🔗 Share this article

An individual has been found guilty on appeal of raping Gisele Pelicot following she was drugged unconscious by her then-husband – and received his incarceration period raised to ten years.

Retrial Proceedings

Dogan, forty-four, an unemployed builder, who had challenged his first conviction last year, experienced a appeal hearing this week at the appeals court in Nîmes.

A jury of nine jurors, joined by three judges, ruled against Dogan on Thursday of sexually assaulting Pelicot in her residence in southern France in the morning of 29 June 2019.

The testimony revealed that Dogan, a married father, made contact with the victim's husband at the time, the husband, in an internet forum called “without her knowledge”, where Pelicot was recruiting men to enter his residence to rape his wife after he had sedated her into a comatose state.

We expect the court will say loud and clear that in this society, human rights are also rights of women – that consent is personal, not delegated,” said the victim's attorney, Antoine Camus. “Permission is obtained directly and not through someone else from a husband.”

Case History

The ex-husband, among the most severe sex offenders in modern French history, was sentenced to 20 years in prison last year for incapacitating his then wife and soliciting numerous individuals to rape her in her home in the Provence village of the village of Mazan over a period of nearly ten years of their marriage.

Numerous other individuals were found guilty in a high-profile trial last year, and Dogan was the single defendant to challenge his verdict. He was first given a sentence to nine years in prison, a sentence increased on Thursday to a decade.

The state's attorney, Dominique Sie, had argued he should serve 12 years, because he “absolutely refuses to take any responsibility”.

Evidence Presented

Dogan had initially sent Dominique Pelicot inappropriate pictures and then driven an hour from his village in the region to rape Gisèle Pelicot, after informing his wife he was stepping out, the court heard.

The ex-husband, who was transported from solitary confinement in prison to briefly give evidence at the retrial, told the court that Dogan had understood his wife had been “sedated” and he told to men by phone: “I seek someone to assault my wife after I’ve put her to sleep without her consent.”

The trial became a key topic for a broader debate on rape culture in society as Dogan continued to assert he was innocent and had not engaged in violation, arguing that because Gisèle Pelicot’s husband had allowed him into the room, his conduct had been justifiable.

The panel in the higher court was presented with visual proof of Gisèle Pelicot’s unconscious figure, sedated and snoring in a unconscious condition, while a smiling Dogan performed assault multiple times over a timeframe of what investigators stated was several hours. The presiding judge said she had been at peril of fatal outcome by asphyxiation. The prosecution said there was no question that she had been incapacitated and had not consented.

Dogan's Claims

Dogan told the court the footage were simply “sexual encounters” and denied it was rape. He said what he did was “a consensual activity”, not rape. He stated the court: “I never raped.” He said Gisèle Pelicot’s husband had invited him to the residence, and therefore it was permissible. He said he was influenced by the husband. “I wanted to stop,” Dogan stated to the court. “I carried on because he convinced me.”

Inquired if he wanted to make a last words to the court, Dogan said: “I did not intend to harm that woman.”

Survivor's Statement

The victim, who was cheered upon exiting the courtroom each day by crowds present to support her, said to Dogan in court: “You haven’t understood. When will you acknowledge you raped me? It is unlawful to rape an unconscious woman. How could I have give you permission? Not once.”

The victim, seventy-two, became an global icon after she waived 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 the defendant's unwillingness to take responsibility showed that: “Shame has not yet changed sides. Society is possibly in the midst of that, maybe driven by the societal understanding brought by the revelation of your ordeal.”

The prosecutor said Dogan’s claims of innocence showed how rape culture 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 addressed Dogan: “While you refuse to admit it, it’s not just a person, it’s an entire unpleasant cultural framework that you are upholding.”

Personal History

The accused was originated from the country of Turkey and at the age of five relocated to France, where his father worked as a building manager. The court heard that his parent was aggressive and that Dogan began consuming marijuana aged ten. When he was seventeen he was stopped by authorities for selling narcotics and his father evicted him of home. He served time in prison for trafficking in his young adulthood and had worked as a builder but had undergone periods of homelessness.

He was married and had a child with special needs, who he was the main caregiver for, as his wife worked in a educational cafeteria. The evidence showed his spouse did not know he had frequent extramarital activities beyond their marriage. His defence said this was his way of coping with his difficult circumstances. Dogan had informed a evaluator that annually he looked for commercial sex on his birthday. His legal representatives informed the court he had joint inflammation caused by the anxiety of the first trial.