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A defendant has been found guilty on appeal of raping Gisèle Pelicot after she was rendered comatose by her husband – and has had his incarceration period increased to ten years.

Appeal Trial

The defendant, 44, an unemployed builder, who had challenged his first conviction last year, underwent 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 sexually assaulting Pelicot in her bedroom in the south of France in the early hours of 29 June 2019.

The court heard that the accused, a married father, connected with Gisèle Pelicot’s then husband, the husband, in an digital platform called “unbeknownst to her”, where the husband was looking for men to come to his home to assault his wife after he had sedated her into a comatose state.

We trust the jury will affirm that in this country, human rights are also rights of women – that permission is individual, not transferred,” stated Gisèle Pelicot’s lawyer, her legal representative. “Consent is received directly and not by proxy from a husband.”

Background

The husband, among the most severe sex offenders in recent French history, was handed a sentence to 20 years in prison last year for drugging 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 single defendant to appeal against his sentence. He was first handed a term to nine years in prison, a punishment increased on Thursday to 10 years.

The lead state prosecutor, the prosecutor, had argued he should serve twelve years, because he “completely denies 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 testimony revealed.

Pelicot, who was transported from solitary confinement in prison to temporarily provide testimony at the hearing, told the court that the accused had understood his wife had been “drugged” and he communicated to men by phone: “I’m looking for someone to abuse my wife after I’ve sedated her unbeknownst to her.”

The proceedings became a central issue for a broader debate on societal attitudes in society as the defendant continued to claim he was innocent and had not perpetrated assault, contending that because the victim's husband had invited him into the bedroom, his actions had been justifiable.

The panel in the higher court was shown visual proof of Gisèle Pelicot’s unconscious figure, sedated and snoring in a comatose state, while a grinning the perpetrator committed rape repeatedly over a timeframe of what police said was 3.5 hours. The presiding judge said she had been at peril of fatal outcome by asphyxiation. The prosecution said there was no doubt that she had been incapacitated and had not given permission.

Accused's Testimony

The defendant told the court the recordings were simply “intimate moments” and denied it was assault. He said what he did was “a consensual activity”, not rape. He stated the court: “I never raped.” He said the victim's husband had brought him to the house, and therefore it was permissible. He said he was influenced by Dominique Pelicot. “I wanted to stop,” Dogan told the court. “I carried on because he convinced me.”

Inquired if he wanted to make a final statement to the court, the defendant said: “I had no desire to hurt that lady.”

Survivor's Statement

Gisèle Pelicot, who was applauded upon departing the trial each day by crowds gathered to back her, said to the defendant in court: “You do not grasp. When will you admit you assaulted me? It is unlawful to assault an unconscious woman. At what point did I give you permission? At no time.”

Gisèle Pelicot, 72, became an symbol of resistance after she relinquished her right to confidentiality in the trial last year when she said: “The shame should shift.”

State's Argument

The prosecutor, addressing Gisèle Pelicot in court, said the defendant's failure to take accountability showed that: “Shame has not yet changed sides. The public is perhaps in the course of that, maybe propelled by the societal understanding spurred by the publication of your ordeal.”

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

The prosecutor addressed the defendant: “As long as you refuse to admit it, it’s not just a woman, it’s an whole unpleasant societal structure that you are endorsing.”

Biographical Details

Dogan was originated from Turkey and at the age of five moved to the nation of France, where his father worked as a caretaker. The court heard that his father was violent and that Dogan began consuming marijuana at the age of ten. When Dogan was 17 he was stopped by police for drug trafficking and his parent evicted him the residence. He spent time in prison for narcotics offenses in his young adulthood and had worked as a laborer but had faced periods of being unhoused.

He was married and had a child with a genetic condition, who he was the main caregiver for, as his spouse worked in a educational cafeteria. The testimony revealed his spouse did not know he had frequent extramarital activities outside their union. His legal team said this was his way of coping with his challenging existence. Dogan had informed a evaluator that annually he looked for commercial sex on his special day. His legal representatives stated to the court he had a medical condition triggered by the anxiety of the first trial.