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A defendant has been found guilty on higher court review of sexually assaulting Gisèle Pelicot following she was sedated by her then-husband – and was given his jail term raised to a decade.

Appeal Trial

Dogan, 44, an unemployed builder, who had contested his first conviction last year, underwent a appeal hearing this week at the appeals court in Nîmes.

A jury of four women and five men, accompanied by three judges, found Dogan guilty on Thursday of raping Pelicot in her bedroom in southern France in the morning of 29 June 2019.

The testimony revealed that Dogan, a married father, reached out to the victim's husband at the time, the husband, in an digital platform called “unbeknownst to her”, where Pelicot was recruiting men to enter his residence to rape his wife once he had sedated her into a unconscious state.

We trust the court will say loud and clear that in this country, fundamental rights are also rights of women – that consent is individual, not transferred,” said Gisèle Pelicot’s attorney, Antoine Camus. “Permission is obtained personally and not by proxy from a spouse.”

Case History

Dominique Pelicot, among the most severe sex offenders in modern French history, was sentenced to 20 years in prison last year for drugging his then wife and bringing in multiple perpetrators to sexually assault her in her home in the Provence village of the village of Mazan over a period of many years of their union.

Dozens of additional defendants were found guilty in a widely publicized trial last year, and Dogan was the single defendant to challenge his conviction. He was first given a sentence to nine years in prison, a sentence enhanced on Thursday to a decade.

The chief prosecutor, Dominique Sie, had stated he should serve twelve years, because he “absolutely refuses to take any responsibility”.

Evidence Presented

Dogan had initially sent the husband sexually explicit photos and then driven an hour from his residence in the region to assault the victim, after notifying his wife he was going out, the testimony revealed.

Pelicot, who was brought from isolation in prison to briefly provide testimony at the appeal trial, told the court that Dogan had understood his wife had been “incapacitated” and he told to men by phone: “I seek someone to violate my wife after I’ve sedated her unbeknownst to her.”

The proceedings became a key topic for a broader debate on societal attitudes in society as the defendant continued to say he was innocent and had not engaged in violation, arguing that because the victim's husband had welcomed him into the bedroom, his actions had been justifiable.

The jury in the Nîmes appeals court was shown video evidence of Gisèle Pelicot’s unresponsive form, sedated and breathing heavily in a unconscious condition, while a smiling Dogan committed rape multiple times over a period of what authorities reported was 3.5 hours. The court official said she had been at risk of fatal outcome by asphyxiation. The state's case said there was absolute certainty that she had been unconscious and had not consented.

Defendant's Statements

The defendant told the court the footage were simply “sexual encounters” and disputed it was rape. He said what he did was “a consensual activity”, not assault. He stated the court: “I am innocent of assault.” He said the victim's husband had brought him to the residence, and therefore it was OK. He said he was deceived by Dominique Pelicot. “I attempted to cease,” Dogan informed the court. “I proceeded because he reassured me.”

Questioned if he wanted to make a final statement to the court, the defendant said: “I had no desire to hurt that lady.”

Survivor's Statement

The victim, who was applauded upon departing the trial each day by onlookers present to support her, said to the defendant in court: “You fail to comprehend. When will you acknowledge you assaulted me? It is illegal to rape an unaware woman. How could I have give you agreement? Not once.”

Gisèle Pelicot, seventy-two, became an symbol of resistance after she relinquished her right to privacy in the trial last year when she said: “Guilt ought to transfer.”

State's Argument

Sie, addressing Gisèle Pelicot in court, said Dogan’s failure to take responsibility showed that: “Shame has not yet changed sides. The public is perhaps in the process of that, possibly driven by the societal understanding resulting from the revelation of your situation.”

Sie said the defendant's claims of non-guilt showed how rape culture was still prevalent in society as part of “old-fashioned” forms of “gender-based power”. He said: “It is imperative to change rape culture to a ethos of permission.”

The prosecutor told the defendant: “While you reject it, it’s not just a person, it’s an entire disturbing social system that you are supporting.”

Personal History

The accused was originated from the country of Turkey and at the age of five relocated to the nation of France, where his parent worked as a building manager. The court heard that his father was aggressive and that the defendant began smoking cannabis aged 10. When Dogan was 17 he was apprehended by police for drug trafficking and his parent forced him to leave of home. He spent time in prison for narcotics offenses in his early 20s and had worked as a builder but had experienced periods of homelessness.

He was married and had a son with Down’s syndrome, who he was the main caregiver for, as his spouse worked in a school canteen. The evidence showed his wife did not know he had regular extramarital activities outside their marriage. His legal team said this was his method of dealing with his stressful life. Dogan had stated to a mental health expert that annually he looked for commercial sex on his special day. His lawyers informed the court he had arthritis triggered by the anxiety of the initial proceedings.