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A defendant was declared guilty on retrial of raping Gisele Pelicot following she was drugged unconscious by her spouse – and was given his jail term increased to 10 years.

Higher Court Case

Dogan, 44, an unemployed builder, who had contested his first conviction last year, underwent a appeal hearing this week at the Nîmes court of appeal.

A panel of five men and four women, joined by three judges, ruled against Dogan on Thursday of raping Pelicot in her bedroom in the south of France in the morning of 29 June 2019.

The court heard that Dogan, a married father, reached out to the victim's spouse, Dominique Pelicot, in an internet forum called “without her consent”, where Pelicot was seeking men to visit his house to assault his wife after he had sedated her into a deep sleep.

“We hope the court will declare that in this society, human rights are also women’s rights – that agreement is individual, not delegated,” said Gisèle Pelicot’s lawyer, her legal representative. “Agreement is obtained personally and not through someone else from a spouse.”

Case History

The ex-husband, among the most severe sexual predators in recent French history, was sentenced to twenty years in prison last year for drugging his then wife and soliciting dozens of men to rape her in her home in the Provence village of Mazan over a duration of almost a decade of their marriage.

Dozens of additional defendants were found guilty in a widely publicized trial last year, and the appellant was the single defendant to contest his conviction. He was originally given a sentence to nine years in prison, a sentence increased on Thursday to 10 years.

The chief prosecutor, Dominique Sie, had contended he should serve 12 years, because he “completely denies to take any blame”.

Testimony and Proof

Dogan had initially sent the husband inappropriate pictures and then traveled an hour from his village in Provence to assault the victim, after notifying his wife he was leaving, the evidence indicated.

The ex-husband, who was transported from isolation in prison to temporarily give evidence at the hearing, stated to the court that the accused had understood his wife had been “incapacitated” and he told to men by phone: “I seek someone to violate my wife after I’ve put her to sleep unbeknownst to her.”

The courtroom became a key topic for a larger conversation on rape culture in society as Dogan continued to assert he was not guilty and had not committed rape, contending that because Gisèle Pelicot’s husband had welcomed him into the residence, his behavior had been permissible.

The jury in the higher court was presented with recorded footage of Gisèle Pelicot’s unresponsive form, sedated and snoring in a deep sleep, while a grinning Dogan engaged in violation on several occasions over a period of what police said was three and a half hours. The court official said she had been at peril of death by choking. The prosecution said there was no question that she had been unconscious and had not agreed.

Defendant's Statements

The defendant stated to the court the recordings were simply “intimate moments” and denied it was assault. He said what he did was “a consensual activity”, not assault. He told the court: “I never raped.” 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 wanted to stop,” Dogan told the court. “I continued because he reassured me.”

Questioned if he wanted to make a final statement to the court, the defendant said: “I did not intend to injure that woman.”

Survivor's Statement

Gisèle Pelicot, who was cheered upon departing the trial each day by onlookers assembled to back her, told Dogan in court: “You fail to comprehend. When will you acknowledge you raped me? It is unlawful to assault an incapacitated woman. At what point did I give you permission? Never.”

The victim, seventy-two, became an global icon after she relinquished her right to privacy in the trial last year when she said: “The shame should shift.”

State's Argument

Sie, turning to the victim in court, said the defendant's failure to take blame showed that: “Guilt has not shifted. The community is possibly in the midst of that, maybe driven by the public consciousness brought by the exposure of your ordeal.”

Sie said Dogan’s claims of non-guilt showed how rape culture was still common in society as part of “outdated” forms of “gender-based power”. He said: “We need to change the culture of violence to a ethos of permission.”

The prosecutor addressed the defendant: “As long as you refuse to admit it, it’s not just a woman, it’s an entire disturbing social system that you are endorsing.”

Personal History

The accused was originated from Turkey and at the age of five relocated to France, where his parent worked as a building manager. The testimony revealed that his father was aggressive and that the defendant began using drugs at the age of ten. When he was seventeen he was stopped by authorities for dealing drugs and his parent kicked him out of home. He was incarcerated in prison for narcotics offenses in his young adulthood and had worked as a builder but had undergone periods of being unhoused.

He was wed and had a son with special needs, who he was the primary guardian for, as his spouse worked in a institution's dining hall. The evidence showed his spouse did not know he had regular extramarital activities beyond their marriage. His legal team said this was his strategy for managing with his challenging existence. The defendant had informed a mental health expert that each year he looked for paid sex on his special day. His lawyers told the court he had joint inflammation caused by the stress of the first trial.