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A defendant has been found guilty on appeal of sexually assaulting Gisele Pelicot following she was rendered comatose by her spouse – and was given his prison sentence extended to ten years.

Appeal Trial

Dogan, 44, an unemployed builder, who had appealed his initial guilty verdict last year, underwent a new trial this week at the higher court in Nîmes.

A panel of five men and four women, sitting with 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 testimony revealed that the accused, a married father, reached out to Gisèle Pelicot’s husband at the time, the husband, in an internet forum named “without her consent”, where Pelicot was looking for men to enter his residence to rape his wife after he had sedated her into a unconscious state.

“We hope the panel will say loud and clear that in this society, fundamental rights are also women’s rights – that consent is personal, not given by another,” said the victim's attorney, her legal representative. “Consent is secured directly and not by proxy from a spouse.”

Background

Dominique Pelicot, one of the worst sexual predators in recent French history, was handed a sentence to 20 years in prison last year for sedating his then wife and soliciting dozens of men to rape her in her home in the Provence village of the village of Mazan over a period of many years of their marriage.

Fifty other men were found culpable in a widely publicized trial last year, and Dogan was the single defendant to contest his sentence. He was initially handed a term to nine years in prison, a sentence increased on Thursday to 10 years.

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

Courtroom Details

The defendant had first sent the husband graphic images and then driven an hour from his town in Provence to assault Gisèle Pelicot, after notifying his wife he was going out, the court heard.

The ex-husband, who was transported from solitary confinement in prison to temporarily give evidence at the retrial, informed the court that Dogan had understood his wife had been “drugged” and he told to men by phone: “I seek someone to assault my wife after I’ve put her to sleep without her knowledge.”

The trial became a central issue for a broader debate on societal attitudes in society as Dogan continued to assert he was not guilty and had not perpetrated assault, arguing that because Gisèle Pelicot’s husband had welcomed him into the room, his conduct had been permissible.

The jury in the Nîmes appeals court was presented with visual proof of the victim's unresponsive form, comatose and snoring in a comatose state, while a smiling the perpetrator performed assault multiple times over a period of what investigators stated was three and a half hours. The judge said she had been at danger of fatal outcome by suffocation. The prosecution said there was absolute certainty that she had been unaware and had not consented.

Defendant's Statements

The defendant stated to the court the recordings were simply “sex scenes” and rejected it was rape. He said what he did was “a consensual activity”, not assault. He stated the court: “I did not commit rape.” He said Gisèle Pelicot’s husband had allowed him to the residence, and therefore it was permissible. He said he was influenced by the husband. “I wanted to stop,” Dogan told the court. “I continued because he convinced me.”

Inquired 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

Gisèle Pelicot, who was cheered upon leaving court each day by onlookers present to support her, said to Dogan in court: “You haven’t understood. When are you going to recognise you raped me? It’s a crime to assault an unconscious woman. When did I ever give you consent? Not once.”

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

Prosecutor's Remarks

Sie, turning to Gisèle Pelicot in court, said the defendant's refusal to take accountability showed that: “Shame has not yet changed sides. Society is perhaps in the process of that, perhaps driven by the public consciousness resulting from the revelation of your case.”

Sie said Dogan’s claims of blamelessness showed how societal tolerance was still common in society as part of “old-fashioned” forms of “gender-based power”. He said: “We need to change the culture of violence to a culture of consent.”

The prosecutor told the defendant: “While you deny it, it’s not just a individual, it’s an complete disturbing cultural framework that you are supporting.”

Personal History

Dogan was born in Turkey and at the age of 5 relocated to the nation of France, where his father worked as a concierge. The testimony revealed that his father was aggressive and that Dogan began using drugs aged ten. When Dogan was 17 he was caught by authorities for drug trafficking and his father evicted him the family house. He served time in prison for drug dealing in his young adulthood and had worked as a construction worker but had faced periods of homelessness.

He was wed and had a son with a genetic condition, who he was the primary guardian for, as his wife worked in a institution's dining hall. The testimony revealed his spouse did not know he had regular extramarital activities outside their marriage. His legal team said this was his method of dealing with his stressful life. Dogan had informed a evaluator that once a year he engaged in transactional encounters on his birthday. His legal representatives informed the court he had joint inflammation triggered by the pressure of the first trial.