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An individual was declared guilty on retrial of sexually assaulting Gisèle Pelicot following she was drugged unconscious by her then-husband – and has had his prison sentence raised to 10 years.

Retrial Proceedings

Dogan, forty-four, an unemployed builder, who had appealed his first conviction last year, experienced a retrial this week at the higher court in Nîmes.

A jury of five men and four women, joined by three judges, found Dogan guilty on Thursday of raping Pelicot in her bedroom in the south of France in the morning of June 29, 2019.

The court heard that Dogan, a family man, connected with the victim's husband at the time, the husband, in an digital platform called “without her consent”, where Pelicot was looking for men to come to his home to assault his wife after he had drugged her into a deep sleep.

We trust the court will say loud and clear that in this nation, fundamental rights are also women’s rights – that permission is individual, not delegated,” declared the victim's lawyer, Antoine Camus. “Agreement is obtained directly and not by proxy from a spouse.”

Case History

The ex-husband, among the most severe sexual predators in modern French history, was sentenced to twenty years in prison last year for sedating his then wife and inviting dozens of men to sexually assault her in her home in the Provence village of the village of Mazan over a period of almost a decade of their marriage.

Numerous other individuals were found convicted in a notable trial last year, and the appellant was the sole individual to challenge his sentence. He was originally given a sentence to 9 years in prison, a sentence enhanced on Thursday to ten years.

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

Testimony and Proof

The defendant had first sent the husband sexually explicit photos and then driven an hour from his town in Provence to assault Gisèle Pelicot, after telling his wife he was leaving, the court heard.

Pelicot, who was brought from solitary confinement in prison to temporarily give evidence at the hearing, informed the court that the accused had understood his wife had been “sedated” and he told to men by phone: “I seek someone to assault my wife after I’ve rendered her unconscious without her knowledge.”

The trial became a central issue for a larger conversation on sexual violence norms in society as the defendant continued to say he was innocent and had not perpetrated assault, contending that because the victim's husband had invited him into the bedroom, his conduct had been justifiable.

The panel in the Nîmes appeals court was displayed recorded footage of the victim's limp body, sedated and snoring in a unconscious condition, while a grinning the perpetrator engaged in violation multiple times over a timeframe of what authorities reported was 3.5 hours. The court official said she had been at danger of death by suffocation. The state prosecution said there was absolute certainty that she had been unaware and had not consented.

Accused's Testimony

The defendant informed the court the videos were simply “sexual encounters” and disputed it was rape. He said what he did was “an intimate behavior”, not assault. He told the court: “I never raped.” He said the victim's husband had allowed him to the residence, and therefore it was permissible. He said he was manipulated by the husband. “I attempted to cease,” Dogan stated to the court. “I carried on because he persuaded me.”

Asked if he wanted to make a final statement to the court, Dogan said: “I had no desire to hurt that individual.”

Victim's Response

The victim, who was cheered upon leaving court each day by crowds assembled to stand with her, told the defendant in court: “You haven’t understood. When will you admit you violated me? It is illegal to assault an unconscious woman. When did I ever give you consent? Never.”

Gisèle Pelicot, 72, 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, turning to the victim in court, said Dogan’s unwillingness to take blame showed that: “The shame remains. The community is perhaps in the midst of that, maybe propelled by the societal understanding resulting from the revelation of your situation.”

The prosecutor said the defendant's claims of non-guilt showed how societal tolerance was still common in society as part of “outdated” forms of “gender-based power”. He said: “We need to change rape culture to a culture of consent.”

The prosecutor told Dogan: “For as much as you reject it, it’s not just a person, it’s an entire sordid cultural framework that you are supporting.”

Personal History

Dogan was originated from the country of Turkey and at the age of five relocated to the nation of France, where his father worked as a caretaker. The testimony revealed that his father was violent and that Dogan began smoking cannabis aged ten. When Dogan was 17 he was stopped by authorities for drug trafficking and his father kicked him out of home. He served time in prison for drug dealing in his early 20s and had worked as a builder but had undergone periods of living on the streets.

He was married and had a child with special needs, who he was the principal carer for, as his wife worked in a educational cafeteria. The testimony revealed his wife did not know he had repeated sexual encounters outside their marriage. His defence said this was his method of dealing with his stressful life. Dogan had told a evaluator that annually he engaged in transactional encounters on his birthday. His legal representatives told the court he had arthritis resulting from the stress of the initial proceedings.