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A man was convicted on higher court review of sexually assaulting Gisele Pelicot following she was drugged unconscious by her husband – and received his prison sentence increased to 10 years.

Retrial Proceedings

The defendant, forty-four, an unemployed builder, who had challenged his initial guilty verdict last year, faced a new trial this week at the higher court in Nîmes.

A panel of nine jurors, joined by three judges, found Dogan guilty on Thursday of sexually assaulting the victim in her bedroom in the south of France in the morning of 29 June 2019.

The evidence showed that the accused, a family man, reached out to the victim's then husband, the husband, in an digital platform titled “without her consent”, where Pelicot was seeking men to visit his house to assault his wife once he had drugged her into a comatose state.

We expect the court will say loud and clear that in this society, fundamental rights are also rights of women – that permission is personal, not given by another,” stated Gisèle Pelicot’s lawyer, her legal representative. “Consent is received directly and not by proxy from a husband.”

Case History

The husband, among the most severe sexual predators in modern French history, was given a prison term to two decades in prison last year for incapacitating his then wife and bringing in multiple perpetrators to sexually assault her in her home in the town of the village of Mazan over a duration of nearly ten years of their marriage.

Dozens of additional defendants were found guilty in a widely publicized trial last year, and Dogan was the single defendant to challenge his sentence. He was originally given a sentence to 9 years in prison, a penalty increased on Thursday to 10 years.

The chief prosecutor, Dominique Sie, had argued he should serve twelve years, because he “absolutely refuses to take any blame”.

Courtroom Details

Dogan had initially sent the husband inappropriate pictures and then traveled an hour from his residence in the region to assault the victim, after telling his wife he was leaving, the court heard.

The ex-husband, who was brought from segregation in prison to briefly provide testimony at the hearing, stated to the court that Dogan had known his wife had been “incapacitated” and he communicated to men by phone: “I want someone to violate my wife after I’ve sedated her without her knowledge.”

The trial became a focus point for a larger conversation on societal attitudes in society as the defendant continued to claim he was blameless and had not engaged in violation, contending that because Gisèle Pelicot’s husband had welcomed him into the bedroom, his behavior had been justifiable.

The jury in the higher court was presented with recorded footage of the victim's limp body, sedated and breathing heavily in a deep sleep, while a smiling the perpetrator performed assault on several occasions over a timeframe of what authorities reported was 3.5 hours. The judge said she had been at danger of death by asphyxiation. The state prosecution said there was no doubt that she had been unaware and had not consented.

Accused's Testimony

The defendant informed the court the recordings were simply “sexual encounters” and disputed it was rape. He said what he did was “an intimate behavior”, not rape. He stated the court: “I did not commit rape.” He said the victim's husband had brought him to the house, and therefore it was acceptable. He said he was manipulated by the husband. “I attempted to cease,” the accused stated to the court. “I continued because he reassured me.”

Asked if he wanted to make a final statement to the court, Dogan said: “I had no desire to hurt that woman.”

Survivor's Statement

The survivor, who was cheered upon leaving court each day by onlookers assembled to stand with her, told Dogan in court: “You haven’t understood. When will you admit you assaulted me? It is illegal to rape an incapacitated woman. When did I ever give you agreement? Not once.”

Gisèle Pelicot, seventy-two, became an international feminist hero after she relinquished her right to anonymity in the trial last year when she said: “The shame should shift.”

Legal Commentary

Sie, turning to the victim in court, said the defendant's refusal to take blame showed that: “Shame has not yet changed sides. The public is maybe in the midst of that, perhaps propelled by the collective awareness resulting from the publication of your situation.”

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

Sie addressed the defendant: “For as much as you reject it, it’s not just a woman, it’s an complete unpleasant cultural framework that you are supporting.”

Personal History

The accused was originated from the country of Turkey and at the age of five relocated to the nation of France, where his parent worked as a concierge. The testimony revealed that his father was violent and that the defendant began consuming marijuana aged 10. When he was 17 he was caught by authorities for dealing drugs and his father kicked him out the family house. He served time in prison for drug dealing in his early 20s and had worked as a laborer but had undergone periods of living on the streets.

He was wed and had a child with special needs, who he was the main caregiver for, as his spouse worked in a school canteen. The testimony revealed his wife did not know he had repeated extramarital activities beyond their marriage. His defence said this was his method of dealing with his challenging existence. Dogan had informed a evaluator that each year he engaged in transactional encounters on his special day. His attorneys stated to the court he had arthritis caused by the pressure of the initial proceedings.