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A man was declared guilty on higher court review of sexually assaulting Gisèle Pelicot following she was rendered comatose by her spouse – and received his jail term raised to 10 years.

Higher Court Case

Dogan, 44, an unemployed builder, who had challenged his first conviction last year, experienced a retrial this week at the Nîmes court of appeal.

A panel of nine jurors, joined by three judges, ruled against Dogan on Thursday of sexually assaulting Pelicot in her bedroom in southern France in the early hours of June 29, 2019.

The court heard that the accused, a married father, made contact with Gisèle Pelicot’s then husband, Dominique Pelicot, in an online chatroom named “unbeknownst to her”, where the husband was seeking men to come to his home to rape his wife once he had drugged her into a unconscious state.

We trust the court will affirm that in this society, fundamental rights are also women’s rights – that agreement is individual, not transferred,” said the victim's lawyer, Antoine Camus. “Permission is obtained personally and not via a representative from a husband.”

Case History

The husband, among the most severe sexual predators in modern French history, was given a prison term to two decades in prison last year for drugging his then wife and bringing in multiple perpetrators to rape her in her home in the Provence village of Mazan over a period of almost a decade of their marriage.

Fifty other men were found culpable in a high-profile trial last year, and Dogan was the sole individual to challenge his verdict. He was initially handed a term to nine years in prison, a penalty raised on Thursday to 10 years.

The lead state prosecutor, the prosecutor, had argued he should serve twelve years, because he “absolutely refuses to take any responsibility”.

Evidence Presented

Dogan had first sent Dominique Pelicot inappropriate pictures and then traveled an hour from his town in Provence to rape Gisèle Pelicot, after telling his wife he was stepping out, the evidence indicated.

Pelicot, who was transported from segregation in prison to temporarily give evidence at the hearing, informed the court that the accused had been aware his wife had been “sedated” and he said to men by phone: “I want someone to abuse my wife after I’ve rendered her unconscious without her knowledge.”

The courtroom became a focus point for a wider discussion on rape culture in society as the defendant continued to assert he was blameless and had not committed rape, arguing that because Gisèle Pelicot’s husband had invited him into the bedroom, his actions had been acceptable.

The jury in the Nîmes appeals court was displayed video evidence of the victim's unconscious figure, unconscious and snoring in a comatose state, while a grinning the perpetrator engaged in violation on several occasions over a duration of what investigators stated was several hours. The court official said she had been at risk of fatal outcome by suffocation. The state's case said there was absolute certainty that she had been unconscious and had not consented.

Defendant's Statements

Dogan informed the court the recordings were simply “intimate moments” and denied it was violation. He said what he did was “an intimate behavior”, not rape. He declared the court: “I did not commit rape.” He said the victim's husband had brought him to the house, and therefore it was permissible. He said he was influenced by the husband. “I wanted to stop,” the accused told the court. “I continued because he persuaded me.”

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

Victim's Response

Gisèle Pelicot, who was applauded upon exiting the courtroom each day by crowds assembled to support her, said to Dogan in court: “You fail to comprehend. When will you acknowledge you violated me? It is unlawful to rape an unconscious woman. At what point did I give you permission? At no time.”

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

Legal Commentary

Sie, speaking to the victim in court, said Dogan’s failure to take accountability showed that: “Guilt has not shifted. Society is maybe in the course of that, perhaps driven by the collective awareness brought by the revelation of your situation.”

Sie said Dogan’s claims of non-guilt showed how normalized violence was still widespread in society as part of “archaic” forms of “male domination”. He said: “It is imperative to change rape culture to a society based on agreement.”

The prosecutor addressed the defendant: “As long as you deny it, it’s not just a individual, it’s an entire sordid social system that you are endorsing.”

Biographical Details

Dogan was originated from the country of Turkey and at the age of 5 relocated to France, where his parent worked as a caretaker. The court heard that his father was aggressive and that Dogan began smoking cannabis at the age of 10. When Dogan was seventeen he was caught by authorities for dealing drugs and his father kicked him out the residence. He was incarcerated in prison for drug dealing in his early 20s and had worked as a laborer but had undergone periods of living on the streets.

He was married and had a child with Down’s syndrome, who he was the principal carer for, as his spouse worked in a institution's dining hall. The evidence showed his wife did not know he had regular extramarital activities beyond their union. His defence said this was his way of coping with his challenging existence. The defendant had told a court psychologist that each year he sought paid sex on his special day. His legal representatives informed the court he had joint inflammation caused by the stress of the original case.