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A defendant has been found guilty on appeal of sexually assaulting Gisele Pelicot following she was sedated by her then-husband – and received his jail term increased to ten years.

Higher Court Case

Dogan, 44, an out-of-work construction worker, who had challenged his first conviction last year, faced a new trial this week at the appeals court in Nîmes.

A panel of nine jurors, sitting with three judges, found Dogan guilty on Thursday of raping the victim in her residence in southern France in the early hours of 29 June 2019.

The court heard that Dogan, a family man, made contact with Gisèle Pelicot’s husband at the time, Dominique Pelicot, in an internet forum called “unbeknownst to her”, where Pelicot was looking for men to visit his house to rape his wife after he had drugged her into a comatose state.

We trust the court will affirm that in this society, fundamental rights are also women’s rights – that agreement is personal, not transferred,” declared Gisèle Pelicot’s attorney, Antoine Camus. “Permission is secured personally and not via a representative from a husband.”

Case History

The ex-husband, a notorious sex offenders in modern French history, was given a prison term to twenty years in prison last year for incapacitating his spouse and bringing in multiple perpetrators to sexually assault her in her home in the Provence village of Mazan over a period of many years of their marriage.

Numerous other individuals were found convicted in a notable trial last year, and Dogan was the only man to contest his conviction. He was initially handed a term to nine years in prison, a sentence increased on Thursday to 10 years.

The chief prosecutor, Dominique Sie, had argued he should serve twelve years, because he “completely denies to take any accountability”.

Courtroom Details

The defendant had initially sent Dominique Pelicot graphic images and then traveled an hour from his village in Provence to assault Gisèle Pelicot, after notifying his wife he was going out, the evidence indicated.

Pelicot, who was transported from solitary confinement in prison to temporarily give evidence at the hearing, informed the court that Dogan had known his wife had been “incapacitated” and he communicated to men by phone: “I seek someone to abuse my wife after I’ve put her to sleep unbeknownst to her.”

The trial became a key topic for a larger conversation on societal attitudes in society as the defendant continued to assert he was blameless and had not committed rape, contending that because the victim's husband had invited him into the bedroom, his actions had been acceptable.

The panel in the Nîmes appeals court was shown recorded footage of the victim's unresponsive form, unconscious and breathing heavily in a unconscious condition, while a grinning Dogan performed assault multiple times over a duration of what authorities reported was 3.5 hours. The judge said she had been at danger of death by choking. The state's case said there was no doubt that she had been incapacitated and had not consented.

Dogan's Claims

Dogan told the court the recordings were simply “intimate moments” and rejected it was rape. He said what he did was “a consensual activity”, not rape. He told the court: “I did not commit rape.” He said the victim's husband had brought him to the house, and therefore it was OK. He said he was manipulated by the husband. “I tried to halt,” Dogan told the court. “I carried on because he reassured me.”

Questioned if he wanted to make a final statement to the court, the defendant said: “I did not intend to hurt that lady.”

Victim's Response

The victim, who was applauded upon departing the trial each day by crowds gathered to back her, told Dogan in court: “You haven’t understood. When will you admit you assaulted me? It is illegal to rape an incapacitated woman. At what point did I give you permission? Never.”

The victim, 72, became an symbol of resistance 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 Gisèle Pelicot in court, said Dogan’s unwillingness to take accountability showed that: “Guilt has not shifted. Society is perhaps in the course of that, possibly driven by the societal understanding spurred by the revelation of your ordeal.”

Sie said Dogan’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: “We need to change the culture of violence to a society based on agreement.”

The prosecutor addressed Dogan: “While you deny it, it’s not just a individual, it’s an whole unpleasant cultural framework that you are endorsing.”

Biographical Details

Dogan was born in Turkey and at the age of 5 came to France, where his parent worked as a caretaker. The court heard that his father was aggressive and that the defendant began using drugs aged ten. When he was 17 he was stopped by authorities for selling narcotics and his father evicted him of home. He served time in prison for drug dealing in his young adulthood and had worked as a laborer but had experienced periods of living on the streets.

He was wed and had a child with special needs, who he was the primary guardian for, as his wife worked in a school canteen. The court heard his spouse did not know he had frequent extramarital activities beyond their union. His legal team said this was his method of dealing with his challenging existence. Dogan had told a court psychologist that each year he looked for commercial sex on his birthday. His attorneys stated to the court he had a medical condition caused by the pressure of the original case.