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An individual was convicted on appeal of raping Gisèle Pelicot following she was drugged unconscious by her then-husband – and has had his prison sentence increased to ten years.

Appeal Trial

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

A panel of four women and five men, accompanied by three judges, convicted Dogan on Thursday of sexually assaulting Pelicot in her bedroom in the south of France in the early hours of 29 June 2019.

The court heard that the accused, a married father, reached out to Gisèle Pelicot’s spouse, the husband, in an online chatroom named “without her consent”, where Pelicot was looking for men to visit his house to rape his wife after he had sedated her into a comatose state.

We expect the court will affirm that in this society, human rights are also women’s rights – that agreement is personal, not delegated,” stated the victim's lawyer, her legal representative. “Permission is secured personally and not via a representative from a husband.”

Background

Dominique Pelicot, among the most severe sex offenders in France's contemporary records, was sentenced to two decades in prison last year for drugging his then wife and inviting numerous individuals to rape her in her home in the Provence village of Mazan over a span of almost a decade of their marriage.

Fifty other men were found culpable in a widely publicized trial last year, and the appellant was the sole individual to contest his verdict. He was first sentenced to nine years in prison, a punishment raised on Thursday to a decade.

The lead state prosecutor, Dominique Sie, had contended he should serve 12 years, because he “absolutely refuses to take any accountability”.

Evidence Presented

The defendant had first sent Dominique Pelicot inappropriate pictures and then traveled an hour from his village in Provence to rape the victim, after notifying his wife he was stepping out, the court heard.

The ex-husband, who was brought from solitary confinement in prison to temporarily testify at the appeal trial, informed the court that the accused had been aware his wife had been “drugged” and he told to men by phone: “I seek someone to violate my wife after I’ve rendered her unconscious unbeknownst to her.”

The trial became a central issue for a larger conversation on sexual violence norms in society as Dogan continued to claim he was innocent and had not perpetrated assault, stating that because the victim's husband had welcomed him into the room, his actions had been permissible.

The panel in the Nîmes appeals court was displayed recorded footage of the victim's limp body, sedated and breathing heavily in a comatose state, while a grinning the perpetrator committed rape multiple times over a period of what investigators stated was 3.5 hours. The presiding judge said she had been at danger of death by asphyxiation. The state's case said there was no question that she had been unaware and had not consented.

Accused's Testimony

The defendant informed the court the footage were simply “sexual encounters” and rejected it was violation. He said what he did was “an intimate behavior”, not rape. He told the court: “I did not commit rape.” He said the victim's husband had brought him to the house, and therefore it was OK. He said he was deceived by Dominique Pelicot. “I tried to halt,” Dogan informed the court. “I proceeded because he reassured me.”

Asked if he wanted to make a closing remarks to the court, Dogan said: “I had no desire to injure that individual.”

Survivor's Statement

The victim, who was cheered upon exiting the courtroom each day by supporters present to stand with her, said to the defendant in court: “You do not grasp. When will you admit you assaulted me? It’s a crime to assault an unaware woman. When did I ever give you permission? At no time.”

The victim, 72, became an international feminist hero after she gave up her right to confidentiality in the trial last year when she said: “Shame must change sides.”

Prosecutor's Remarks

The prosecutor, addressing Gisèle Pelicot in court, said the defendant's refusal to take blame showed that: “Guilt has not shifted. Society is maybe in the course of that, perhaps motivated by the collective awareness spurred by the publication of your ordeal.”

The prosecutor said the defendant's claims of innocence showed how societal tolerance was still prevalent in society as part of “outdated” forms of “male domination”. He said: “We need to change the culture of violence to a society based on agreement.”

The prosecutor told Dogan: “For as much as you refuse to admit it, it’s not just a individual, it’s an entire disturbing social system that you are upholding.”

Personal History

Dogan was originated from Turkey and at the age of 5 came to the nation of France, where his father worked as a building manager. The evidence indicated that his parent was violent and that Dogan began smoking cannabis aged 10. When he was seventeen he was stopped by authorities for selling narcotics and his parent forced him to leave of home. He served time in prison for trafficking in his young adulthood and had worked as a builder but had faced periods of living on the streets.

He was married and had a son with a genetic condition, who he was the principal carer for, as his wife worked in a institution's dining hall. The evidence showed his spouse did not know he had frequent sexual encounters outside their union. His legal team said this was his method of dealing with his difficult circumstances. Dogan had told a court psychologist that annually he sought transactional encounters on his birthday. His lawyers stated to the court he had arthritis triggered by the pressure of the first trial.