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A man was convicted on appeal of sexually assaulting Gisèle Pelicot following she was sedated by her spouse – and received his prison sentence increased to ten years.

Appeal Trial

The defendant, 44, an unemployed builder, who had appealed his initial guilty verdict last year, underwent a appeal hearing this week at the appeals court in Nîmes.

A jury of nine jurors, joined by three judges, ruled against Dogan on Thursday of raping the victim in her bedroom in southern France in the morning of 29 June 2019.

The court heard that the accused, a married father, made contact with Gisèle Pelicot’s husband at the time, Dominique Pelicot, in an online chatroom called “without her consent”, where Pelicot was looking for men to come to his home to rape his wife once he had drugged her into a comatose state.

We expect the jury will declare that in this country, human rights are also rights of women – that permission is personal, not delegated,” said the victim's attorney, her legal representative. “Permission is received directly and not via a representative from a spouse.”

Case History

Dominique Pelicot, among the most severe sex offenders in recent French history, was handed a sentence to two decades in prison last year for incapacitating his spouse and bringing in dozens of men to sexually assault her in her home in the community of the village of Mazan over a period of almost a decade of their marriage.

Fifty other men were found culpable in a high-profile trial last year, and Dogan was the sole individual to appeal against his sentence. He was initially sentenced to nine years in prison, a punishment enhanced on Thursday to a decade.

The lead state prosecutor, Dominique Sie, had contended he should serve 12 years, because he “stubbornly rejects to take any responsibility”.

Testimony and Proof

The defendant had first sent Dominique Pelicot graphic images and then traveled an hour from his residence in Provence to assault Gisèle Pelicot, after notifying his wife he was going out, the evidence indicated.

The ex-husband, who was transported from solitary confinement in prison to briefly testify at the hearing, stated to the court that Dogan had understood his wife had been “sedated” and he communicated to men by phone: “I’m looking for someone to abuse my wife after I’ve rendered her unconscious unbeknownst to her.”

The proceedings became a central issue for a broader debate on societal attitudes in society as the defendant continued to claim he was blameless and had not perpetrated assault, stating that because the victim's husband had allowed him into the room, his actions had been acceptable.

The jury in the higher court was displayed visual proof of the victim's limp body, comatose and breathing heavily in a deep sleep, while a grinning the perpetrator performed assault repeatedly over a duration of what investigators stated was 3.5 hours. The court official said she had been at risk of death by suffocation. The state's case said there was absolute certainty that she had been unaware and had not agreed.

Accused's Testimony

The defendant stated to the court the videos were simply “intimate moments” and disputed it was assault. He said what he did was “a consensual activity”, not assault. He declared the court: “I did not commit rape.” He said Gisèle Pelicot’s husband had invited him to the residence, and therefore it was permissible. He said he was influenced by Dominique Pelicot. “I tried to halt,” Dogan informed the court. “I proceeded because he convinced me.”

Inquired if he wanted to make a last words to the court, the defendant said: “I never wanted to injure that woman.”

Pelicot's Words

The victim, who was applauded upon leaving court each day by crowds assembled to stand with her, told Dogan in court: “You fail to comprehend. When are you going to recognise you raped me? It is illegal to rape an unaware woman. At what point did I give you consent? At no time.”

The victim, seventy-two, 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, addressing Gisèle Pelicot in court, said the defendant's unwillingness to take blame showed that: “Shame has not yet changed sides. Society is perhaps in the course of that, maybe propelled by the public consciousness spurred by the publication of your situation.”

Sie said Dogan’s claims of innocence showed how societal tolerance was still common in society as part of “archaic” forms of “patriarchal control”. He said: “It is imperative to change rape culture to a ethos of permission.”

The prosecutor told Dogan: “For as much as you deny it, it’s not just a woman, it’s an entire disturbing social system that you are endorsing.”

Defendant's Background

Dogan was born in the country of Turkey and at the age of five moved to France, where his father worked as a caretaker. The testimony revealed that his parent was aggressive and that the defendant began smoking cannabis aged ten. When Dogan was 17 he was caught by police for drug trafficking and his father kicked him out of home. He served time in prison for narcotics offenses in his twenties and had worked as a laborer but had undergone periods of being unhoused.

He was wed and had a son with special needs, who he was the main caregiver for, as his spouse worked in a educational cafeteria. The evidence showed his wife did not know he had regular sexual encounters outside their marriage. His legal team said this was his way of coping with his challenging existence. Dogan had told a evaluator that once a year he engaged in transactional encounters on his special day. His legal representatives stated to the court he had joint inflammation resulting from the stress of the initial proceedings.