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An individual has been found guilty on higher court review of sexually assaulting Gisele Pelicot following she was sedated by her husband – and received his jail term raised to ten years.

Retrial Proceedings

Husamettin Dogan, 44, an unemployed builder, who had challenged his initial guilty verdict last year, experienced a appeal hearing this week at the higher court in Nîmes.

A jury of four women and five men, accompanied by three judges, ruled against Dogan on Thursday of raping the victim in her bedroom in the south of France in the morning of 29 June 2019.

The evidence showed that Dogan, a married father, connected with the victim's then husband, the husband, in an online chatroom called “without her knowledge”, where the husband was seeking men to visit his house to assault his wife once he had drugged her into a deep sleep.

We trust the jury will affirm that in this nation, human rights are also rights of women – that permission is individual, not transferred,” declared Gisèle Pelicot’s lawyer, Antoine Camus. “Agreement is secured personally and not through someone else from a husband.”

Background

Dominique Pelicot, one of the worst sex offenders in modern French history, was given a prison term to two decades in prison last year for sedating his then wife and inviting numerous individuals to rape her in her home in the Provence village of Mazan over a period of nearly ten years of their union.

Fifty other men were found culpable in a high-profile trial last year, and Dogan was the sole individual to contest his sentence. He was originally sentenced to 9 years in prison, a penalty raised on Thursday to 10 years.

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

Evidence Presented

Dogan had first sent Dominique Pelicot inappropriate pictures and then driven an hour from his town in the region to assault Gisèle Pelicot, after notifying his wife he was leaving, the testimony revealed.

Pelicot, who was brought from segregation in prison to briefly provide testimony at the retrial, told 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 without her knowledge.”

The proceedings became a central issue for a broader debate on societal attitudes in society as Dogan continued to claim he was not guilty and had not committed rape, stating that because Gisèle Pelicot’s husband had welcomed him into the bedroom, his conduct had been justifiable.

The panel in the higher court was displayed visual proof of Gisèle Pelicot’s limp body, sedated and breathing heavily in a comatose state, while a smiling Dogan performed assault on several occasions over a timeframe of what authorities reported was 3.5 hours. The presiding judge said she had been at danger of death by suffocation. The prosecution said there was no question that she had been unconscious and had not given permission.

Dogan's Claims

The defendant told the court the videos were simply “intimate moments” and disputed it was rape. He said what he did was “a sexual act”, not assault. He told the court: “I am innocent of assault.” He said the victim's husband had allowed him to the house, and therefore it was OK. He said he was influenced by Dominique Pelicot. “I tried to halt,” Dogan told the court. “I proceeded because he convinced me.”

Questioned if he wanted to make a closing remarks to the court, Dogan said: “I had no desire to injure that woman.”

Pelicot's Words

The victim, who was cheered upon leaving court each day by supporters gathered to support her, said to Dogan in court: “You fail to comprehend. When will you admit you raped me? It is illegal to assault an unaware woman. How could I have give you consent? Never.”

The victim, 72, became an symbol of resistance after she relinquished her right to anonymity in the trial last year when she said: “Guilt ought to transfer.”

State's Argument

Sie, turning to Gisèle Pelicot in court, said the defendant's unwillingness to take blame showed that: “Shame has not yet changed sides. The community is maybe in the course of that, perhaps motivated by the collective awareness resulting from the revelation of your situation.”

Sie said the defendant's claims of blamelessness showed how normalized violence was still prevalent in society as part of “archaic” forms of “patriarchal control”. He said: “We need to change rape culture to a society based on agreement.”

The prosecutor addressed the defendant: “While you refuse to admit it, it’s not just a woman, it’s an whole disturbing societal structure that you are supporting.”

Defendant's Background

Dogan was born in the country of Turkey and at the age of 5 came to France, where his parent worked as a building manager. The evidence indicated that his father was abusive and that Dogan began consuming marijuana aged ten. When Dogan was 17 he was caught by police for selling narcotics and his father kicked him out of home. He was incarcerated in prison for narcotics offenses in his early 20s and had worked as a construction worker but had undergone periods of homelessness.

He was married and had a child with Down’s syndrome, 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 frequent sexual encounters outside their union. His legal team said this was his way of coping with his difficult circumstances. The defendant had stated to a court psychologist that annually he engaged in commercial sex on his birthday. His attorneys informed the court he had joint inflammation caused by the anxiety of the first trial.