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A defendant has been found guilty on higher court review of raping Gisèle Pelicot following she was rendered comatose by her spouse – and received his incarceration period raised to 10 years.

Retrial Proceedings

The defendant, 44, an unemployed builder, who had challenged his initial guilty verdict last year, faced a retrial this week at the higher court in Nîmes.

A panel of four women and five men, sitting with three judges, convicted Dogan on Thursday of raping Pelicot in her home in southern France in the early hours of 29 June 2019.

The testimony revealed that the accused, a married father, reached out to Gisèle Pelicot’s husband at the time, the husband, in an digital platform called “without her consent”, where the husband was seeking men to come to his home to rape his wife once he had rendered her unconscious into a unconscious state.

We expect the jury will affirm that in this country, fundamental rights are also rights of women – that consent is personal, not given by another,” said the victim's attorney, her legal representative. “Permission is obtained personally and not via a representative from a spouse.”

Case History

Dominique Pelicot, a notorious sex offenders in modern French history, was given a prison term to 20 years in prison last year for sedating his spouse and inviting numerous individuals to sexually assault her in her home in the community of Mazan over a duration of nearly ten years of their marriage.

Dozens of additional defendants were found convicted in a notable trial last year, and the appellant was the single defendant to challenge his conviction. He was originally sentenced to 9 years in prison, a punishment raised on Thursday to a decade.

The state's attorney, Dominique Sie, had contended he should serve twelve years, because he “absolutely refuses to take any responsibility”.

Testimony and Proof

Dogan had first sent Dominique Pelicot inappropriate pictures and then traveled an hour from his residence in the region to assault Gisèle Pelicot, after informing his wife he was going out, the evidence indicated.

The ex-husband, who was brought from solitary confinement in prison to briefly give evidence at the appeal trial, stated to the court that the accused had known his wife had been “incapacitated” and he told to men by phone: “I want someone to assault my wife after I’ve sedated her without her knowledge.”

The trial became a key topic for a larger conversation on societal attitudes in society as Dogan continued to say he was blameless and had not perpetrated assault, stating that because Gisèle Pelicot’s husband had welcomed him into the room, his behavior had been permissible.

The jury in the higher court was shown visual proof of Gisèle Pelicot’s limp body, comatose and breathing heavily in a unconscious condition, while a grinning the perpetrator performed assault on several occasions over a timeframe of what authorities reported was 3.5 hours. The judge said she had been at risk of death by asphyxiation. The state's case said there was no doubt that she had been unconscious and had not given permission.

Accused's Testimony

Dogan stated to the court the videos were simply “sexual encounters” and rejected it was violation. He said what he did was “a consensual activity”, not assault. He stated the court: “I never raped.” He said Gisèle Pelicot’s husband had invited him to the residence, and therefore it was acceptable. He said he was influenced by the husband. “I tried to halt,” the accused informed the court. “I carried on because he convinced me.”

Inquired if he wanted to make a closing remarks to the court, the defendant said: “I had no desire to injure that lady.”

Survivor's Statement

The victim, who was cheered upon leaving court each day by supporters gathered to support her, addressed Dogan in court: “You fail to comprehend. When will you admit you assaulted me? It’s a crime to assault an unaware woman. When did I ever give you consent? At no time.”

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.”

Prosecutor's Remarks

The prosecutor, speaking to the victim in court, said Dogan’s failure to take blame showed that: “Shame has not yet changed sides. The public is possibly in the midst of that, maybe driven by the public consciousness spurred by the exposure of your case.”

The prosecutor said Dogan’s claims of innocence showed how rape culture was still prevalent in society as part of “outdated” forms of “male domination”. He said: “We need to change the culture of violence to a ethos of permission.”

Sie told the defendant: “For as much as you refuse to admit it, it’s not just a woman, it’s an complete disturbing societal structure that you are endorsing.”

Personal History

The accused was originated from Turkey and at the age of 5 relocated to the nation of France, where his parent worked as a building manager. The court heard that his father was violent and that Dogan began consuming marijuana at the age of 10. When Dogan was seventeen he was caught by police for selling narcotics and his parent forced him to leave the residence. He served time in prison for narcotics offenses in his early 20s and had worked as a builder but had experienced periods of being unhoused.

He was wed and had a son with Down’s syndrome, who he was the principal carer for, as his spouse worked in a educational cafeteria. The court heard his spouse did not know he had frequent intimate relations outside their union. His defence said this was his strategy for managing with his stressful life. The defendant had told a evaluator that each year he engaged in commercial sex on his special day. His lawyers informed the court he had joint inflammation caused by the anxiety of the first trial.