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A man was declared guilty on appeal of sexually assaulting Gisele Pelicot following she was drugged unconscious by her husband – and was given his prison sentence extended to 10 years.

Appeal Trial

The defendant, 44, an out-of-work construction worker, who had appealed his initial guilty verdict last year, experienced a new trial this week at the Nîmes court of appeal.

A panel of four women and five men, sitting with three judges, ruled against Dogan on Thursday of sexually assaulting the victim in her home in Provence in the morning of June 29, 2019.

The evidence showed that the accused, a married father, reached out to Gisèle Pelicot’s spouse, Dominique Pelicot, in an internet forum named “unbeknownst to her”, where the husband was looking for men to enter his residence to assault his wife once he had drugged her into a comatose state.

We expect the court will declare that in this country, fundamental rights are also women’s rights – that agreement is individual, not delegated,” declared the victim's lawyer, Antoine Camus. “Permission is received directly and not through someone else from a husband.”

Context

The ex-husband, one of the worst sex offenders in modern French history, was handed a sentence to 20 years in prison last year for drugging his spouse and inviting numerous individuals to rape her in her home in the town of the village of Mazan over a span of almost a decade of their marriage.

Dozens of additional defendants were found convicted in a widely publicized trial last year, and Dogan was the only man to contest his verdict. He was initially sentenced to 9 years in prison, a penalty increased on Thursday to 10 years.

The lead state prosecutor, the prosecutor, had stated he should serve 12 years, because he “stubbornly rejects to take any accountability”.

Testimony and Proof

The defendant had initially sent the husband inappropriate pictures and then traveled an hour from his town in Provence to rape Gisèle Pelicot, after telling his wife he was leaving, the evidence indicated.

The ex-husband, who was transported from segregation in prison to temporarily provide testimony at the appeal trial, stated to the court that the accused had been aware his wife had been “sedated” and he told to men by phone: “I’m looking for someone to abuse my wife after I’ve put her to sleep without her consent.”

The trial became a key topic for a broader debate on societal attitudes in society as Dogan continued to assert he was not guilty and had not perpetrated assault, stating that because the victim's husband had allowed him into the bedroom, his actions had been justifiable.

The panel in the Nîmes appeals court was displayed recorded footage of Gisèle Pelicot’s unresponsive form, sedated and breathing heavily in a deep sleep, while a smiling the perpetrator committed rape repeatedly over a period of what police said was 3.5 hours. The judge said she had been at risk of fatal outcome by suffocation. The prosecution said there was absolute certainty that she had been unaware and had not agreed.

Dogan's Claims

Dogan informed the court the footage were simply “intimate moments” and rejected it was violation. He said what he did was “a sexual act”, not rape. He stated the court: “I am innocent of assault.” He said Gisèle Pelicot’s husband had invited him to the residence, and therefore it was permissible. He said he was influenced by the husband. “I tried to halt,” Dogan told the court. “I carried on because he convinced me.”

Asked if he wanted to make a closing remarks to the court, the defendant said: “I had no desire to injure that woman.”

Pelicot's Words

Gisèle Pelicot, who was supported upon leaving court each day by crowds gathered to support her, told Dogan in court: “You haven’t understood. When are you going to recognise you assaulted me? It’s a crime to assault an unconscious woman. At what point did I give you consent? Never.”

The victim, 72, became an global icon after she waived her right to anonymity in the trial last year when she said: “Shame must change sides.”

State's Argument

The prosecutor, speaking to Gisèle Pelicot in court, said the defendant's unwillingness to take accountability showed that: “Guilt has not shifted. The public is possibly in the midst of that, maybe propelled by the collective awareness brought by the publication of your ordeal.”

Sie said the defendant's claims of blamelessness showed how rape culture was still widespread in society as part of “outdated” forms of “patriarchal control”. He said: “Now we must change rape culture to a ethos of permission.”

Sie told the defendant: “While you deny it, it’s not just a person, it’s an entire disturbing social system that you are endorsing.”

Personal History

The accused was born in Turkey and at the age of 5 relocated to the nation of France, where his parent worked as a caretaker. The evidence indicated that his parent was violent and that the defendant began using drugs at the age of 10. When Dogan was 17 he was caught by police for drug trafficking and his parent forced him to leave the family house. He was incarcerated in prison for trafficking in his early 20s and had worked as a construction worker but had undergone periods of living on the streets.

He was married and had a son with special needs, who he was the main caregiver for, as his spouse worked in a school canteen. The testimony revealed his spouse did not know he had regular extramarital activities outside their marriage. His legal team said this was his strategy for managing with his difficult circumstances. The defendant had informed a mental health expert that once a year he looked for commercial sex on his special day. His lawyers told the court he had a medical condition triggered by the anxiety of the original case.