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A defendant was convicted on appeal of sexually assaulting Gisèle Pelicot after she was drugged unconscious by her then-husband – and was given his prison sentence raised to 10 years.

Appeal Trial

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

A panel of five men and four women, joined by three judges, found Dogan guilty on Thursday of raping Pelicot in her residence in the south of France in the morning of 29 June 2019.

The evidence showed that the accused, a married father, connected with Gisèle Pelicot’s then husband, Dominique Pelicot, in an online chatroom named “without her knowledge”, where Pelicot was seeking men to come to his home to assault his wife after he had drugged her into a deep sleep.

“We hope the panel will declare that in this society, human rights are also women’s rights – that permission is personal, not transferred,” declared the victim's attorney, Antoine Camus. “Agreement is obtained directly and not via a representative from a husband.”

Background

The ex-husband, a notorious sex offenders in recent French history, was sentenced to two decades in prison last year for sedating his then wife and bringing in multiple perpetrators to rape her in her home in the community of the village of Mazan over a period of many years of their union.

Fifty other men were found culpable in a widely publicized trial last year, and Dogan was the single defendant to challenge his verdict. He was initially handed a term to nine years in prison, a punishment increased on Thursday to a decade.

The state's attorney, the prosecutor, had contended he should serve twelve years, because he “stubbornly rejects to take any responsibility”.

Testimony and Proof

The defendant had initially sent the husband inappropriate pictures and then traveled an hour from his town in the region to rape the victim, after informing his wife he was stepping out, the evidence indicated.

The ex-husband, who was transported from isolation in prison to briefly provide testimony at the appeal trial, stated to the court that Dogan had known his wife had been “sedated” and he told to men by phone: “I want someone to assault my wife after I’ve rendered her unconscious unbeknownst to her.”

The proceedings became a focus point for a wider discussion on societal attitudes in society as the defendant continued to claim he was innocent and had not engaged in violation, contending that because Gisèle Pelicot’s husband had allowed him into the bedroom, his behavior had been permissible.

The panel in the higher court was presented with recorded footage of the victim's unconscious figure, sedated and snoring in a deep sleep, while a smiling the perpetrator engaged in violation on several occasions over a timeframe of what authorities reported was several hours. The presiding judge said she had been at peril of fatal outcome by choking. The state prosecution said there was no doubt that she had been unaware and had not consented.

Accused's Testimony

The defendant told the court the recordings were simply “intimate moments” and rejected it was violation. He said what he did was “a consensual activity”, not rape. He stated the court: “I am innocent of assault.” He said the victim's husband had brought him to the house, and therefore it was OK. He said he was manipulated by the husband. “I tried to halt,” Dogan stated to the court. “I continued because he convinced me.”

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

Pelicot's Words

Gisèle Pelicot, who was supported upon departing the trial each day by supporters gathered to support her, told Dogan in court: “You fail to comprehend. When are you going to recognise you violated me? It is unlawful to assault an unconscious woman. At what point did I give you consent? At no time.”

Gisèle Pelicot, 72, became an symbol of resistance after she waived her right to confidentiality in the trial last year when she said: “Guilt ought to transfer.”

Prosecutor's Remarks

The prosecutor, speaking to the victim in court, said Dogan’s failure to take accountability showed that: “Guilt has not shifted. The public is perhaps in the course of that, possibly motivated by the collective awareness resulting from the revelation of your situation.”

The prosecutor said Dogan’s claims of non-guilt showed how societal tolerance was still widespread in society as part of “outdated” forms of “patriarchal control”. He said: “We need to change the culture of violence to a ethos of permission.”

Sie addressed Dogan: “For as much as you reject it, it’s not just a individual, it’s an whole sordid societal structure that you are supporting.”

Biographical Details

The accused was originated from Turkey and at the age of 5 relocated to France, where his parent worked as a caretaker. The court heard that his father was violent and that Dogan began smoking cannabis aged 10. When Dogan was 17 he was stopped by authorities for selling narcotics and his parent kicked him out of home. He was incarcerated in prison for narcotics offenses in his twenties and had worked as a construction worker but had undergone periods of being unhoused.

He was wed and had a child with a genetic condition, who he was the main caregiver for, as his wife worked in a educational cafeteria. The court heard his spouse did not know he had regular intimate relations beyond their union. His legal team said this was his method of dealing with his difficult circumstances. Dogan had stated to a mental health expert that each year he engaged in commercial sex on his special day. His attorneys told the court he had arthritis resulting from the stress of the first trial.