🔗 Share this article

A man was declared guilty on retrial of raping Gisèle Pelicot after she was rendered comatose by her husband – and received his jail term extended to 10 years.

Retrial Proceedings

Dogan, forty-four, an unemployed builder, who had challenged his initial guilty verdict last year, faced a appeal hearing this week at the Nîmes court of appeal.

A jury of five men and four women, accompanied by three judges, convicted Dogan on Thursday of raping Pelicot in her bedroom in the south of France in the morning of June 29, 2019.

The testimony revealed that Dogan, a married father, connected with the victim's then husband, Dominique Pelicot, in an internet forum called “without her knowledge”, where Pelicot was seeking men to visit his house to assault his wife after he had drugged her into a deep sleep.

We expect the jury will declare that in this society, fundamental rights are also rights of women – that agreement is individual, not given by another,” declared Gisèle Pelicot’s attorney, her legal representative. “Consent is secured directly and not through someone else from a husband.”

Context

The husband, among the most severe sexual predators in France's contemporary records, was given a prison term to two decades in prison last year for incapacitating his wife at the time and bringing in multiple perpetrators to sexually assault her in her home in the town of Mazan over a duration of almost a decade of their union.

Numerous other individuals were found culpable in a notable trial last year, and the appellant was the single defendant to challenge his sentence. He was initially handed a term to nine years in prison, a sentence increased on Thursday to ten years.

The state's attorney, the prosecutor, had stated he should serve 12 years, because he “stubbornly rejects to take any responsibility”.

Testimony and Proof

Dogan had initially sent the husband graphic images and then driven an hour from his residence in Provence to rape the victim, after notifying his wife he was stepping out, the court heard.

Pelicot, who was transported from segregation in prison to briefly give evidence at the appeal trial, told the court that Dogan had known his wife had been “drugged” and he said to men by phone: “I seek someone to assault my wife after I’ve rendered her unconscious unbeknownst to her.”

The trial became a central issue for a larger conversation on societal attitudes in society as Dogan continued to say he was innocent and had not committed rape, contending that because the victim's husband had allowed him into the residence, his actions had been acceptable.

The panel in the Nîmes appeals court was shown recorded footage of Gisèle Pelicot’s unresponsive form, unconscious and breathing heavily in a comatose state, while a smiling the perpetrator engaged in violation on several occasions over a period of what investigators stated was 3.5 hours. The judge said she had been at danger of fatal outcome by choking. The prosecution said there was absolute certainty that she had been unconscious and had not given permission.

Dogan's Claims

Dogan told the court the footage were simply “sex scenes” and disputed it was violation. 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 invited him to the house, and therefore it was acceptable. He said he was influenced by the husband. “I wanted to stop,” Dogan stated to the court. “I carried on because he convinced me.”

Questioned if he wanted to make a closing remarks to the court, Dogan said: “I did not intend to hurt that individual.”

Victim's Response

The survivor, who was applauded upon exiting the courtroom each day by crowds gathered to support her, addressed Dogan in court: “You haven’t understood. When will you admit you assaulted me? It is illegal to assault an unaware woman. At what point did I give you permission? At no time.”

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

Prosecutor's Remarks

Sie, speaking to Gisèle Pelicot in court, said the defendant's refusal to take blame showed that: “The shame remains. Society is perhaps in the midst of that, possibly driven by the collective awareness resulting from the revelation of your ordeal.”

Sie said the defendant's claims of innocence showed how societal tolerance was still widespread 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 addressed the defendant: “For as much as you reject it, it’s not just a woman, it’s an complete sordid social system that you are endorsing.”

Biographical Details

Dogan was originated from the country of Turkey and at the age of five came to the nation of France, where his father worked as a building manager. The evidence indicated that his father was aggressive and that the defendant began smoking cannabis at the age of 10. When he was 17 he was caught by authorities for dealing drugs and his father evicted him the family house. He was incarcerated in prison for drug dealing in his early 20s and had worked as a construction worker but had undergone periods of living on the streets.

He was wed and had a child with Down’s syndrome, who he was the main caregiver for, as his wife worked in a educational cafeteria. The testimony revealed his wife did not know he had frequent intimate relations outside their marriage. His defence said this was his way of coping with his difficult circumstances. Dogan had told a mental health expert that each year he sought commercial sex on his birthday. His attorneys stated to the court he had arthritis triggered by the pressure of the initial proceedings.