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A defendant was declared guilty on appeal of sexually assaulting Gisele Pelicot following she was sedated by her spouse – and was given his prison sentence raised to a decade.

Higher Court Case

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

A jury of four women and five men, joined by three judges, convicted Dogan on Thursday of sexually assaulting the victim in her bedroom in the south of France in the early hours of 29 June 2019.

The court heard that Dogan, a family man, reached out to Gisèle Pelicot’s husband at the time, the husband, in an digital platform named “unbeknownst to her”, where the husband was recruiting men to visit his house to assault his wife after he had sedated her into a comatose state.

We trust the jury will declare that in this society, human rights are also rights of women – that agreement is individual, not transferred,” declared Gisèle Pelicot’s lawyer, Antoine Camus. “Permission is received personally and not via a representative from a spouse.”

Case History

The husband, one of the worst sex offenders in France's contemporary records, was handed a sentence to two decades in prison last year for sedating his then wife and soliciting numerous individuals to rape her in her home in the town of the village of Mazan over a duration of almost a decade of their marriage.

Dozens of additional defendants were found culpable in a high-profile trial last year, and the appellant was the single defendant to contest his conviction. He was initially sentenced to nine years in prison, a penalty enhanced on Thursday to ten years.

The lead state prosecutor, the prosecutor, had argued he should serve 12 years, because he “stubbornly rejects to take any blame”.

Evidence Presented

Dogan had first sent Dominique Pelicot graphic images and then traveled an hour from his residence in the region to rape Gisèle Pelicot, after telling his wife he was stepping out, the evidence indicated.

The ex-husband, who was transported from segregation in prison to temporarily give evidence at the hearing, told the court that Dogan had been aware his wife had been “sedated” and he communicated to men by phone: “I’m looking for someone to violate my wife after I’ve rendered her unconscious without her consent.”

The trial became a focus point for a broader debate on societal attitudes in society as the defendant continued to claim he was not guilty and had not engaged in violation, stating that because the victim's husband had invited him into the room, his behavior had been justifiable.

The panel in the Nîmes appeals court was presented with visual proof of Gisèle Pelicot’s unresponsive form, comatose and breathing heavily in a deep sleep, while a grinning Dogan engaged in violation repeatedly over a duration of what authorities reported was 3.5 hours. The judge said she had been at peril of fatal outcome by suffocation. The prosecution said there was no question that she had been unaware and had not agreed.

Accused's Testimony

The defendant stated to the court the footage were simply “intimate moments” and denied it was violation. He said what he did was “an intimate behavior”, not assault. He told the court: “I never raped.” He said the victim's husband had invited him to the home, and therefore it was OK. He said he was influenced by Dominique Pelicot. “I tried to halt,” Dogan informed the court. “I proceeded because he persuaded me.”

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

Survivor's Statement

Gisèle Pelicot, who was supported upon leaving court each day by supporters assembled to support her, addressed the defendant in court: “You haven’t understood. When will you admit you violated me? It’s a crime to assault an unaware woman. At what point did I give you consent? Not once.”

The victim, 72, became an symbol of resistance after she relinquished her right to anonymity 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 blame showed that: “Guilt has not shifted. The community is maybe in the midst of that, perhaps propelled by the collective awareness spurred by the publication of your situation.”

Sie said Dogan’s claims of non-guilt showed how rape culture was still widespread in society as part of “archaic” forms of “gender-based power”. He said: “It is imperative to change rape culture to a ethos of permission.”

Sie said to Dogan: “While you deny it, it’s not just a individual, it’s an entire unpleasant social system that you are supporting.”

Biographical Details

Dogan was originated from Turkey and at the age of five relocated to France, where his father worked as a concierge. The evidence indicated that his parent was aggressive and that Dogan began using drugs aged ten. When Dogan was 17 he was caught by authorities for selling narcotics and his parent evicted him the residence. He spent time in prison for trafficking in his young adulthood and had worked as a laborer but had faced periods of living on the streets.

He was wed and had a child with a genetic condition, who he was the primary guardian for, as his spouse worked in a institution's dining hall. The court heard his wife did not know he had regular extramarital activities outside their marriage. His defence said this was his way of coping with his challenging existence. Dogan had informed a mental health expert that once a year he engaged in paid sex on his special day. His legal representatives told the court he had a medical condition triggered by the pressure of the first trial.