge his sentence. He was first sentenced to 9 years in prison, a sentence increased on Thursday to 10 years.

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

Courtroom Details

The defendant had first sent Dominique Pelicot inappropriate pictures and then driven an hour from his town in the region to assault the victim, after notifying his wife he was stepping out, the court heard.

The ex-husband, who was transported from isolation in prison to temporarily testify at the hearing, informed the court that Dogan had understood his wife had been “incapacitated” and he told to men by phone: “I seek someone to abuse my wife after I’ve put her to sleep without her knowledge.”

The trial became a focus point for a larger conversation on societal attitudes in society as Dogan continued to say he was blameless and had not committed rape, arguing that because the victim's husband had welcomed him into the residence, his behavior had been acceptable.

The panel in the Nîmes appeals court was presented with video evidence of the victim's unresponsive form, comatose and snoring in a deep sleep, while a smiling Dogan committed rape multiple times over a duration of what investigators stated was 3.5 hours. The court official said she had been at risk of death by asphyxiation. The prosecution said there was no question that she had been incapacitated and had not consented.

Dogan's Claims

Dogan stated to the court the footage were simply “sex scenes” and denied it was assault. He said what he did was “a sexual act”, not assault. He declared the court: “I am innocent of assault.” He said Gisèle Pelicot’s husband had brought him to the residence, and therefore it was acceptable. He said he was influenced by Dominique Pelicot. “I wanted to stop,” Dogan stated to 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 hurt that lady.”

Victim's Response

The victim, who was supported upon exiting the courtroom each day by onlookers present to support her, told the defendant in court: “You haven’t understood. When are you going to recognise you violated me? It is illegal to rape an incapacitated woman. When did I ever give you consent? Not once.”

The victim, 72, became an international feminist hero after she gave up her right to confidentiality in the trial last year when she said: “Shame must change sides.”

Prosecutor's Remarks

The prosecutor, speaking to Gisèle Pelicot in court, said Dogan’s refusal to take accountability showed that: “The shame remains. The public is maybe in the course of that, maybe motivated by the societal understanding spurred by the revelation of your case.”

The prosecutor said the defendant's claims of non-guilt showed how normalized violence was still widespread in society as part of “old-fashioned” forms of “male domination”. He said: “It is imperative to change rape culture to a ethos of permission.”

Sie told the defendant: “While you refuse to admit it, it’s not just a individual, it’s an whole disturbing societal structure that you are upholding.”

Biographical Details

The accused was originated from the country of Turkey and at the age of 5 relocated to France, where his father worked as a concierge. The court heard that his parent was abusive and that Dogan began smoking cannabis aged 10. When Dogan was seventeen he was stopped by authorities for drug trafficking and his parent forced him to leave of home. He served time in prison for narcotics offenses in his twenties and had worked as a builder but had experienced periods of homelessness.

He was wed and had a son with a genetic condition, who he was the principal carer for, as his spouse worked in a educational cafeteria. The court heard his spouse did not know he had regular intimate relations outside their marriage. His defence said this was his strategy for managing with his stressful life. The defendant had stated to a mental health expert that annually he sought paid sex on his special day. His attorneys told the court he had joint inflammation caused by the pressure of the first trial.