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A defendant was declared guilty on higher court review of sexually assaulting Gisèle Pelicot after she was sedated by her spouse – and was given his prison sentence increased to a decade.

Appeal Trial

Husamettin Dogan, forty-four, 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 four women and five men, joined by three judges, convicted Dogan on Thursday of sexually assaulting Pelicot in her residence in the south of France in the early hours of June 29, 2019.

The testimony revealed that the accused, a married father, connected with Gisèle Pelicot’s husband at the time, Dominique Pelicot, in an online chatroom named “without her knowledge”, where the husband was seeking men to enter his residence to rape his wife after he had drugged her into a comatose state.

We expect the jury will declare that in this country, human rights are also women’s rights – that permission is individual, not transferred,” declared the victim's lawyer, Antoine Camus. “Permission is received personally and not via a representative from a spouse.”

Case History

The ex-husband, among the most severe sex offenders in recent French history, was sentenced to 20 years in prison last year for sedating his spouse and bringing in dozens of men to sexually assault her in her home in the Provence village of the village of Mazan over a duration of many years of their marriage.

Fifty other men were found culpable in a notable trial last year, and Dogan was the sole individual to appeal against his sentence. He was first given a sentence to nine years in prison, a punishment increased on Thursday to 10 years.

The lead state prosecutor, the prosecutor, had argued he should serve 12 years, because he “absolutely refuses to take any blame”.

Testimony and Proof

The defendant had initially sent the husband graphic images and then driven an hour from his town in the region to rape Gisèle Pelicot, after telling his wife he was stepping out, the court heard.

Pelicot, who was transported from segregation in prison to briefly give evidence at the retrial, stated to the court that Dogan had understood his wife had been “drugged” and he communicated to men by phone: “I seek someone to assault my wife after I’ve put her to sleep without her consent.”

The courtroom became a key topic for a larger conversation on rape culture in society as the defendant continued to say he was innocent and had not perpetrated assault, contending that because Gisèle Pelicot’s husband had welcomed him into the bedroom, his actions had been justifiable.

The panel in the higher court was shown recorded footage of the victim's unresponsive form, unconscious and snoring in a unconscious condition, while a smiling the perpetrator committed rape on several occasions over a timeframe of what investigators stated was several hours. The court official said she had been at danger of death by asphyxiation. The prosecution said there was no doubt that she had been incapacitated and had not given permission.

Accused's Testimony

The defendant told the court the footage were simply “intimate moments” and rejected it was violation. He said what he did was “an intimate behavior”, not assault. He declared the court: “I never raped.” He said the victim's husband had allowed him to the residence, and therefore it was OK. He said he was deceived by Dominique Pelicot. “I wanted to stop,” the accused stated to 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 harm that lady.”

Pelicot's Words

Gisèle Pelicot, who was supported upon leaving court each day by crowds present to stand with her, told the defendant in court: “You fail to comprehend. When will you admit you violated me? It is unlawful to rape an incapacitated woman. How could I have give you consent? Never.”

The victim, 72, became an global icon after she gave up her right to anonymity in the trial last year when she said: “The shame should shift.”

Prosecutor's Remarks

The prosecutor, turning to the victim in court, said the defendant's refusal to take accountability showed that: “Guilt has not shifted. The community is maybe in the process of that, possibly driven by the public consciousness spurred by the exposure of your ordeal.”

Sie said the defendant's claims of blamelessness showed how normalized violence was still prevalent in society as part of “outdated” forms of “patriarchal control”. He said: “We need to change rape culture to a society based on agreement.”

Sie told the defendant: “While you deny it, it’s not just a person, it’s an whole sordid societal structure that you are endorsing.”

Defendant's Background

Dogan was originated from Turkey and at the age of five moved to France, where his father worked as a building manager. The testimony revealed that his father was violent and that the defendant began using drugs aged ten. When he was 17 he was caught by authorities for drug trafficking and his parent evicted him the residence. He served time in prison for narcotics offenses in his twenties and had worked as a builder but had undergone periods of homelessness.

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 testimony revealed his wife did not know he had regular extramarital activities beyond their union. His defence said this was his way of coping with his stressful life. Dogan had stated to a court psychologist that annually he sought paid sex on his special day. His lawyers told the court he had a medical condition triggered by the pressure of the first trial.