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A man has been found guilty on appeal of sexually assaulting Gisèle Pelicot following she was sedated by her then-husband – and has had his incarceration period extended to 10 years.

Retrial Proceedings

Dogan, 44, an out-of-work construction worker, who had appealed his initial guilty verdict last year, underwent a new trial this week at the higher court in Nîmes.

A panel of nine jurors, accompanied by three judges, ruled against Dogan on Thursday of sexually assaulting the victim in her residence in southern France in the morning of June 29, 2019.

The testimony revealed that Dogan, a family man, made contact with Gisèle Pelicot’s husband at the time, Dominique Pelicot, in an internet forum called “without her knowledge”, where Pelicot was recruiting men to visit his house to assault his wife once he had sedated her into a comatose state.

We trust the jury will say loud and clear that in this nation, human rights are also women’s rights – that agreement is personal, not delegated,” said the victim's lawyer, Antoine Camus. “Permission is obtained personally and not through someone else from a spouse.”

Background

Dominique Pelicot, one of the worst sexual predators in France's contemporary records, was given a prison term to 20 years in prison last year for drugging his spouse and bringing in multiple perpetrators to sexually assault her in her home in the town of Mazan over a duration of nearly ten years of their union.

Fifty other men were found culpable in a high-profile trial last year, and the appellant was the sole individual to challenge his sentence. He was first sentenced to 9 years in prison, a punishment raised on Thursday to 10 years.

The state's attorney, Dominique Sie, had stated he should serve 12 years, because he “absolutely refuses to take any responsibility”.

Courtroom Details

The defendant had initially sent Dominique Pelicot inappropriate pictures and then traveled an hour from his residence in the region to rape the victim, after telling his wife he was going out, the testimony revealed.

Pelicot, who was brought from isolation in prison to temporarily testify at the retrial, stated to the court that the accused had understood his wife had been “drugged” and he told to men by phone: “I’m looking for someone to assault my wife after I’ve sedated her without her consent.”

The proceedings became a key topic for a wider discussion on rape culture in society as Dogan continued to assert he was blameless and had not committed rape, stating that because Gisèle Pelicot’s husband had allowed him into the room, his behavior had been permissible.

The panel in the Nîmes appeals court was shown visual proof of Gisèle Pelicot’s unresponsive form, unconscious and snoring in a deep sleep, while a grinning the perpetrator performed assault on several occasions over a duration of what investigators stated was several hours. The judge said she had been at peril of fatal outcome by choking. The prosecution said there was no doubt that she had been incapacitated and had not consented.

Accused's Testimony

Dogan told the court the videos were simply “sexual encounters” and denied it was assault. He said what he did was “a sexual act”, not rape. He stated the court: “I did not commit rape.” He said Gisèle Pelicot’s husband had brought him to the residence, and therefore it was acceptable. He said he was manipulated by Dominique Pelicot. “I tried to halt,” Dogan stated to the court. “I carried on because he reassured me.”

Inquired if he wanted to make a final statement to the court, Dogan said: “I did not intend to hurt that individual.”

Survivor's Statement

Gisèle Pelicot, who was applauded upon exiting the courtroom each day by crowds assembled to back her, said to Dogan in court: “You haven’t understood. When will you acknowledge you violated me? It’s a crime to rape an unaware woman. How could I have give you agreement? Never.”

The victim, seventy-two, became an global icon after she waived her right to anonymity in the trial last year when she said: “Guilt ought to transfer.”

Prosecutor's Remarks

The prosecutor, speaking to Gisèle Pelicot in court, said Dogan’s unwillingness to take blame showed that: “The shame remains. The public is perhaps in the process of that, perhaps driven by the societal understanding resulting from the exposure of your case.”

Sie said the defendant's claims of non-guilt showed how normalized violence was still common in society as part of “archaic” forms of “male domination”. He said: “We need to change the culture of violence to a culture of consent.”

Sie told Dogan: “As long as you reject it, it’s not just a individual, it’s an complete disturbing social system that you are upholding.”

Personal History

Dogan was born in the country of Turkey and at the age of 5 moved to France, where his parent worked as a building manager. The testimony revealed that his father was aggressive and that the defendant began consuming marijuana aged ten. When he was 17 he was apprehended by authorities for dealing drugs and his father evicted him the family house. He spent time in prison for trafficking in his twenties and had worked as a builder but had faced periods of living on the streets.

He was wed and had a son with special needs, who he was the main caregiver for, as his spouse worked in a institution's dining hall. The court heard his wife did not know he had frequent sexual encounters beyond their union. His legal team said this was his way of coping with his challenging existence. Dogan had told a mental health expert that each year he sought transactional encounters on his special day. His attorneys stated to the court he had a medical condition triggered by the stress of the first trial.