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A defendant was declared guilty on higher court review of sexually assaulting Gisele Pelicot after she was sedated by her then-husband – and was given his jail term extended to 10 years.

Higher Court Case

Dogan, forty-four, an out-of-work construction worker, who had contested his first conviction last year, faced a appeal hearing this week at the appeals court in Nîmes.

A panel of five men and four women, joined by three judges, ruled against Dogan on Thursday of sexually assaulting the victim in her home in the south of France in the early hours of 29 June 2019.

The court heard that Dogan, a family man, connected with Gisèle Pelicot’s spouse, Dominique Pelicot, in an internet forum titled “unbeknownst to her”, where the husband was seeking men to visit his house to assault his wife after he had drugged her into a deep sleep.

We expect the court will say loud and clear that in this nation, fundamental rights are also rights of women – that permission is personal, not transferred,” stated Gisèle Pelicot’s attorney, Antoine Camus. “Consent is secured personally and not by proxy from a spouse.”

Context

The ex-husband, a notorious sexual predators in recent French history, was given a prison term to twenty years in prison last year for incapacitating his wife at the time and bringing in dozens of men to rape her in her home in the Provence village of Mazan over a span of almost a decade of their union.

Fifty other men were found culpable in a high-profile trial last year, and the appellant was the single defendant to contest his verdict. He was first given a sentence to 9 years in prison, a punishment enhanced on Thursday to a decade.

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

Testimony and Proof

Dogan had initially sent Dominique Pelicot inappropriate pictures and then traveled an hour from his town in the region to assault the victim, after informing his wife he was stepping out, the testimony revealed.

Pelicot, who was brought from isolation in prison to briefly give evidence at the appeal trial, told the court that the accused had known his wife had been “incapacitated” and he told to men by phone: “I’m looking for someone to violate my wife after I’ve rendered her unconscious unbeknownst to her.”

The proceedings became a central issue for a broader debate on sexual violence norms in society as Dogan continued to claim he was blameless and had not engaged in violation, stating that because Gisèle Pelicot’s husband had allowed him into the bedroom, his conduct had been permissible.

The panel in the higher court was shown visual proof of Gisèle Pelicot’s unconscious figure, comatose and snoring in a deep sleep, while a smiling the perpetrator engaged in violation multiple times over a period of what authorities reported was three and a half hours. The court official said she had been at risk of death by suffocation. The prosecution said there was no question that she had been unaware and had not consented.

Defendant's Statements

The defendant stated to the court the footage were simply “sexual encounters” and rejected it was assault. He said what he did was “an intimate behavior”, not rape. He told the court: “I did not commit rape.” He said Gisèle Pelicot’s husband had brought him to the home, and therefore it was acceptable. He said he was manipulated by the husband. “I tried to halt,” the accused told the court. “I carried on because he reassured me.”

Inquired if he wanted to make a closing remarks to the court, the defendant said: “I never wanted to hurt that individual.”

Pelicot's Words

The victim, who was applauded upon leaving court each day by crowds present to support her, said to the defendant in court: “You haven’t understood. When are you going to recognise you violated me? It is illegal to rape an unaware woman. When did I ever give you permission? Not once.”

Gisèle Pelicot, 72, became an symbol of resistance after she waived her right to confidentiality in the trial last year when she said: “Guilt ought to transfer.”

State's Argument

The prosecutor, turning to Gisèle Pelicot in court, said Dogan’s failure to take blame showed that: “Guilt has not shifted. Society is maybe in the midst of that, perhaps driven by the societal understanding spurred by the revelation of your case.”

The prosecutor said the defendant's claims of non-guilt showed how rape culture was still common in society as part of “archaic” forms of “gender-based power”. He said: “We need to change rape culture to a ethos of permission.”

The prosecutor said to Dogan: “As long as you reject it, it’s not just a individual, it’s an entire sordid cultural framework that you are endorsing.”

Personal History

The accused was originated from the country of Turkey and at the age of five relocated to France, where his father worked as a building manager. The testimony revealed that his father was aggressive and that Dogan began consuming marijuana at the age of 10. When he was 17 he was apprehended by authorities for selling narcotics and his parent evicted him the residence. He served time in prison for trafficking in his young adulthood and had worked as a builder but had experienced periods of homelessness.

He was wed and had a son with Down’s syndrome, who he was the main caregiver for, as his spouse worked in a institution's dining hall. The testimony revealed his wife did not know he had frequent sexual encounters beyond their union. His defence said this was his method of dealing with his challenging existence. The defendant had informed a evaluator that each year he engaged in transactional encounters on his birthday. His attorneys informed the court he had arthritis resulting from the stress of the first trial.