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An individual was declared guilty on appeal of sexually assaulting Gisele Pelicot after she was sedated by her then-husband – and has had his jail term raised to ten years.

Higher Court Case

The defendant, 44, an unemployed builder, who had contested his first conviction last year, underwent a new trial this week at the higher court in Nîmes.

A panel of nine jurors, joined by three judges, ruled against Dogan on Thursday of sexually assaulting the victim in her residence in southern France in the morning of June 29, 2019.

The evidence showed that Dogan, a family man, reached out to the victim's then husband, the husband, in an online chatroom named “without her knowledge”, where Pelicot was seeking men to visit his house to rape his wife after he had rendered her unconscious into a deep sleep.

“We hope the panel will say loud and clear that in this country, fundamental rights are also women’s rights – that consent is personal, not delegated,” said Gisèle Pelicot’s lawyer, Antoine Camus. “Consent is secured directly and not through someone else from a spouse.”

Context

The husband, a notorious sexual predators in modern French history, was handed a sentence to 20 years in prison last year for drugging his then wife and inviting multiple perpetrators to sexually assault her in her home in the town of Mazan over a period of almost a decade of their marriage.

Dozens of additional defendants were found guilty in a high-profile trial last year, and the appellant was the single defendant to challenge his sentence. He was first given a sentence to nine years in prison, a sentence raised on Thursday to 10 years.

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

Testimony and Proof

Dogan had first sent the husband sexually explicit photos and then driven an hour from his town in Provence to assault the victim, after informing his wife he was stepping out, the evidence indicated.

Pelicot, who was transported from segregation in prison to briefly testify at the appeal trial, stated to the court that the accused had been aware his wife had been “drugged” and he communicated to men by phone: “I’m looking for someone to assault my wife after I’ve rendered her unconscious unbeknownst to her.”

The trial became a focus point for a larger conversation on sexual violence norms in society as Dogan continued to assert he was not guilty and had not committed rape, arguing that because Gisèle Pelicot’s husband had invited him into the residence, his conduct had been justifiable.

The jury in the Nîmes appeals court was displayed video evidence of the victim's unconscious figure, sedated and snoring in a comatose state, while a grinning Dogan engaged in violation repeatedly over a timeframe of what authorities reported was three and a half hours. The judge said she had been at danger of fatal outcome by suffocation. The state prosecution said there was absolute certainty that she had been unconscious and had not given permission.

Defendant's Statements

The defendant stated to the court the videos were simply “intimate moments” and rejected it was assault. He said what he did was “an intimate behavior”, not assault. He told the court: “I am innocent of assault.” He said the victim's husband had allowed him to the home, and therefore it was permissible. He said he was manipulated by the husband. “I tried to halt,” Dogan informed the court. “I carried on because he persuaded me.”

Asked if he wanted to make a last words to the court, Dogan said: “I had no desire to injure that woman.”

Survivor's Statement

The survivor, who was cheered upon departing the trial each day by onlookers assembled to support her, told Dogan in court: “You fail to comprehend. When will you admit you violated me? It’s a crime to rape an unaware woman. How could I have give you consent? Never.”

The victim, seventy-two, became an symbol of resistance after she waived her right to confidentiality in the trial last year when she said: “The shame should shift.”

Legal Commentary

Sie, speaking to Gisèle Pelicot in court, said the defendant's failure to take responsibility showed that: “Shame has not yet changed sides. The community is possibly in the course of that, maybe propelled by the public consciousness brought by the exposure of your ordeal.”

The prosecutor said Dogan’s claims of non-guilt showed how societal tolerance was still prevalent in society as part of “archaic” forms of “gender-based power”. He said: “We need to change rape culture to a society based on agreement.”

The prosecutor addressed Dogan: “As long as you deny it, it’s not just a woman, it’s an whole sordid societal structure that you are upholding.”

Biographical Details

Dogan was originated from Turkey and at the age of five relocated to the nation of France, where his parent worked as a concierge. The court heard that his parent was abusive and that the defendant began smoking cannabis at the age of ten. When he was 17 he was apprehended by police for drug trafficking and his father kicked him out of home. He served time in prison for drug dealing in his twenties and had worked as a laborer but had undergone periods of living on the streets.

He was married and had a son with Down’s syndrome, who he was the principal carer for, as his wife worked in a school canteen. The court heard his wife did not know he had regular intimate relations beyond their union. His defence said this was his strategy for managing with his challenging existence. Dogan had informed a evaluator that each year he sought paid sex on his birthday. His legal representatives stated to the court he had joint inflammation caused by the stress of the first trial.