🔗 Share this article

A man has been found guilty on retrial of raping Gisèle Pelicot after she was rendered comatose by her then-husband – and was given his jail term increased to a decade.

Higher Court Case

Dogan, 44, an out-of-work construction worker, who had contested his initial guilty verdict last year, underwent a retrial this week at the Nîmes court of appeal.

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

The evidence showed that Dogan, a married father, made contact with Gisèle Pelicot’s husband at the time, the husband, in an internet forum named “without her consent”, where Pelicot was looking for men to come to his home to assault his wife after he had rendered her unconscious into a comatose state.

We expect the panel will declare that in this country, fundamental rights are also rights of women – that agreement is personal, not transferred,” stated the victim's lawyer, Antoine Camus. “Permission is obtained personally and not by proxy from a spouse.”

Case History

The ex-husband, a notorious sex offenders in recent French history, was given a prison term to two decades in prison last year for sedating his then wife and bringing in multiple perpetrators to sexually assault her in her home in the community of Mazan over a duration of many years of their marriage.

Numerous other individuals were found convicted in a widely publicized trial last year, and the appellant was the sole individual to challenge his conviction. He was originally sentenced to 9 years in prison, a penalty raised on Thursday to a decade.

The lead state prosecutor, the prosecutor, had contended he should serve twelve years, because he “stubbornly rejects to take any responsibility”.

Evidence Presented

The defendant had initially sent the husband sexually explicit photos and then traveled an hour from his residence in Provence to rape the victim, after notifying his wife he was going out, the court heard.

The ex-husband, who was transported from isolation in prison to temporarily testify at the hearing, informed the court that Dogan had been aware his wife had been “drugged” and he told to men by phone: “I want someone to abuse my wife after I’ve rendered her unconscious unbeknownst to her.”

The trial became a central issue for a wider discussion on sexual violence norms in society as the defendant continued to claim he was blameless and had not engaged in violation, stating that because Gisèle Pelicot’s husband had invited him into the room, his behavior had been justifiable.

The panel in the higher court was shown recorded footage of Gisèle Pelicot’s unresponsive form, comatose and breathing heavily in a comatose state, while a smiling Dogan engaged in violation repeatedly over a timeframe of what police said was three and a half hours. The judge said she had been at danger of fatal outcome by suffocation. The prosecution said there was no question that she had been unaware and had not given permission.

Accused's Testimony

Dogan stated to the court the videos were simply “sex scenes” and disputed it was violation. He said what he did was “an intimate behavior”, not assault. He told the court: “I did not commit rape.” He said Gisèle Pelicot’s husband had allowed him to the house, and therefore it was OK. He said he was influenced by the husband. “I attempted to cease,” the accused told the court. “I proceeded because he convinced me.”

Questioned if he wanted to make a last words to the court, Dogan said: “I had no desire to harm that woman.”

Victim's Response

Gisèle Pelicot, who was cheered upon exiting the courtroom each day by onlookers assembled to support her, told the defendant in court: “You haven’t understood. When will you admit you assaulted me? It’s a crime to assault an incapacitated woman. When did I ever give you permission? Not once.”

The victim, seventy-two, became an global icon after she gave up her right to confidentiality in the trial last year when she said: “Shame must change sides.”

Legal Commentary

The prosecutor, turning to the victim in court, said Dogan’s refusal to take accountability showed that: “Shame has not yet changed sides. Society is perhaps in the course of that, maybe driven by the collective awareness brought by the exposure of your situation.”

The prosecutor said Dogan’s claims of blamelessness showed how rape culture was still widespread in society as part of “outdated” forms of “patriarchal control”. He said: “It is imperative to change the culture of violence to a culture of consent.”

The prosecutor told the defendant: “While you reject it, it’s not just a woman, it’s an whole sordid cultural framework that you are endorsing.”

Personal History

Dogan was born in the country of Turkey and at the age of 5 came to France, where his parent worked as a concierge. The testimony revealed that his parent was aggressive and that Dogan began consuming marijuana at the age of 10. When Dogan was 17 he was stopped by police for drug trafficking and his parent forced him to leave of home. He spent time in prison for drug dealing in his early 20s and had worked as a construction worker but had faced periods of homelessness.

He was wed and had a son with a genetic condition, who he was the main caregiver for, as his wife worked in a educational cafeteria. The court heard his wife did not know he had frequent extramarital activities outside their marriage. His defence said this was his way of coping with his difficult circumstances. Dogan had told a evaluator that annually he engaged in transactional encounters on his birthday. His legal representatives stated to the court he had joint inflammation triggered by the stress of the initial proceedings.