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A defendant has been found guilty on appeal of sexually assaulting Gisele Pelicot following she was sedated by her then-husband – and received his jail term extended to a decade.

Retrial Proceedings

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

A panel of four women and five men, joined by three judges, ruled against Dogan on Thursday of raping Pelicot in her bedroom in Provence in the early hours of June 29, 2019.

The testimony revealed that Dogan, a married father, connected with the victim's then husband, Dominique Pelicot, in an internet forum titled “unbeknownst to her”, where Pelicot was seeking men to come to his home to rape his wife after he had drugged her into a unconscious state.

We expect the panel will declare that in this society, fundamental rights are also women’s rights – that permission is individual, not given by another,” said Gisèle Pelicot’s lawyer, Antoine Camus. “Consent is received directly and not by proxy from a husband.”

Case History

The ex-husband, a notorious sex offenders in modern French history, was handed a sentence to 20 years in prison last year for sedating his wife at the time and inviting dozens of men to sexually assault her in her home in the town of Mazan over a duration of almost a decade of their marriage.

Fifty other men were found culpable in a widely publicized trial last year, and Dogan was the only man to contest his conviction. He was originally sentenced to nine years in prison, a punishment enhanced on Thursday to 10 years.

The state's attorney, Dominique Sie, had argued he should serve twelve years, because he “completely denies to take any blame”.

Testimony and Proof

Dogan had first sent the husband graphic images and then traveled an hour from his village in Provence to rape Gisèle Pelicot, after informing his wife he was going out, the evidence indicated.

The ex-husband, who was brought from segregation in prison to temporarily give evidence at the hearing, told the court that Dogan had known his wife had been “drugged” and he communicated to men by phone: “I’m looking for someone to abuse my wife after I’ve sedated her unbeknownst to her.”

The trial became a focus point for a larger conversation on rape culture in society as Dogan continued to say he was blameless and had not engaged in violation, contending that because Gisèle Pelicot’s husband had welcomed him into the residence, his behavior had been permissible.

The panel in the higher court was presented with visual proof of the victim's unconscious figure, unconscious and breathing heavily in a deep sleep, while a smiling Dogan committed rape multiple times over a period of what investigators stated was 3.5 hours. The court official said she had been at risk of fatal outcome by choking. The prosecution said there was no doubt that she had been incapacitated and had not agreed.

Defendant's Statements

The defendant stated to the court the footage were simply “sexual encounters” and denied it was violation. He said what he did was “a sexual act”, not rape. He stated the court: “I never raped.” He said the victim's husband had invited him to the residence, and therefore it was OK. He said he was influenced by Dominique Pelicot. “I wanted to stop,” Dogan informed the court. “I proceeded because he persuaded me.”

Inquired if he wanted to make a final statement to the court, the defendant said: “I did not intend to hurt that woman.”

Victim's Response

Gisèle Pelicot, who was applauded upon departing the trial each day by onlookers assembled to back her, told Dogan in court: “You haven’t understood. When will you acknowledge you raped me? It is illegal to assault an unconscious woman. How could I have give you agreement? At no time.”

Gisèle Pelicot, seventy-two, became an symbol of resistance after she relinquished her right to anonymity in the trial last year when she said: “The shame should shift.”

Legal Commentary

Sie, addressing the victim in court, said Dogan’s refusal to take blame 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 situation.”

Sie said the defendant's claims of blamelessness showed how rape culture 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 society based on agreement.”

The prosecutor told Dogan: “As long as you reject it, it’s not just a person, it’s an whole sordid social system that you are upholding.”

Biographical Details

The accused was originated from the country of Turkey and at the age of 5 came to France, where his father worked as a caretaker. The testimony revealed that his parent was aggressive and that the defendant began using drugs at the age of ten. When Dogan was 17 he was caught by police for selling narcotics and his father evicted him the residence. He was incarcerated in prison for narcotics offenses in his early 20s and had worked as a construction worker but had experienced periods of homelessness.

He was married and had a child with special needs, who he was the primary guardian for, as his wife worked in a institution's dining hall. The evidence showed his spouse did not know he had repeated intimate relations beyond their marriage. His defence said this was his method of dealing with his difficult circumstances. The defendant had told a evaluator that each year he engaged in paid sex on his special day. His lawyers told the court he had joint inflammation triggered by the stress of the first trial.