🔗 Share this article

A man has been found guilty on appeal of sexually assaulting Gisele Pelicot following she was sedated by her then-husband – and received his jail term raised to 10 years.

Higher Court Case

The defendant, forty-four, an out-of-work construction worker, who had appealed his first conviction last year, underwent a retrial this week at the appeals court in Nîmes.

A jury of five men and four women, accompanied by three judges, ruled against Dogan on Thursday of raping Pelicot in her bedroom in Provence in the early hours of June 29, 2019.

The court heard that Dogan, a married father, made contact with Gisèle Pelicot’s then husband, the husband, in an online chatroom named “unbeknownst to her”, where the husband was seeking men to enter his residence to assault his wife after he had sedated her into a comatose state.

We trust the panel will affirm that in this nation, fundamental rights are also rights of women – that permission is personal, not given by another,” said the victim's attorney, her legal representative. “Permission is obtained directly and not through someone else from a husband.”

Case History

Dominique Pelicot, among the most severe sexual predators in France's contemporary records, was given a prison term to two decades in prison last year for sedating his wife at the time and soliciting multiple perpetrators to rape her in her home in the town of the village of Mazan over a duration of many years of their marriage.

Dozens of additional defendants were found culpable in a notable trial last year, and the appellant was the single defendant to appeal against his verdict. He was first handed a term to 9 years in prison, a punishment increased on Thursday to ten years.

The chief prosecutor, Dominique Sie, had stated he should serve twelve years, because he “completely denies to take any accountability”.

Testimony and Proof

Dogan had initially sent the husband sexually explicit photos and then driven an hour from his residence in the region to rape the victim, after telling his wife he was leaving, the testimony revealed.

The ex-husband, who was brought from segregation in prison to briefly provide testimony at the retrial, told the court that Dogan had been aware his wife had been “drugged” and he told to men by phone: “I’m looking for someone to assault my wife after I’ve put her to sleep without her knowledge.”

The proceedings became a central issue for a wider discussion on rape culture in society as the defendant continued to say he was innocent and had not perpetrated assault, contending that because the victim's husband had welcomed him into the bedroom, his conduct had been justifiable.

The panel in the Nîmes appeals court was shown video evidence of the victim's unresponsive form, comatose and snoring in a comatose state, while a grinning Dogan performed assault multiple times over a timeframe of what police said was 3.5 hours. The judge said she had been at risk of death by asphyxiation. The state's case said there was no question that she had been unaware and had not given permission.

Dogan's Claims

The defendant informed the court the videos were simply “sexual encounters” and rejected it was rape. He said what he did was “a consensual activity”, not rape. He stated the court: “I am innocent of assault.” He said the victim's husband had brought him to the house, and therefore it was acceptable. He said he was deceived by the husband. “I tried to halt,” the accused told the court. “I carried on because he persuaded me.”

Inquired if he wanted to make a closing remarks to the court, the defendant said: “I had no desire to harm that woman.”

Victim's Response

The victim, who was applauded upon exiting the courtroom each day by supporters present to support her, told Dogan in court: “You do not grasp. When are you going to recognise you violated me? It’s a crime to rape an incapacitated woman. How could I have give you permission? Never.”

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

Prosecutor's Remarks

The prosecutor, turning to Gisèle Pelicot in court, said the defendant's refusal to take responsibility showed that: “Shame has not yet changed sides. The community is perhaps in the process of that, maybe motivated by the societal understanding resulting from the publication of your ordeal.”

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

The prosecutor told Dogan: “While you refuse to admit it, it’s not just a individual, it’s an whole sordid societal structure that you are supporting.”

Personal History

Dogan was originated from the country of Turkey and at the age of five moved to France, where his parent worked as a building manager. The testimony revealed that his parent was abusive and that Dogan began consuming marijuana aged ten. When he was 17 he was apprehended by authorities for dealing drugs and his parent forced him to leave the family house. He was incarcerated in prison for trafficking in his early 20s and had worked as a laborer but had experienced periods of living on the streets.

He was wed and had a child with Down’s syndrome, who he was the principal carer for, as his spouse worked in a educational cafeteria. The evidence showed his spouse did not know he had repeated sexual encounters beyond their marriage. His defence said this was his strategy for managing with his challenging existence. The defendant had told a court psychologist that annually he engaged in transactional encounters on his birthday. His legal representatives informed the court he had arthritis caused by the anxiety of the initial proceedings.