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A man has been found guilty on higher court review of sexually assaulting Gisele Pelicot following she was rendered comatose by her then-husband – and has had his incarceration period raised to ten years.

Retrial Proceedings

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

A jury of nine jurors, joined by three judges, ruled against Dogan on Thursday of sexually assaulting the victim in her bedroom in the south of France in the early hours of June 29, 2019.

The testimony revealed that Dogan, a married father, connected with Gisèle Pelicot’s spouse, the husband, in an online chatroom titled “without her knowledge”, where the husband was looking for men to visit his house to assault his wife after he had rendered her unconscious into a deep sleep.

We expect the court will say loud and clear that in this society, human rights are also women’s rights – that consent is personal, not given by another,” declared the victim's lawyer, Antoine Camus. “Agreement is obtained personally and not through someone else from a spouse.”

Case History

The husband, one of the worst sexual predators in recent French history, was handed a sentence to two decades in prison last year for incapacitating his then wife and inviting numerous individuals to rape her in her home in the town of Mazan over a duration of almost a decade of their union.

Numerous other individuals were found convicted in a widely publicized trial last year, and the appellant was the only man to challenge his sentence. He was first sentenced to nine years in prison, a penalty increased on Thursday to 10 years.

The state's attorney, the prosecutor, had contended he should serve twelve years, because he “stubbornly rejects to take any blame”.

Courtroom Details

Dogan had first sent Dominique Pelicot graphic images and then driven an hour from his town in Provence to rape Gisèle Pelicot, after notifying his wife he was stepping out, the evidence indicated.

The ex-husband, who was brought from segregation in prison to temporarily testify at the hearing, informed the court that the accused had known his wife had been “sedated” and he communicated to men by phone: “I’m looking for someone to abuse my wife after I’ve put her to sleep unbeknownst to her.”

The trial became a central issue for a wider discussion on rape culture in society as the defendant continued to claim he was not guilty and had not engaged in violation, stating that because Gisèle Pelicot’s husband had invited him into the room, his behavior had been permissible.

The jury in the Nîmes appeals court was displayed visual proof of Gisèle Pelicot’s limp body, sedated and breathing heavily in a deep sleep, while a grinning the perpetrator performed assault repeatedly over a period of what investigators stated was three and a half hours. The presiding judge said she had been at peril of fatal outcome by choking. The state's case said there was no question that she had been unconscious and had not agreed.

Accused's Testimony

The defendant informed the court the footage were simply “sexual encounters” and disputed it was rape. He said what he did was “a consensual activity”, not assault. He told the court: “I am innocent of assault.” He said Gisèle Pelicot’s husband had allowed him to the residence, and therefore it was OK. He said he was influenced by the husband. “I attempted to cease,” Dogan informed the court. “I continued because he reassured me.”

Asked if he wanted to make a closing remarks to the court, Dogan said: “I never wanted to harm that woman.”

Victim's Response

The survivor, who was cheered upon departing the trial each day by crowds gathered to stand with her, said to the defendant in court: “You haven’t understood. When will you acknowledge you assaulted me? It is illegal to assault an unaware woman. At what point did I give you permission? Not once.”

The victim, seventy-two, became an international feminist hero after she waived her right to anonymity in the trial last year when she said: “Shame must change sides.”

Legal Commentary

Sie, speaking to Gisèle Pelicot in court, said Dogan’s refusal to take accountability showed that: “Shame has not yet changed sides. The public is possibly in the process of that, perhaps motivated by the societal understanding brought by the revelation of your ordeal.”

Sie said the defendant's claims of non-guilt showed how rape culture was still common in society as part of “archaic” forms of “gender-based power”. He said: “Now we must change rape culture to a ethos of permission.”

The prosecutor addressed Dogan: “While you refuse to admit it, it’s not just a individual, it’s an entire unpleasant cultural framework that you are supporting.”

Defendant's Background

The accused was born in Turkey and at the age of five relocated to France, where his parent worked as a concierge. The court heard that his father was abusive and that the defendant began using drugs at the age of 10. When Dogan was 17 he was stopped by authorities for dealing drugs and his parent kicked him out the residence. He was incarcerated in prison for drug dealing in his twenties and had worked as a builder but had undergone periods of being unhoused.

He was married and had a son with a genetic condition, who he was the main caregiver for, as his wife worked in a school canteen. The testimony revealed his spouse did not know he had frequent extramarital activities beyond their marriage. His legal team said this was his method of dealing with his difficult circumstances. The defendant had stated to a evaluator that once a year he looked for commercial sex on his birthday. His legal representatives stated to the court he had arthritis triggered by the anxiety of the first trial.