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An individual has been found guilty on appeal of raping Gisele Pelicot following she was drugged unconscious by her spouse – and received his prison sentence extended to 10 years.

Higher Court Case

Husamettin Dogan, 44, an unemployed builder, who had contested his first conviction last year, underwent a retrial this week at the appeals court in Nîmes.

A panel of five men and four women, joined by three judges, ruled against Dogan on Thursday of raping Pelicot in her residence in Provence in the early hours of June 29, 2019.

The evidence showed that Dogan, a family man, reached out to Gisèle Pelicot’s then husband, the husband, in an online chatroom named “unbeknownst to her”, where Pelicot was recruiting men to visit his house to assault his wife after he had rendered her unconscious into a comatose state.

We trust the court will affirm that in this society, human rights are also rights of women – that agreement is individual, not given by another,” stated the victim's lawyer, her legal representative. “Consent is obtained personally and not via a representative from a husband.”

Background

The husband, one of the worst sexual predators in France's contemporary records, was given a prison term to two decades in prison last year for drugging his wife at the time and inviting numerous individuals to sexually assault her in her home in the Provence village of Mazan over a period of many years of their union.

Dozens of additional defendants were found culpable in a widely publicized trial last year, and the appellant was the sole individual to appeal against his conviction. He was first handed a term to nine years in prison, a penalty increased on Thursday to ten years.

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

Evidence Presented

Dogan had first sent the husband inappropriate pictures and then driven an hour from his residence in the region to rape Gisèle Pelicot, after telling his wife he was leaving, the court heard.

The ex-husband, who was brought from solitary confinement in prison to temporarily provide testimony at the appeal trial, stated to the court that the accused had been aware his wife had been “incapacitated” and he said to men by phone: “I want someone to abuse my wife after I’ve rendered her unconscious unbeknownst to her.”

The proceedings became a key topic for a wider discussion on sexual violence norms in society as Dogan continued to claim he was not guilty and had not engaged in violation, contending that because the victim's husband had allowed him into the residence, his conduct had been justifiable.

The panel in the Nîmes appeals court was displayed video evidence of Gisèle Pelicot’s unconscious figure, unconscious and breathing heavily in a comatose state, while a grinning the perpetrator engaged in violation multiple times over a timeframe of what police said was several hours. The judge said she had been at peril of death by suffocation. The state prosecution said there was no doubt that she had been unconscious and had not given permission.

Dogan's Claims

Dogan told the court the footage were simply “intimate moments” and rejected it was rape. 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 acceptable. He said he was manipulated by the husband. “I wanted to stop,” Dogan stated to the court. “I continued because he persuaded me.”

Asked if he wanted to make a last words to the court, the defendant said: “I did not intend to hurt that lady.”

Victim's Response

Gisèle Pelicot, who was cheered upon exiting the courtroom each day by supporters gathered to back her, addressed the defendant in court: “You fail to comprehend. When will you acknowledge you raped me? It is unlawful to rape an unaware woman. At what point did I give you permission? Not once.”

Gisèle Pelicot, 72, became an symbol of resistance after she gave up her right to confidentiality in the trial last year when she said: “Guilt ought to transfer.”

Prosecutor's Remarks

The prosecutor, speaking to Gisèle Pelicot in court, said the defendant's refusal to take blame showed that: “Shame has not yet changed sides. The community is maybe in the process of that, possibly propelled by the societal understanding spurred by the revelation of your situation.”

Sie said the defendant's claims of non-guilt showed how rape culture was still prevalent in society as part of “archaic” forms of “gender-based power”. He said: “It is imperative to change rape culture to a society based on agreement.”

Sie told the defendant: “As long as you refuse to admit it, it’s not just a woman, it’s an whole unpleasant cultural framework that you are endorsing.”

Biographical Details

Dogan was born in Turkey and at the age of 5 moved to France, where his parent worked as a caretaker. The evidence indicated that his father was violent and that Dogan began smoking cannabis aged 10. When he was seventeen he was caught by police for dealing drugs and his father forced him to leave of home. He spent time in prison for trafficking 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 special needs, who he was the main caregiver for, as his spouse worked in a educational cafeteria. The testimony revealed his wife did not know he had frequent sexual encounters outside their union. His legal team said this was his method of dealing with his difficult circumstances. The defendant had informed a court psychologist that once a year he sought transactional encounters on his special day. His lawyers stated to the court he had arthritis resulting from the pressure of the initial proceedings.