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An individual has been found guilty on appeal of raping Gisèle Pelicot following she was rendered comatose by her spouse – and has had his incarceration period raised to 10 years.

Retrial Proceedings

Dogan, 44, an unemployed builder, who had challenged his initial guilty verdict last year, underwent a appeal hearing this week at the appeals court in Nîmes.

A jury of five men and four women, joined by three judges, found Dogan guilty on Thursday of sexually assaulting Pelicot in her residence in the south of France in the early hours of 29 June 2019.

The testimony revealed that the accused, a family man, reached out to the victim's husband at the time, Dominique Pelicot, in an digital platform titled “unbeknownst to her”, where the husband was seeking men to come to his home to assault his wife after he had rendered her unconscious into a deep sleep.

“We hope the panel will say loud and clear that in this society, fundamental rights are also women’s rights – that agreement is individual, not given by another,” stated the victim's attorney, Antoine Camus. “Consent is obtained directly and not by proxy from a husband.”

Case History

Dominique Pelicot, one of the worst sexual predators in recent French history, was handed a sentence to twenty years in prison last year for sedating his then wife and soliciting numerous individuals to rape her in her home in the town of the village of Mazan over a period of nearly ten years of their union.

Dozens of additional defendants were found culpable in a widely publicized trial last year, and the appellant was the sole individual to challenge his verdict. He was originally sentenced to nine years in prison, a sentence increased on Thursday to ten years.

The state's attorney, the prosecutor, had argued he should serve 12 years, because he “absolutely refuses to take any responsibility”.

Courtroom Details

The defendant had first sent the husband inappropriate pictures and then driven an hour from his town in Provence to rape the victim, after notifying his wife he was leaving, the evidence indicated.

The ex-husband, who was brought from segregation in prison to briefly testify at the appeal trial, told the court that the accused had understood his wife had been “sedated” and he told to men by phone: “I want someone to abuse my wife after I’ve sedated her without her knowledge.”

The proceedings became a key topic for a larger conversation on societal attitudes in society as Dogan continued to say he was not guilty and had not engaged in violation, stating that because the victim's husband had invited him into the residence, his conduct had been permissible.

The jury in the Nîmes appeals court was displayed recorded footage of Gisèle Pelicot’s unconscious figure, comatose and breathing heavily in a comatose state, while a smiling Dogan performed assault on several occasions over a timeframe of what investigators stated was 3.5 hours. The presiding judge said she had been at danger of death by asphyxiation. The state's case said there was no doubt that she had been unaware and had not given permission.

Defendant's Statements

The defendant informed the court the videos were simply “sexual encounters” and denied it was rape. He said what he did was “a sexual act”, not assault. He declared the court: “I never raped.” He said Gisèle Pelicot’s husband had invited him to the residence, and therefore it was OK. He said he was manipulated by the husband. “I wanted to stop,” the accused stated to the court. “I carried on because he reassured me.”

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

Victim's Response

The victim, who was supported upon exiting the courtroom each day by crowds present to back her, said to the defendant in court: “You do not grasp. When are you going to recognise you assaulted me? It is unlawful to rape an incapacitated woman. How could I have give you permission? Never.”

The victim, seventy-two, became an global icon after she waived her right to confidentiality in the trial last year when she said: “Guilt ought to transfer.”

State's Argument

The prosecutor, speaking to Gisèle Pelicot in court, said Dogan’s refusal to take responsibility showed that: “Shame has not yet changed sides. The community is maybe in the course of that, perhaps motivated by the public consciousness resulting from the exposure of your case.”

Sie said Dogan’s claims of innocence showed how normalized violence was still common in society as part of “outdated” forms of “gender-based power”. He said: “Now we must change rape culture to a ethos of permission.”

Sie said to Dogan: “While you refuse to admit it, it’s not just a person, it’s an entire disturbing cultural framework that you are upholding.”

Defendant's Background

Dogan was born in Turkey and at the age of five relocated to the nation of France, where his father worked as a caretaker. The evidence indicated that his father was violent and that Dogan began consuming marijuana aged 10. When he was seventeen he was stopped by authorities for dealing drugs and his parent kicked him out the family house. He was incarcerated in prison for drug dealing in his young adulthood and had worked as a laborer but had experienced periods of being unhoused.

He was married and had a child with a genetic condition, who he was the main caregiver for, as his wife worked in a institution's dining hall. The evidence showed his wife did not know he had regular sexual encounters outside their marriage. His defence said this was his way of coping with his stressful life. Dogan had informed a court psychologist that annually he looked for commercial sex on his special day. His lawyers informed the court he had joint inflammation triggered by the pressure of the initial proceedings.