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An individual was convicted on retrial of raping Gisèle Pelicot after she was rendered comatose by her then-husband – and received his prison sentence raised to ten years.

Higher Court Case

The defendant, forty-four, an out-of-work construction worker, who had appealed 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, joined by three judges, convicted Dogan on Thursday of raping Pelicot in her home in Provence in the early hours of 29 June 2019.

The court heard that Dogan, a family man, reached out to Gisèle Pelicot’s then husband, the husband, in an online chatroom titled “unbeknownst to her”, where Pelicot was seeking men to come to his home to rape his wife once he had sedated her into a deep sleep.

We trust the panel will say loud and clear that in this society, human rights are also rights of women – that permission is individual, not given by another,” declared the victim's attorney, her legal representative. “Agreement is received personally and not through someone else from a spouse.”

Background

Dominique Pelicot, a notorious sex offenders in recent French history, was given a prison term to two decades in prison last year for sedating his then wife and soliciting dozens of men to rape her in her home in the Provence village of the village of Mazan over a span of almost a decade 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 sentence. He was initially given a sentence to nine years in prison, a penalty increased on Thursday to ten years.

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

Courtroom Details

Dogan had first sent Dominique Pelicot inappropriate pictures and then traveled an hour from his village in the region to rape the victim, after notifying his wife he was stepping out, the evidence indicated.

Pelicot, who was transported from solitary confinement in prison to briefly provide testimony at the appeal trial, stated to the court that the accused had understood his wife had been “drugged” and he communicated to men by phone: “I’m looking for someone to violate my wife after I’ve put her to sleep without her knowledge.”

The proceedings became a key topic for a wider discussion on sexual violence norms in society as the defendant continued to claim he was not guilty and had not committed rape, stating that because the victim's husband had allowed him into the residence, his behavior had been justifiable.

The jury in the higher court was presented with recorded footage of the victim's unresponsive form, unconscious and breathing heavily in a deep sleep, while a smiling Dogan performed assault multiple times over a duration of what investigators stated was several hours. The judge said she had been at risk of death by choking. The prosecution said there was no question that she had been incapacitated and had not agreed.

Dogan's Claims

Dogan told the court the videos were simply “sex scenes” and rejected it was violation. He said what he did was “an intimate behavior”, not rape. He declared the court: “I did not commit rape.” He said Gisèle Pelicot’s husband had allowed him to the home, and therefore it was permissible. He said he was manipulated by Dominique Pelicot. “I attempted to cease,” the accused told the court. “I continued because he convinced me.”

Questioned if he wanted to make a closing remarks to the court, Dogan said: “I did not intend to hurt that woman.”

Pelicot's Words

The victim, who was cheered upon departing the trial each day by onlookers present to support her, addressed Dogan in court: “You fail to comprehend. When will you acknowledge you assaulted me? It is unlawful to rape an incapacitated woman. When did I ever give you consent? At no time.”

The victim, 72, became an international feminist hero after she waived her right to confidentiality in the trial last year when she said: “Guilt ought to transfer.”

Prosecutor's Remarks

The prosecutor, turning to the victim in court, said the defendant's failure to take accountability showed that: “Guilt has not shifted. The public is perhaps in the midst of that, possibly driven by the collective awareness spurred by the publication of your ordeal.”

The prosecutor said Dogan’s claims of innocence showed how rape culture was still widespread in society as part of “outdated” forms of “male domination”. He said: “We need to change the culture of violence to a society based on agreement.”

The prosecutor told the defendant: “For as much as you deny it, it’s not just a individual, it’s an complete disturbing cultural framework that you are supporting.”

Defendant's Background

Dogan was born in the country of Turkey and at the age of five relocated to the nation of France, where his parent worked as a building manager. The court heard that his parent was abusive and that Dogan began smoking cannabis aged 10. When Dogan was 17 he was apprehended by authorities for selling narcotics and his father evicted him of home. He spent time in prison for narcotics offenses in his twenties and had worked as a builder but had undergone periods of homelessness.

He was married and had a son with a genetic condition, who he was the primary guardian for, as his spouse worked in a educational cafeteria. The evidence showed his spouse did not know he had regular intimate relations outside their marriage. His defence said this was his way of coping with his difficult circumstances. The defendant had stated to a evaluator that each year he engaged in commercial sex on his special day. His lawyers stated to the court he had arthritis triggered by the anxiety of the first trial.