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A defendant was declared guilty on appeal of raping Gisèle Pelicot after she was sedated by her spouse – and was given his jail term increased to ten years.

Retrial Proceedings

Husamettin Dogan, forty-four, an out-of-work construction worker, who had contested his initial guilty verdict last year, experienced a new trial this week at the Nîmes court of appeal.

A jury of five men and four women, accompanied by three judges, convicted Dogan on Thursday of raping the victim in her residence in southern France in the morning of 29 June 2019.

The testimony revealed that the accused, a family man, made contact with the victim's spouse, the husband, in an internet forum named “unbeknownst to her”, where Pelicot was recruiting men to come to his home to rape his wife after he had rendered her unconscious into a comatose state.

“We hope the court will affirm that in this nation, human rights are also women’s rights – that permission is personal, not transferred,” declared Gisèle Pelicot’s lawyer, Antoine Camus. “Consent is received personally and not through someone else from a spouse.”

Context

Dominique Pelicot, one of the worst sex offenders in modern French history, was given a prison term to twenty years in prison last year for drugging his spouse and bringing in multiple perpetrators to rape her in her home in the Provence village of Mazan over a period of almost a decade of their marriage.

Numerous other individuals were found guilty in a notable trial last year, and the appellant was the sole individual to appeal against his conviction. He was originally sentenced to nine years in prison, a punishment raised on Thursday to a decade.

The state's attorney, the prosecutor, had argued he should serve 12 years, because he “stubbornly rejects to take any accountability”.

Testimony and Proof

The defendant had first sent the husband sexually explicit photos and then traveled an hour from his town in the region to rape the victim, after telling his wife he was leaving, the court heard.

The ex-husband, who was transported from solitary confinement in prison to temporarily provide testimony at the hearing, stated to the court that the accused had known his wife had been “sedated” and he communicated to men by phone: “I want someone to abuse my wife after I’ve rendered her unconscious without her consent.”

The trial became a central issue for a larger conversation on rape culture in society as Dogan continued to claim he was not guilty and had not committed rape, contending that because Gisèle Pelicot’s husband had invited him into the room, his behavior had been justifiable.

The jury in the Nîmes appeals court was displayed recorded footage of Gisèle Pelicot’s unresponsive form, sedated and breathing heavily in a comatose state, while a smiling the perpetrator performed assault multiple times over a period of what police said was three and a half hours. The judge said she had been at danger of death by asphyxiation. The state's case said there was no question that she had been incapacitated and had not consented.

Defendant's Statements

The defendant informed the court the footage were simply “sex scenes” and denied it was rape. He said what he did was “a consensual activity”, not assault. He told the court: “I am innocent of assault.” He said Gisèle Pelicot’s husband had brought him to the home, and therefore it was permissible. He said he was deceived by Dominique Pelicot. “I wanted to stop,” the accused told the court. “I proceeded because he convinced me.”

Inquired if he wanted to make a last words to the court, the defendant said: “I did not intend to injure that lady.”

Survivor's Statement

The survivor, who was applauded upon departing the trial each day by crowds assembled to support her, told the defendant in court: “You haven’t understood. When will you admit you violated me? It is illegal to assault an incapacitated woman. At what point did I give you permission? Never.”

The victim, 72, became an symbol of resistance after she relinquished her right to confidentiality in the trial last year when she said: “Shame must change sides.”

Prosecutor's Remarks

Sie, addressing the victim in court, said the defendant's unwillingness to take blame showed that: “The shame remains. Society is perhaps in the midst of that, perhaps propelled by the public consciousness spurred by the revelation of your case.”

Sie said the defendant's claims of blamelessness showed how societal tolerance was still prevalent in society as part of “outdated” forms of “male domination”. He said: “It is imperative to change the culture of violence to a society based on agreement.”

The prosecutor addressed Dogan: “As long as you reject it, it’s not just a woman, it’s an whole unpleasant cultural framework that you are supporting.”

Personal History

The accused was born in Turkey and at the age of five relocated to the nation of France, where his parent worked as a caretaker. The court heard that his father was violent and that the defendant began consuming marijuana at the age of ten. When Dogan was 17 he was stopped by police for drug trafficking and his father kicked him out of home. He spent time in prison for drug dealing in his young adulthood and had worked as a construction worker but had undergone periods of living on the streets.

He was wed and had a child with special needs, who he was the main caregiver for, as his spouse worked in a institution's dining hall. The evidence showed his spouse did not know he had frequent intimate relations outside their marriage. His legal team said this was his way of coping with his difficult circumstances. The defendant had informed a court psychologist that annually he sought paid sex on his birthday. His legal representatives told the court he had a medical condition triggered by the stress of the first trial.