🔗 Share this article

A defendant was declared guilty on appeal of raping Gisele Pelicot after she was drugged unconscious by her husband – and received his prison sentence increased to ten years.

Retrial Proceedings

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

A jury of nine jurors, joined by three judges, found Dogan guilty on Thursday of sexually assaulting the victim in her residence in Provence in the early hours of 29 June 2019.

The testimony revealed that Dogan, a family man, connected with Gisèle Pelicot’s husband at the time, the husband, in an digital platform called “unbeknownst to her”, where Pelicot was looking for men to come to his home to assault his wife once he had rendered her unconscious into a deep sleep.

“We hope the jury will affirm that in this society, fundamental rights are also rights of women – that agreement is personal, not given by another,” stated the victim's lawyer, her legal representative. “Permission is received directly and not via a representative from a husband.”

Case History

Dominique Pelicot, one of the worst sexual predators in modern French history, was given a prison term to twenty years in prison last year for incapacitating his then wife and bringing in multiple perpetrators to rape her in her home in the Provence village of the village of Mazan over a duration of nearly ten years of their marriage.

Fifty other men were found culpable in a notable trial last year, and Dogan was the sole individual to challenge his conviction. He was originally given a sentence to nine years in prison, a sentence enhanced on Thursday to a decade.

The state's attorney, Dominique Sie, had argued he should serve 12 years, because he “completely denies to take any responsibility”.

Courtroom Details

The defendant had initially sent the husband graphic images and then traveled an hour from his village in Provence to rape Gisèle Pelicot, after telling his wife he was stepping out, the testimony revealed.

The ex-husband, who was transported from solitary confinement in prison to temporarily provide testimony at the hearing, informed the court that Dogan had been aware his wife had been “drugged” and he communicated to men by phone: “I’m looking for someone to violate my wife after I’ve sedated her without her consent.”

The trial became a focus point for a wider discussion on societal attitudes in society as Dogan continued to assert he was not guilty and had not engaged in violation, contending that because the victim's husband had welcomed him into the residence, his actions had been permissible.

The panel in the higher court was displayed recorded footage of the victim's unresponsive form, comatose and breathing heavily in a deep sleep, while a grinning the perpetrator committed rape repeatedly over a timeframe of what authorities reported was 3.5 hours. The presiding judge said she had been at peril of fatal outcome by suffocation. The state prosecution said there was no question that she had been unconscious and had not given permission.

Dogan's Claims

The defendant informed the court the videos were simply “sexual encounters” and disputed it was violation. He said what he did was “a sexual act”, not assault. He told the court: “I never raped.” He said the victim's husband had invited him to the residence, and therefore it was acceptable. He said he was deceived by the husband. “I attempted to cease,” the accused stated to the court. “I continued because he convinced me.”

Questioned if he wanted to make a last words to the court, the defendant said: “I did not intend to injure that woman.”

Pelicot's Words

The survivor, who was applauded upon departing the trial each day by crowds gathered to stand with her, told Dogan in court: “You do not grasp. When will you acknowledge you violated me? It is unlawful to assault an unconscious woman. At what point did I give you permission? Never.”

Gisèle Pelicot, seventy-two, became an symbol of resistance after she relinquished her right to privacy in the trial last year when she said: “Guilt ought to transfer.”

State's Argument

The prosecutor, speaking to the victim in court, said the defendant's failure to take responsibility showed that: “Guilt has not shifted. The public is perhaps in the process of that, perhaps propelled by the public consciousness resulting from the exposure of your ordeal.”

The prosecutor said Dogan’s claims of innocence showed how normalized violence was still prevalent in society as part of “outdated” forms of “male domination”. He said: “We need to change rape culture to a ethos of permission.”

The prosecutor told the defendant: “As long as you deny it, it’s not just a person, it’s an complete unpleasant social system that you are supporting.”

Personal History

Dogan was originated from Turkey and at the age of 5 moved to the nation of France, where his father worked as a concierge. The evidence indicated that his father was aggressive and that Dogan began consuming marijuana aged ten. When he was 17 he was caught by police for selling narcotics and his parent forced him to leave the residence. He spent time in prison for narcotics offenses in his early 20s and had worked as a construction worker but had experienced periods of living on the streets.

He was wed and had a son with special needs, who he was the principal carer for, as his wife worked in a school canteen. The court heard his spouse did not know he had regular sexual encounters beyond their marriage. His legal team said this was his way of coping with his stressful life. Dogan had stated to a evaluator that annually he sought commercial sex on his birthday. His legal representatives informed the court he had arthritis triggered by the anxiety of the initial proceedings.