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A man was declared guilty on higher court review of sexually assaulting Gisele Pelicot following she was rendered comatose by her spouse – and received his prison sentence raised to a decade.

Higher Court Case

The defendant, 44, an out-of-work construction worker, who had appealed his first conviction last year, underwent a appeal hearing this week at the higher court in Nîmes.

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

The court heard that the accused, a married father, connected with Gisèle Pelicot’s then husband, Dominique Pelicot, in an internet forum called “without her knowledge”, where Pelicot was looking for men to enter his residence to rape his wife after he had rendered her unconscious into a deep sleep.

“We hope the jury will say loud and clear that in this country, human rights are also women’s rights – that agreement is individual, not given by another,” said the victim's lawyer, Antoine Camus. “Agreement is obtained directly and not via a representative from a husband.”

Context

Dominique Pelicot, among the most severe sexual predators in modern French history, was handed a sentence to 20 years in prison last year for sedating his spouse and soliciting dozens of men to sexually assault her in her home in the Provence village of Mazan over a period of nearly ten years of their marriage.

Fifty other men were found guilty in a widely publicized trial last year, and Dogan was the only man to challenge his conviction. He was first handed a term to nine years in prison, a punishment increased 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 blame”.

Courtroom Details

The defendant had initially sent the husband sexually explicit photos and then driven an hour from his village in the region to rape the victim, after notifying his wife he was going out, the court heard.

Pelicot, who was transported from segregation in prison to briefly testify at the hearing, informed the court that the accused had been aware his wife had been “incapacitated” and he communicated to men by phone: “I want someone to violate my wife after I’ve rendered her unconscious without her consent.”

The courtroom became a key topic for a broader debate on rape culture in society as the defendant continued to claim he was blameless and had not committed rape, stating that because the victim's husband had invited him into the bedroom, his conduct had been permissible.

The jury in the Nîmes appeals court was presented with recorded footage of Gisèle Pelicot’s unconscious figure, comatose and snoring in a deep sleep, while a smiling Dogan performed assault repeatedly over a timeframe of what authorities reported was several hours. The presiding judge said she had been at risk of fatal outcome by suffocation. The state prosecution said there was no doubt that she had been incapacitated and had not agreed.

Defendant's Statements

Dogan stated to the court the footage were simply “sexual encounters” and denied it was violation. He said what he did was “an intimate behavior”, not assault. He told the court: “I am innocent of assault.” He said Gisèle Pelicot’s husband had allowed him to the house, and therefore it was OK. He said he was deceived by the husband. “I attempted to cease,” the accused stated to the court. “I proceeded because he persuaded me.”

Inquired if he wanted to make a last words to the court, Dogan said: “I never wanted to hurt that lady.”

Victim's Response

The survivor, who was applauded upon exiting the courtroom each day by supporters assembled to stand with her, said to Dogan in court: “You do not grasp. When are you going to recognise you raped me? It’s a crime to assault an unconscious woman. When did I ever give you agreement? Never.”

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

State's Argument

The prosecutor, speaking to the victim in court, said Dogan’s failure to take responsibility showed that: “The shame remains. Society is possibly in the midst of that, possibly driven by the public consciousness resulting from the revelation of your case.”

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

Sie addressed the defendant: “As long as you refuse to admit it, it’s not just a person, it’s an whole unpleasant social system that you are upholding.”

Biographical Details

Dogan was born in the country of Turkey and at the age of five came to France, where his father worked as a building manager. The evidence indicated that his parent was abusive and that the defendant began consuming marijuana at the age of 10. When Dogan was 17 he was apprehended by authorities for dealing drugs and his father forced him to leave the family house. He spent time in prison for trafficking in his twenties and had worked as a laborer but had experienced periods of being unhoused.

He was married and had a child with a genetic condition, who he was the primary guardian for, as his wife worked in a educational cafeteria. The court heard his spouse did not know he had repeated intimate relations beyond their marriage. His legal team said this was his strategy for managing with his difficult circumstances. Dogan had stated to a court psychologist that annually he engaged in paid sex on his birthday. His legal representatives informed the court he had a medical condition resulting from the stress of the original case.