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A defendant was convicted on higher court review of raping Gisele Pelicot after she was rendered comatose by her then-husband – and has had his prison sentence extended to ten 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 Nîmes court of appeal.

A panel of four women and five men, sitting with three judges, found Dogan guilty on Thursday of raping Pelicot in her residence in Provence in the morning of June 29, 2019.

The testimony revealed that the accused, a family man, connected with the victim's then husband, the husband, in an digital platform titled “without her consent”, where the husband was recruiting men to visit his house to assault his wife after he had sedated her into a deep sleep.

“We hope the court will affirm that in this society, fundamental rights are also women’s rights – that permission is personal, not given by another,” said the victim's attorney, her legal representative. “Agreement is secured directly and not through someone else from a spouse.”

Case History

Dominique Pelicot, one of the worst sex offenders in modern French history, was given a prison term to two decades in prison last year for sedating his then wife and bringing in multiple perpetrators to rape her in her home in the Provence village of Mazan over a period of almost a decade of their marriage.

Numerous other individuals were found guilty in a widely publicized trial last year, and Dogan was the only man to contest his verdict. He was first handed a term to nine years in prison, a penalty increased on Thursday to ten years.

The lead state prosecutor, the prosecutor, had stated he should serve 12 years, because he “absolutely refuses to take any responsibility”.

Courtroom Details

Dogan had initially sent Dominique Pelicot inappropriate pictures and then traveled an hour from his residence in Provence to rape Gisèle Pelicot, after telling his wife he was stepping out, the testimony revealed.

Pelicot, who was brought from segregation in prison to briefly provide testimony at the appeal trial, informed the court that Dogan had been aware his wife had been “drugged” and he said to men by phone: “I seek someone to abuse my wife after I’ve put her to sleep without her knowledge.”

The courtroom became a key topic for a broader debate on societal attitudes in society as the defendant continued to assert he was not guilty and had not perpetrated assault, contending that because Gisèle Pelicot’s husband had allowed him into the residence, his conduct had been justifiable.

The panel in the Nîmes appeals court was displayed visual proof of the victim's unconscious figure, unconscious and breathing heavily in a comatose state, while a grinning Dogan committed rape on several occasions over a period of what authorities reported was 3.5 hours. The court official said she had been at risk of fatal outcome by choking. The state prosecution said there was no question that she had been unaware and had not consented.

Accused's Testimony

The defendant stated to the court the videos were simply “sexual encounters” and disputed it was assault. He said what he did was “a sexual act”, not rape. He declared the court: “I did not commit rape.” He said Gisèle Pelicot’s husband had invited him to the residence, and therefore it was acceptable. He said he was manipulated by the husband. “I tried to halt,” the accused informed the court. “I carried on because he persuaded me.”

Inquired if he wanted to make a last words to the court, Dogan said: “I did not intend to injure that individual.”

Pelicot's Words

The survivor, who was applauded upon leaving court each day by onlookers gathered to back her, said to Dogan in court: “You fail to comprehend. When will you acknowledge you assaulted me? It is illegal to assault an unaware woman. At what point did I give you consent? Not once.”

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

Prosecutor's Remarks

Sie, addressing Gisèle Pelicot in court, said Dogan’s unwillingness to take blame showed that: “The shame remains. The community is perhaps in the midst of that, possibly driven by the public consciousness brought by the exposure of your case.”

Sie said Dogan’s claims of innocence showed how societal tolerance was still prevalent in society as part of “archaic” forms of “gender-based power”. He said: “It is imperative to change rape culture to a ethos of permission.”

The prosecutor addressed Dogan: “While you refuse to admit it, it’s not just a woman, it’s an complete unpleasant cultural framework that you are upholding.”

Personal History

Dogan was originated from Turkey and at the age of 5 moved to France, where his father worked as a caretaker. The evidence indicated that his parent was abusive and that the defendant began smoking cannabis aged ten. When he was seventeen he was apprehended by authorities for drug trafficking and his father kicked him out the residence. He spent time in prison for narcotics offenses 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 child with Down’s syndrome, who he was the principal carer for, as his spouse worked in a institution's dining hall. The evidence showed his wife did not know he had frequent intimate relations outside their union. His defence said this was his way of coping with his difficult circumstances. Dogan had informed a evaluator that each year he sought paid sex on his special day. His lawyers stated to the court he had a medical condition triggered by the stress of the original case.