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A man has been found guilty on higher court review of raping Gisele Pelicot following she was sedated by her husband – and received his jail term extended to ten years.

Retrial Proceedings

The defendant, forty-four, an out-of-work construction worker, who had appealed 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 Pelicot in her residence in Provence in the morning of June 29, 2019.

The evidence showed that Dogan, a married father, reached out to Gisèle Pelicot’s spouse, Dominique Pelicot, in an digital platform named “without her consent”, where Pelicot was looking for men to enter his residence to assault his wife once he had drugged her into a comatose state.

We expect the jury will say loud and clear that in this country, human rights are also rights of women – that consent is personal, not delegated,” stated the victim's lawyer, Antoine Camus. “Permission is obtained directly and not by proxy from a spouse.”

Case History

Dominique Pelicot, a notorious sexual predators in France's contemporary records, was given a prison term to two decades in prison last year for drugging his then wife and soliciting multiple perpetrators to rape her in her home in the Provence village of the village of Mazan over a duration of almost a decade of their marriage.

Numerous other individuals were found convicted in a high-profile trial last year, and the appellant was the sole individual to appeal against his sentence. He was originally handed a term to nine years in prison, a punishment raised on Thursday to 10 years.

The lead state prosecutor, the prosecutor, had stated he should serve 12 years, because he “completely denies to take any accountability”.

Testimony and Proof

Dogan had initially sent the husband inappropriate pictures and then traveled an hour from his village in the region to assault the victim, after telling his wife he was going out, the court heard.

Pelicot, who was transported from solitary confinement in prison to briefly provide testimony at the retrial, stated to the court that the accused had understood his wife had been “sedated” and he communicated to men by phone: “I’m looking for someone to assault my wife after I’ve put her to sleep without her consent.”

The trial became a central issue for a broader debate on rape culture in society as Dogan continued to say he was blameless and had not perpetrated assault, contending that because the victim's husband had invited him into the bedroom, his actions had been permissible.

The panel in the higher court was shown visual proof of Gisèle Pelicot’s unconscious figure, comatose and snoring in a deep sleep, while a grinning Dogan committed rape multiple times over a duration of what authorities reported was three and a half hours. The presiding judge said she had been at risk of death by choking. The state's case said there was absolute certainty that she had been unconscious and had not given permission.

Defendant's Statements

Dogan stated to the court the videos were simply “intimate moments” and rejected it was violation. He said what he did was “a sexual act”, not assault. He told the court: “I never raped.” He said Gisèle Pelicot’s husband had allowed him to the residence, and therefore it was permissible. He said he was deceived by the husband. “I tried to halt,” Dogan told the court. “I continued because he reassured me.”

Questioned if he wanted to make a final statement to the court, Dogan said: “I did not intend to harm that lady.”

Survivor's Statement

Gisèle Pelicot, who was supported upon exiting the courtroom each day by crowds gathered to stand with her, told Dogan in court: “You do not grasp. When will you admit you raped me? It is unlawful to assault an incapacitated woman. At what point did I give you permission? Not once.”

Gisèle Pelicot, 72, 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, addressing Gisèle Pelicot in court, said the defendant's unwillingness to take blame showed that: “The shame remains. Society is maybe in the process of that, possibly motivated by the collective awareness spurred by the publication of your ordeal.”

The prosecutor said the defendant's claims of non-guilt showed how societal tolerance was still widespread in society as part of “old-fashioned” forms of “gender-based power”. He said: “It is imperative to change the culture of violence to a ethos of permission.”

The prosecutor told the defendant: “For as much as you refuse to admit it, it’s not just a individual, it’s an complete sordid cultural framework that you are upholding.”

Biographical Details

The accused was originated from Turkey and at the age of five came to France, where his father worked as a concierge. The court heard that his father was abusive and that the defendant began smoking cannabis aged 10. When he was seventeen he was stopped by police for selling narcotics and his father forced him to leave of home. He served time in prison for narcotics offenses in his young adulthood and had worked as a builder but had experienced periods of living on the streets.

He was married and had a child with a genetic condition, who he was the principal carer for, as his spouse worked in a institution's dining hall. The evidence showed his wife did not know he had frequent intimate relations beyond their marriage. His legal team said this was his strategy for managing with his stressful life. The defendant had told a court psychologist that annually he looked for commercial sex on his birthday. His lawyers told the court he had arthritis caused by the pressure of the original case.