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An individual has been found guilty on retrial of raping Gisele Pelicot after she was rendered comatose by her husband – and was given his incarceration period extended to ten years.

Retrial Proceedings

Dogan, forty-four, an unemployed builder, who had appealed his initial guilty verdict last year, underwent a new trial this week at the Nîmes court of appeal.

A jury of five men and four women, joined by three judges, found Dogan guilty on Thursday of sexually assaulting Pelicot in her residence in Provence in the early hours of June 29, 2019.

The court heard that Dogan, a married father, made contact with the victim's then husband, the husband, in an internet forum titled “without her knowledge”, where the husband was seeking men to enter his residence to assault his wife after he had sedated her into a comatose state.

We trust the panel will declare that in this society, fundamental rights are also rights of women – that consent is individual, not delegated,” stated Gisèle Pelicot’s attorney, Antoine Camus. “Agreement is secured directly and not by proxy from a spouse.”

Context

The ex-husband, a notorious sexual predators in modern French history, was sentenced to two decades in prison last year for incapacitating his then wife and bringing in numerous individuals to sexually assault her in her home in the community of Mazan over a period of nearly ten years of their union.

Dozens of additional defendants were found guilty in a high-profile 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 raised on Thursday to ten years.

The state's attorney, Dominique Sie, had stated he should serve 12 years, because he “stubbornly rejects to take any blame”.

Courtroom Details

The defendant had initially sent the husband inappropriate pictures and then traveled an hour from his town in the region to rape Gisèle Pelicot, after informing his wife he was stepping out, the evidence indicated.

The ex-husband, who was brought from solitary confinement in prison to temporarily give evidence at the appeal trial, stated to the court that the accused had known his wife had been “incapacitated” and he said to men by phone: “I want someone to assault my wife after I’ve put her to sleep without her consent.”

The trial became a central issue for a larger conversation on rape culture in society as Dogan continued to claim he was not guilty and had not engaged in violation, contending that because the victim's husband had welcomed him into the residence, his conduct had been permissible.

The panel in the Nîmes appeals court was displayed recorded footage of Gisèle Pelicot’s unconscious figure, unconscious and snoring in a deep sleep, while a grinning Dogan engaged in violation repeatedly over a duration of what investigators stated was several hours. The presiding judge said she had been at risk of fatal outcome by suffocation. The prosecution said there was absolute certainty that she had been incapacitated and had not consented.

Accused's Testimony

Dogan told the court the videos were simply “sexual encounters” and denied it was violation. He said what he did was “a consensual activity”, not assault. He stated the court: “I never raped.” He said Gisèle Pelicot’s husband had invited him to the house, and therefore it was acceptable. He said he was influenced by the husband. “I wanted to stop,” Dogan informed the court. “I proceeded because he persuaded me.”

Inquired if he wanted to make a last words to the court, Dogan said: “I never wanted to injure that individual.”

Survivor's Statement

Gisèle Pelicot, who was cheered upon leaving court each day by supporters present to support her, said to the defendant in court: “You do not grasp. When are you going to recognise you raped me? It is unlawful to rape an unconscious woman. At what point did I give you consent? Not once.”

Gisèle Pelicot, 72, became an symbol of resistance after she waived her right to anonymity in the trial last year when she said: “Shame must change sides.”

State's Argument

Sie, turning to the victim in court, said Dogan’s failure to take accountability showed that: “Shame has not yet changed sides. The community is perhaps in the course of that, possibly propelled by the collective awareness resulting from the revelation of your case.”

Sie said the defendant's claims of innocence showed how rape culture was still prevalent in society as part of “outdated” forms of “patriarchal control”. He said: “We need to change the culture of violence to a culture of consent.”

Sie addressed the defendant: “While you reject it, it’s not just a person, it’s an whole sordid cultural framework that you are upholding.”

Personal History

The accused was born in Turkey and at the age of 5 relocated to France, where his father worked as a building manager. The testimony revealed that his father was violent and that Dogan began consuming marijuana at the age of 10. When he was 17 he was stopped by police for selling narcotics and his father evicted him the family house. He spent time in prison for trafficking in his early 20s and had worked as a builder but had experienced periods of living on the streets.

He was married and had a child with a genetic condition, who he was the principal carer for, as his spouse worked in a institution's dining hall. The court heard his spouse did not know he had frequent sexual encounters outside their union. His legal team said this was his way of coping with his challenging existence. The defendant had informed a court psychologist that annually he engaged in paid sex on his birthday. His legal representatives stated to the court he had a medical condition resulting from the pressure of the original case.