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An individual was declared guilty on retrial of sexually assaulting Gisele Pelicot after she was drugged unconscious by her then-husband – and has had his prison sentence 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, underwent a appeal hearing this week at the higher court in Nîmes.

A jury of five men and four women, sitting with three judges, found Dogan guilty on Thursday of sexually assaulting Pelicot in her home in the south of France in the morning of 29 June 2019.

The evidence showed that the accused, a family man, connected with Gisèle Pelicot’s spouse, the husband, in an digital platform named “unbeknownst to her”, where Pelicot was seeking men to visit his house to rape his wife after he had sedated her into a comatose state.

We expect the jury will declare that in this country, human rights are also rights of women – that consent is personal, not delegated,” declared the victim's lawyer, her legal representative. “Agreement is secured directly and not by proxy from a husband.”

Context

The ex-husband, among the most severe sexual predators in modern French history, was handed a sentence to 20 years in prison last year for drugging his wife at the time and inviting dozens of men to rape her in her home in the town of Mazan over a span of nearly ten years of their marriage.

Dozens of additional defendants were found convicted in a high-profile trial last year, and Dogan was the sole individual to contest his conviction. He was originally sentenced to nine years in prison, a penalty enhanced on Thursday to ten years.

The chief prosecutor, Dominique Sie, had contended he should serve 12 years, because he “stubbornly rejects to take any responsibility”.

Evidence Presented

The defendant had initially sent the husband graphic images and then driven an hour from his village in Provence to assault the victim, after informing his wife he was going out, the testimony revealed.

Pelicot, who was transported from segregation in prison to temporarily give evidence at the appeal trial, told the court that Dogan had been aware his wife had been “drugged” and he said to men by phone: “I seek someone to abuse my wife after I’ve sedated her without her knowledge.”

The trial became a focus point for a broader debate on sexual violence norms in society as the defendant continued to claim he was blameless and had not committed rape, contending that because Gisèle Pelicot’s husband had allowed him into the residence, his actions had been acceptable.

The panel in the higher court was shown visual proof of the victim's unresponsive form, comatose and snoring in a deep sleep, while a grinning Dogan committed rape multiple times over a period of what investigators stated was 3.5 hours. The judge said she had been at peril of death by suffocation. The state prosecution said there was no question that she had been unaware and had not consented.

Defendant's Statements

Dogan informed the court the footage were simply “intimate moments” and denied it was violation. He said what he did was “an intimate behavior”, not rape. He told the court: “I am innocent of assault.” He said the victim's husband had invited him to the home, and therefore it was acceptable. He said he was manipulated by the husband. “I wanted to stop,” the accused informed the court. “I proceeded because he persuaded me.”

Questioned if he wanted to make a last words to the court, the defendant said: “I did not intend to hurt that individual.”

Victim's Response

The survivor, who was supported upon exiting the courtroom each day by onlookers present to stand with her, said to the defendant in court: “You fail to comprehend. When will you acknowledge you violated me? It is illegal to rape an unaware woman. At what point did I give you agreement? At no time.”

The victim, 72, 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.”

Prosecutor's Remarks

Sie, addressing Gisèle Pelicot in court, said the defendant's failure to take blame showed that: “Guilt has not shifted. Society is maybe in the midst of that, maybe driven by the societal understanding resulting from the revelation of your situation.”

Sie said the defendant's claims of blamelessness showed how rape culture was still prevalent in society as part of “outdated” forms of “male domination”. He said: “Now we must change rape culture to a society based on agreement.”

The prosecutor addressed Dogan: “For as much as you reject it, it’s not just a woman, it’s an complete disturbing cultural framework that you are upholding.”

Biographical Details

The accused was born in Turkey and at the age of five relocated to the nation of France, where his father worked as a caretaker. The court heard that his father was aggressive and that the defendant began smoking cannabis aged 10. When Dogan was 17 he was caught by authorities for selling narcotics and his parent evicted him the residence. He served time in prison for drug dealing in his young adulthood and had worked as a construction worker but had experienced periods of homelessness.

He was wed and had a child with a genetic condition, who he was the principal carer for, as his spouse worked in a educational cafeteria. The testimony revealed his wife did not know he had regular sexual encounters beyond their union. His defence said this was his strategy for managing with his stressful life. Dogan had stated to a mental health expert that each year he sought transactional encounters on his birthday. His legal representatives told the court he had joint inflammation caused by the anxiety of the initial proceedings.