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A defendant has been found guilty on appeal of sexually assaulting Gisele Pelicot after she was rendered comatose by her husband – and received his prison sentence increased to 10 years.

Appeal Trial

Dogan, 44, an unemployed builder, who had contested his initial guilty verdict last year, underwent a retrial this week at the higher court in Nîmes.

A panel of nine jurors, accompanied by three judges, found Dogan guilty on Thursday of sexually assaulting Pelicot in her residence in Provence in the morning of 29 June 2019.

The testimony revealed that Dogan, a married father, connected with the victim's then husband, Dominique Pelicot, in an internet forum called “without her consent”, where Pelicot was recruiting men to enter his residence to rape his wife once he had drugged her into a comatose state.

We expect the jury will affirm that in this nation, human rights are also women’s rights – that agreement is individual, not given by another,” declared the victim's attorney, Antoine Camus. “Agreement is received directly and not by proxy from a spouse.”

Case History

Dominique Pelicot, among the most severe sex offenders in recent French history, was sentenced to 20 years in prison last year for incapacitating his wife at the time and inviting numerous individuals to rape her in her home in the community of the village of Mazan over a period of almost a decade of their marriage.

Fifty other men were found guilty in a notable trial last year, and Dogan was the sole individual to contest his conviction. He was initially handed a term to nine years in prison, a punishment raised on Thursday to a decade.

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

Testimony and Proof

The defendant had initially sent Dominique Pelicot inappropriate pictures and then traveled an hour from his town in the region to rape Gisèle Pelicot, after telling his wife he was stepping out, the evidence indicated.

The ex-husband, who was brought from segregation in prison to temporarily provide testimony at the retrial, informed the court that Dogan had understood his wife had been “drugged” and he said to men by phone: “I’m looking for someone to violate my wife after I’ve rendered her unconscious without her knowledge.”

The courtroom became a central issue for a broader debate on societal attitudes in society as the defendant continued to assert he was blameless and had not perpetrated assault, contending that because the victim's husband had welcomed him into the bedroom, his conduct had been acceptable.

The jury in the higher court was shown visual proof of the victim's limp body, sedated and breathing heavily in a deep sleep, while a smiling the perpetrator committed rape multiple times over a duration of what authorities reported was several hours. The presiding judge said she had been at danger of fatal outcome by choking. The prosecution said there was no question that she had been unconscious and had not given permission.

Defendant's Statements

Dogan stated to the court the videos were simply “sex scenes” and rejected it was violation. He said what he did was “an intimate behavior”, not rape. He stated the court: “I am innocent of assault.” He said Gisèle Pelicot’s husband had allowed him to the house, and therefore it was acceptable. He said he was deceived by Dominique Pelicot. “I wanted to stop,” Dogan stated to the court. “I proceeded because he reassured me.”

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

Survivor's Statement

The survivor, who was applauded upon exiting the courtroom each day by onlookers assembled to back her, said to Dogan in court: “You do not grasp. When will you admit you raped me? It’s a crime to assault an incapacitated woman. When did I ever give you permission? Never.”

Gisèle Pelicot, 72, became an international feminist hero after she waived her right to confidentiality in the trial last year when she said: “Guilt ought to transfer.”

Legal Commentary

The prosecutor, turning to the victim in court, said Dogan’s failure to take accountability showed that: “The shame remains. The public is possibly in the course of that, possibly motivated by the collective awareness resulting from the exposure of your case.”

Sie said the defendant's claims of non-guilt showed how rape culture was still prevalent in society as part of “old-fashioned” forms of “male domination”. He said: “Now we must change the culture of violence to a ethos of permission.”

The prosecutor told Dogan: “As long as you deny it, it’s not just a person, it’s an complete unpleasant social system that you are upholding.”

Defendant's Background

The accused was originated from Turkey and at the age of five came to France, where his parent worked as a concierge. The evidence indicated that his father was abusive and that the defendant began using drugs aged 10. When he was 17 he was caught by police for selling narcotics and his father evicted him the residence. 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 son with a genetic condition, who he was the main caregiver for, as his wife worked in a institution's dining hall. The testimony revealed his wife did not know he had regular sexual encounters beyond their union. His defence said this was his strategy for managing with his stressful life. The defendant had stated to a mental health expert that once a year he sought transactional encounters on his special day. His lawyers informed the court he had a medical condition resulting from the anxiety of the original case.