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A man was declared guilty on appeal of raping Gisele Pelicot following she was sedated by her then-husband – and was given his incarceration period increased to a decade.

Retrial Proceedings

Dogan, forty-four, an unemployed builder, who had challenged his initial guilty verdict last year, faced a retrial this week at the Nîmes court of appeal.

A jury of five men and four women, accompanied by three judges, convicted Dogan on Thursday of raping Pelicot in her residence in southern France in the early hours of June 29, 2019.

The court heard that the accused, a family man, connected with the victim's husband at the time, Dominique Pelicot, in an digital platform titled “unbeknownst to her”, where Pelicot was recruiting men to visit his house to rape his wife after he had drugged her into a unconscious state.

“We hope the panel will affirm that in this nation, human rights are also women’s rights – that agreement is individual, not transferred,” said the victim's attorney, her legal representative. “Agreement is obtained personally and not through someone else from a spouse.”

Case History

The husband, a notorious sexual predators in France's contemporary records, was given a prison term to twenty years in prison last year for sedating his then wife and inviting numerous individuals to rape her in her home in the community of Mazan over a period of nearly ten years of their marriage.

Dozens of additional defendants were found guilty in a notable trial last year, and the appellant was the single defendant to contest his verdict. He was first sentenced to 9 years in prison, a punishment raised on Thursday to a decade.

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

Testimony and Proof

Dogan had initially sent Dominique Pelicot inappropriate pictures and then driven an hour from his town in Provence to rape Gisèle Pelicot, after informing his wife he was stepping out, the evidence indicated.

The ex-husband, who was brought from isolation in prison to temporarily provide testimony at the retrial, told the court that Dogan had been aware his wife had been “drugged” and he said to men by phone: “I seek someone to violate my wife after I’ve rendered her unconscious unbeknownst to her.”

The courtroom became a focus point for a broader debate on rape culture in society as the defendant continued to claim he was blameless and had not engaged in violation, stating that because the victim's husband had welcomed him into the room, his behavior had been justifiable.

The panel in the Nîmes appeals court was presented with video evidence of the victim's limp body, comatose and snoring in a unconscious condition, while a smiling Dogan performed assault multiple times over a duration of what investigators stated was 3.5 hours. The presiding judge said she had been at danger of fatal outcome by choking. The prosecution said there was no question that she had been unaware and had not given permission.

Defendant's Statements

Dogan informed the court the videos were simply “sexual encounters” and denied it was assault. He said what he did was “a sexual act”, not assault. He stated the court: “I am innocent of assault.” He said the victim's husband had invited him to the house, and therefore it was acceptable. He said he was deceived by Dominique Pelicot. “I attempted to cease,” Dogan informed the court. “I continued because he persuaded me.”

Asked if he wanted to make a closing remarks to the court, the defendant said: “I never wanted to injure that individual.”

Survivor's Statement

Gisèle Pelicot, who was supported upon departing the trial each day by onlookers present to stand with her, told the defendant in court: “You haven’t understood. When will you admit you raped me? It’s a crime to assault an unconscious woman. At what point did I give you permission? Never.”

Gisèle Pelicot, 72, became an international feminist hero after she gave up her right to privacy in the trial last year when she said: “Guilt ought to transfer.”

Legal Commentary

The prosecutor, turning to Gisèle Pelicot in court, said Dogan’s failure to take blame showed that: “Guilt has not shifted. The public is possibly in the course of that, possibly propelled by the collective awareness spurred by the publication of your situation.”

The prosecutor said Dogan’s claims of non-guilt showed how societal tolerance was still widespread in society as part of “archaic” forms of “gender-based power”. He said: “We need to change rape culture to a culture of consent.”

The prosecutor told the defendant: “While you reject it, it’s not just a individual, it’s an whole unpleasant cultural framework that you are upholding.”

Defendant's Background

Dogan was originated from the country of Turkey and at the age of 5 moved to France, where his parent worked as a caretaker. The testimony revealed that his parent was violent and that Dogan began smoking cannabis at the age of 10. When Dogan was 17 he was apprehended by authorities for dealing drugs and his parent kicked him out the residence. He spent time in prison for narcotics offenses in his twenties and had worked as a construction worker but had experienced 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 wife worked in a institution's dining hall. The testimony revealed his wife did not know he had regular sexual encounters beyond their marriage. His legal team said this was his way of coping with his challenging existence. The defendant had stated to a mental health expert that annually he engaged in commercial sex on his special day. His attorneys told the court he had joint inflammation triggered by the pressure of the first trial.