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A man was declared guilty on retrial of sexually assaulting Gisèle Pelicot after she was rendered comatose by her spouse – and has had his incarceration period extended to ten years.

Retrial Proceedings

Husamettin Dogan, forty-four, an out-of-work construction worker, who had challenged his initial guilty verdict last year, faced a appeal hearing this week at the appeals court in Nîmes.

A jury of five men and four women, sitting with three judges, found Dogan guilty on Thursday of raping the victim in her home in southern France in the early hours of 29 June 2019.

The evidence showed that Dogan, a married father, made contact with Gisèle Pelicot’s spouse, Dominique Pelicot, in an online chatroom titled “unbeknownst to her”, where the husband was seeking men to enter his residence to assault his wife once he had drugged her into a deep sleep.

We trust the court will say loud and clear that in this society, fundamental rights are also women’s rights – that permission is individual, not given by another,” declared Gisèle Pelicot’s attorney, Antoine Camus. “Permission is obtained directly and not through someone else from a spouse.”

Background

The husband, one of the worst sexual predators in recent French history, was handed a sentence to two decades in prison last year for sedating his then wife and inviting multiple perpetrators to sexually assault her in her home in the town of the village of Mazan over a duration of many years of their marriage.

Dozens of additional defendants were found culpable in a high-profile trial last year, and Dogan was the sole individual to appeal against his sentence. He was first given a sentence to 9 years in prison, a sentence raised on Thursday to ten years.

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

Courtroom Details

Dogan had initially sent Dominique Pelicot sexually explicit photos and then driven an hour from his town in Provence to rape the victim, after telling his wife he was going out, the testimony revealed.

Pelicot, who was transported from solitary confinement in prison to temporarily testify at the appeal trial, stated to the court that Dogan had known his wife had been “incapacitated” and he said to men by phone: “I’m looking for someone to violate my wife after I’ve put her to sleep without her consent.”

The proceedings became a focus point for a wider discussion on sexual violence norms in society as Dogan continued to claim he was blameless and had not committed rape, contending that because the victim's husband had welcomed him into the bedroom, his conduct had been permissible.

The panel in the Nîmes appeals court was presented with recorded footage of the victim's limp body, unconscious and breathing heavily in a unconscious condition, while a smiling the perpetrator performed assault on several occasions over a timeframe of what authorities reported was three and a half hours. The judge said she had been at peril of death by choking. The prosecution said there was absolute certainty that she had been incapacitated and had not given permission.

Accused's Testimony

Dogan informed the court the footage were simply “sexual encounters” and rejected it was assault. He said what he did was “a consensual activity”, not rape. He told the court: “I am innocent of assault.” He said Gisèle Pelicot’s husband had brought him to the home, and therefore it was acceptable. He said he was influenced by the husband. “I attempted to cease,” the accused told the court. “I carried on because he persuaded me.”

Asked if he wanted to make a closing remarks to the court, Dogan said: “I never wanted to hurt that individual.”

Pelicot's Words

The victim, who was applauded upon exiting the courtroom each day by onlookers gathered to back her, said to the defendant in court: “You do not grasp. When will you acknowledge you violated me? It’s a crime to rape an unconscious woman. At what point did I give you consent? Never.”

The victim, seventy-two, became an symbol of resistance after she gave up her right to confidentiality in the trial last year when she said: “Guilt ought to transfer.”

Legal Commentary

Sie, turning to Gisèle Pelicot in court, said the defendant's unwillingness to take accountability showed that: “The shame remains. The community is perhaps in the process of that, possibly motivated by the public consciousness resulting from the publication of your ordeal.”

Sie said Dogan’s claims of blamelessness showed how societal tolerance was still widespread in society as part of “old-fashioned” forms of “patriarchal control”. He said: “Now we must change rape culture to a ethos of permission.”

The prosecutor said to the defendant: “While you reject it, it’s not just a individual, it’s an entire disturbing social system that you are upholding.”

Biographical Details

The accused was originated from the country of Turkey and at the age of 5 came to the nation of France, where his father worked as a concierge. The testimony revealed that his parent was abusive and that the defendant began using drugs aged 10. When Dogan was 17 he was apprehended by authorities for dealing drugs and his parent forced him to leave of home. He was incarcerated in prison for narcotics offenses in his twenties and had worked as a builder but had undergone periods of living on the streets.

He was married and had a son with a genetic condition, who he was the main caregiver for, as his spouse worked in a school canteen. The court heard his spouse did not know he had frequent sexual encounters outside their union. His legal team said this was his method of dealing with his difficult circumstances. The defendant had told a mental health expert that once a year he looked for transactional encounters on his special day. His lawyers told the court he had a medical condition resulting from the anxiety of the original case.