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An individual was convicted on retrial of raping Gisèle Pelicot following she was rendered comatose by her then-husband – and received his incarceration period extended to ten years.

Appeal Trial

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

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

The evidence showed that Dogan, a married father, connected with Gisèle Pelicot’s husband at the time, the husband, in an digital platform named “without her knowledge”, where Pelicot was seeking men to come to his home to rape his wife once he had drugged her into a unconscious state.

“We hope the jury will say loud and clear that in this country, human rights are also rights of women – that consent is personal, not delegated,” said Gisèle Pelicot’s lawyer, her legal representative. “Consent is secured directly and not by proxy from a husband.”

Background

Dominique Pelicot, a notorious sexual predators in modern French history, was handed a sentence to twenty years in prison last year for incapacitating his wife at the time and bringing in dozens of men to rape her in her home in the town of the village of Mazan over a period of nearly ten years of their marriage.

Dozens of additional defendants were found culpable in a notable trial last year, and the appellant was the sole individual to contest his sentence. He was first given a sentence to nine years in prison, a sentence increased on Thursday to 10 years.

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

Testimony and Proof

Dogan had first sent the husband inappropriate pictures and then driven an hour from his town in the region to assault the victim, after notifying his wife he was going out, the testimony revealed.

The ex-husband, who was transported from solitary confinement in prison to briefly testify at the retrial, stated to the court that Dogan had understood his wife had been “incapacitated” and he communicated to men by phone: “I’m looking for someone to abuse my wife after I’ve sedated her without her consent.”

The courtroom became a central issue for a broader debate on societal attitudes in society as Dogan continued to claim he was innocent and had not engaged in violation, contending that because the victim's husband had invited him into the residence, his actions had been acceptable.

The panel in the higher court was shown video evidence of Gisèle Pelicot’s unconscious figure, sedated and snoring in a deep sleep, while a grinning Dogan performed assault multiple times over a duration of what investigators stated was 3.5 hours. The presiding judge said she had been at risk of death by suffocation. The state prosecution said there was no question that she had been unaware and had not given permission.

Accused's Testimony

Dogan stated to the court the videos were simply “intimate moments” and disputed it was rape. He said what he did was “a consensual activity”, not assault. He stated the court: “I never raped.” He said the victim's husband had brought him to the home, and therefore it was permissible. He said he was manipulated by Dominique Pelicot. “I attempted to cease,” the accused informed the court. “I continued because he persuaded me.”

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

Pelicot's Words

The survivor, who was applauded upon exiting the courtroom each day by onlookers gathered to support her, addressed the defendant in court: “You do not grasp. When will you acknowledge you raped me? It’s a crime to assault an unaware woman. How could I have give you agreement? Not once.”

The victim, 72, became an international feminist hero after she relinquished her right to confidentiality in the trial last year when she said: “Guilt ought to transfer.”

Legal Commentary

Sie, addressing the victim in court, said the defendant's refusal to take accountability showed that: “Shame has not yet changed sides. The public is maybe in the course of that, possibly motivated by the public consciousness brought by the publication of your ordeal.”

Sie said the defendant's claims of innocence showed how societal tolerance was still common in society as part of “old-fashioned” forms of “gender-based power”. He said: “Now we must change the culture of violence to a culture of consent.”

Sie said to the defendant: “As long as you refuse to admit it, it’s not just a woman, it’s an complete sordid social system that you are upholding.”

Defendant's Background

The accused was originated from Turkey and at the age of five relocated to France, where his father worked as a caretaker. The evidence indicated that his father was aggressive and that the defendant began smoking cannabis aged ten. When he was seventeen he was stopped by authorities for drug trafficking and his parent evicted him the residence. He spent time in prison for trafficking in his young adulthood and had worked as a builder but had undergone periods of homelessness.

He was wed and had a son with a genetic condition, who he was the primary guardian for, as his wife worked in a institution's dining hall. The court heard his wife did not know he had regular extramarital activities beyond their union. His legal team said this was his method of dealing with his difficult circumstances. The defendant had stated to a mental health expert that once a year he looked for paid sex on his birthday. His attorneys stated to the court he had a medical condition resulting from the anxiety of the first trial.