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A defendant was declared guilty on appeal of raping Gisele Pelicot following she was rendered comatose by her husband – and received his incarceration period extended to 10 years.

Retrial Proceedings

Husamettin Dogan, forty-four, an unemployed builder, who had appealed his first conviction last year, experienced a appeal hearing this week at the Nîmes court of appeal.

A panel of nine jurors, accompanied by three judges, ruled against Dogan on Thursday of raping Pelicot in her residence in the south of France in the morning of June 29, 2019.

The evidence showed that Dogan, a family man, made contact with Gisèle Pelicot’s spouse, the husband, in an online chatroom titled “without her consent”, where Pelicot was seeking men to come to his home to rape his wife once he had drugged her into a comatose state.

“We hope the court will affirm that in this country, human rights are also rights of women – that consent is personal, not given by another,” said the victim's attorney, her legal representative. “Agreement is obtained personally and not by proxy from a spouse.”

Background

Dominique Pelicot, one of the worst sexual predators in recent French history, was handed a sentence to 20 years in prison last year for incapacitating his wife at the time and soliciting multiple perpetrators to sexually assault her in her home in the Provence village of Mazan over a span of almost a decade of their marriage.

Numerous other individuals were found convicted in a high-profile trial last year, and Dogan was the single defendant to contest his conviction. He was first handed a term to 9 years in prison, a sentence raised on Thursday to 10 years.

The chief prosecutor, the prosecutor, had argued he should serve 12 years, because he “completely denies to take any blame”.

Courtroom Details

Dogan had first sent Dominique Pelicot inappropriate pictures and then traveled an hour from his village in the region to rape the victim, after telling his wife he was stepping out, the testimony revealed.

Pelicot, who was transported from isolation in prison to temporarily testify at the retrial, stated to the court that the accused had known his wife had been “incapacitated” and he communicated to men by phone: “I want someone to assault my wife after I’ve sedated her unbeknownst to her.”

The proceedings became a central issue for a wider discussion on societal attitudes in society as the defendant continued to assert he was blameless and had not committed rape, stating that because the victim's husband had welcomed him into the room, his behavior had been acceptable.

The jury in the higher court was shown visual proof of Gisèle Pelicot’s unconscious figure, unconscious and snoring in a comatose state, while a grinning the perpetrator performed assault repeatedly over a period of what authorities reported was several hours. The presiding judge said she had been at danger of death by suffocation. The prosecution said there was no question that she had been unaware and had not consented.

Dogan's Claims

The defendant stated to the court the footage were simply “sex scenes” and rejected it was violation. He said what he did was “a sexual act”, not assault. He stated the court: “I never raped.” He said Gisèle Pelicot’s husband had allowed him to the home, and therefore it was permissible. He said he was influenced by the husband. “I attempted to cease,” Dogan informed the court. “I proceeded because he convinced me.”

Asked if he wanted to make a last words to the court, Dogan said: “I did not intend to harm that lady.”

Survivor's Statement

The survivor, who was applauded upon departing the trial each day by onlookers gathered to support her, told Dogan in court: “You fail to comprehend. When are you going to recognise you assaulted me? It’s a crime to rape an incapacitated woman. When did I ever give you permission? Not once.”

Gisèle Pelicot, seventy-two, became an global icon after she relinquished her right to anonymity in the trial last year when she said: “Shame must change sides.”

State's Argument

Sie, addressing Gisèle Pelicot in court, said Dogan’s refusal to take blame showed that: “Guilt has not shifted. The public is maybe in the process of that, maybe propelled by the societal understanding resulting from the revelation of your situation.”

Sie said Dogan’s claims of non-guilt showed how normalized violence was still prevalent in society as part of “archaic” forms of “gender-based power”. He said: “Now we must change rape culture to a society based on agreement.”

Sie addressed the defendant: “While you refuse to admit it, it’s not just a person, it’s an entire unpleasant social system that you are supporting.”

Biographical Details

The accused was born in Turkey and at the age of 5 came to the nation of France, where his parent worked as a concierge. The evidence indicated that his parent was aggressive and that the defendant began consuming marijuana aged 10. When he was 17 he was caught by authorities for drug trafficking and his parent evicted him of home. He spent time in prison for drug dealing in his twenties and had worked as a laborer but had experienced periods of homelessness.

He was wed and had a son with Down’s syndrome, who he was the primary guardian for, as his wife worked in a school canteen. The testimony revealed his wife did not know he had repeated intimate relations beyond their marriage. His legal team said this was his way of coping with his stressful life. Dogan had informed a evaluator that annually he sought paid sex on his special day. His lawyers told the court he had a medical condition resulting from the stress of the initial proceedings.