🔗 Share this article

A man was declared guilty on higher court review of sexually assaulting Gisèle Pelicot following she was sedated by her then-husband – and was given his incarceration period raised to ten years.

Retrial Proceedings

The defendant, forty-four, an unemployed builder, who had challenged his first conviction last year, faced a retrial this week at the higher court in Nîmes.

A panel of nine jurors, joined by three judges, found Dogan guilty on Thursday of raping Pelicot in her bedroom in southern France in the early hours of June 29, 2019.

The evidence showed that Dogan, a family man, made contact with Gisèle Pelicot’s then husband, Dominique Pelicot, in an digital platform named “without her knowledge”, where Pelicot was seeking men to enter his residence to assault his wife after he had sedated her into a unconscious state.

We expect the jury will say loud and clear that in this society, human rights are also rights of women – that agreement is personal, not delegated,” stated the victim's lawyer, Antoine Camus. “Consent is secured personally and not by proxy from a spouse.”

Background

The husband, among the most severe sexual predators in recent French history, was sentenced to 20 years in prison last year for incapacitating his wife at the time and soliciting dozens of men to rape her in her home in the community of the village of Mazan over a span of nearly ten years of their marriage.

Fifty other men were found convicted in a notable trial last year, and Dogan was the only man to appeal against his conviction. He was initially sentenced to 9 years in prison, a punishment increased on Thursday to 10 years.

The state's attorney, the prosecutor, had contended he should serve 12 years, because he “stubbornly rejects to take any blame”.

Courtroom Details

Dogan had first sent the husband inappropriate pictures and then traveled an hour from his village in Provence to rape Gisèle Pelicot, after telling his wife he was stepping out, the court heard.

Pelicot, who was brought from segregation in prison to briefly testify at the appeal trial, stated to the court that Dogan had known his wife had been “incapacitated” and he communicated to men by phone: “I seek someone to assault my wife after I’ve sedated her without her consent.”

The courtroom became a central issue for a wider discussion on societal attitudes in society as the defendant continued to assert he was not guilty and had not perpetrated assault, stating that because Gisèle Pelicot’s husband had allowed him into the residence, his conduct had been permissible.

The jury in the higher court was shown recorded footage of the victim's unresponsive form, unconscious and snoring in a unconscious condition, while a smiling the perpetrator engaged in violation multiple times over a timeframe of what investigators stated was several hours. The court official said she had been at peril of death by choking. The state's case said there was absolute certainty that she had been unaware and had not agreed.

Defendant's Statements

The defendant informed the court the videos were simply “sex scenes” and denied it was rape. He said what he did was “a sexual act”, not assault. He told the court: “I did not commit rape.” He said Gisèle Pelicot’s husband had invited him to the house, and therefore it was acceptable. He said he was deceived by Dominique Pelicot. “I wanted to stop,” the accused informed the court. “I proceeded because he convinced me.”

Inquired if he wanted to make a closing remarks to the court, Dogan said: “I never wanted to injure that woman.”

Victim's Response

Gisèle Pelicot, who was applauded upon exiting the courtroom each day by supporters present to stand with her, said to the defendant in court: “You fail to comprehend. When will you acknowledge you assaulted me? It is illegal to assault an unconscious woman. How could I have give you agreement? Not once.”

Gisèle Pelicot, 72, became an symbol of resistance after she relinquished her right to privacy in the trial last year when she said: “Shame must change sides.”

Legal Commentary

The prosecutor, addressing the victim in court, said Dogan’s unwillingness to take blame showed that: “Shame has not yet changed sides. The community is maybe in the course of that, possibly motivated by the collective awareness brought by the exposure of your ordeal.”

Sie said the defendant's claims of innocence showed how societal tolerance was still prevalent in society as part of “archaic” forms of “male domination”. He said: “Now we must change rape culture to a culture of consent.”

Sie addressed Dogan: “As long as you deny it, it’s not just a woman, it’s an complete disturbing societal structure that you are upholding.”

Defendant's Background

The accused was born in Turkey and at the age of five moved to the nation of France, where his parent worked as a concierge. The evidence indicated that his parent was violent and that the defendant began smoking cannabis aged ten. When he was seventeen he was apprehended by police for drug trafficking and his parent forced him to leave the family house. He served time in prison for narcotics offenses in his early 20s and had worked as a laborer but had faced periods of being unhoused.

He was wed and had a child with a genetic condition, who he was the principal carer for, as his wife worked in a institution's dining hall. The testimony revealed his wife did not know he had frequent intimate relations outside their marriage. His legal team said this was his method of dealing with his difficult circumstances. The defendant had informed a court psychologist that annually he sought paid sex on his birthday. His attorneys stated to the court he had joint inflammation triggered by the pressure of the initial proceedings.