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An individual was convicted on retrial of raping Gisele Pelicot after she was drugged unconscious by her spouse – and was given his prison sentence extended to a decade.

Retrial Proceedings

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

A panel of four women and five men, accompanied by three judges, convicted Dogan on Thursday of raping the victim in her home in the south of France in the early hours of 29 June 2019.

The testimony revealed that Dogan, a married father, connected with the victim's spouse, the husband, in an internet forum titled “without her consent”, where the husband was looking for men to come to his home to rape his wife once he had rendered her unconscious into a comatose state.

“We hope the jury will affirm that in this society, fundamental rights are also women’s rights – that permission is personal, not given by another,” declared Gisèle Pelicot’s lawyer, her legal representative. “Permission is obtained directly and not via a representative from a husband.”

Background

The ex-husband, among the most severe sexual predators in France's contemporary records, was handed a sentence to twenty years in prison last year for sedating his spouse and soliciting numerous individuals to rape her in her home in the Provence village of Mazan over a span of many years of their union.

Dozens of additional defendants were found convicted in a widely publicized trial last year, and Dogan was the sole individual to appeal against his conviction. He was first given a sentence to 9 years in prison, a penalty increased on Thursday to a decade.

The lead state prosecutor, Dominique Sie, had contended he should serve twelve years, because he “completely denies to take any accountability”.

Testimony and Proof

Dogan had first sent Dominique Pelicot sexually explicit photos and then driven an hour from his residence in the region to rape Gisèle Pelicot, after notifying his wife he was stepping out, the testimony revealed.

The ex-husband, who was transported from segregation in prison to temporarily give evidence at the appeal trial, told the court that Dogan had known his wife had been “sedated” and he said to men by phone: “I’m looking for someone to abuse my wife after I’ve put her to sleep unbeknownst to her.”

The courtroom became a focus point for a wider discussion on societal attitudes in society as the defendant continued to say he was innocent and had not committed rape, stating that because the victim's husband had invited him into the residence, his conduct had been justifiable.

The panel in the Nîmes appeals court was displayed video evidence of Gisèle Pelicot’s unresponsive form, comatose and breathing heavily in a deep sleep, while a smiling Dogan performed assault on several occasions over a duration of what police said was three and a half hours. The court official said she had been at danger of death by asphyxiation. The state's case said there was absolute certainty that she had been unconscious and had not consented.

Defendant's Statements

Dogan stated to the court the footage were simply “intimate moments” and denied it was assault. He said what he did was “a consensual activity”, not rape. He told the court: “I am innocent of assault.” He said Gisèle Pelicot’s husband had allowed him to the residence, and therefore it was OK. He said he was deceived by Dominique Pelicot. “I wanted to stop,” the accused informed the court. “I proceeded because he convinced me.”

Questioned if he wanted to make a last words to the court, Dogan said: “I had no desire to hurt that woman.”

Pelicot's Words

Gisèle Pelicot, who was cheered upon departing the trial each day by crowds assembled to support her, said to the defendant in court: “You fail to comprehend. When are you going to recognise you assaulted me? It is illegal to rape an unaware woman. At what point did I give you agreement? Not once.”

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

State's Argument

Sie, speaking to the victim in court, said the defendant's unwillingness to take accountability showed that: “The shame remains. Society is perhaps in the course of that, perhaps propelled by the public consciousness spurred by the publication of your situation.”

The prosecutor said the defendant's claims of innocence showed how societal tolerance was still prevalent in society as part of “archaic” forms of “gender-based power”. He said: “Now we must change rape culture to a ethos of permission.”

The prosecutor said to the defendant: “While you reject it, it’s not just a person, it’s an whole sordid social system that you are supporting.”

Defendant's Background

The accused was born in the country of Turkey and at the age of 5 came to the nation of France, where his parent worked as a concierge. The evidence indicated that his parent was aggressive and that the defendant began using drugs aged ten. When he was 17 he was caught by authorities for dealing drugs and his parent kicked him out the family house. He served time in prison for drug dealing in his young adulthood and had worked as a laborer but had undergone periods of being unhoused.

He was wed and had a child with special needs, who he was the main caregiver for, as his wife worked in a school canteen. The testimony revealed his wife did not know he had regular intimate relations outside their marriage. His defence said this was his way of coping with his challenging existence. The defendant had informed a evaluator that each year he engaged in paid sex on his birthday. His attorneys informed the court he had joint inflammation caused by the stress of the original case.