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A man has been found guilty on higher court review of sexually assaulting Gisèle Pelicot following she was sedated by her then-husband – and received his incarceration period increased to a decade.

Appeal Trial

Husamettin Dogan, forty-four, an unemployed builder, who had challenged his initial guilty verdict last year, experienced a retrial this week at the appeals court in Nîmes.

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

The court heard that Dogan, a family man, connected with the victim's then husband, the husband, in an internet forum called “without her knowledge”, where Pelicot was recruiting men to visit his house to rape his wife after he had drugged her into a unconscious state.

“We hope the panel will affirm that in this country, human rights are also rights of women – that permission is individual, not delegated,” declared the victim's attorney, her legal representative. “Permission is secured personally and not by proxy from a husband.”

Background

Dominique Pelicot, one of the worst sexual predators in modern French history, was handed a sentence to 20 years in prison last year for sedating his spouse and bringing in multiple perpetrators to sexually assault her in her home in the community of the village of Mazan over a period of many years of their union.

Dozens of additional defendants were found guilty in a high-profile trial last year, and the appellant was the sole individual to contest his verdict. He was initially given a sentence to nine years in prison, a sentence increased on Thursday to ten years.

The lead state prosecutor, the prosecutor, had contended he should serve twelve years, because he “absolutely refuses to take any blame”.

Evidence Presented

The defendant had initially sent the husband inappropriate pictures and then traveled an hour from his town in the region to assault Gisèle Pelicot, after telling his wife he was going out, the court heard.

Pelicot, who was transported from solitary confinement in prison to temporarily provide testimony at the retrial, informed the court that Dogan had known his wife had been “drugged” and he said to men by phone: “I want someone to abuse my wife after I’ve put her to sleep without her knowledge.”

The proceedings became a focus point for a larger conversation on societal attitudes in society as Dogan continued to claim he was not guilty and had not committed rape, stating that because Gisèle Pelicot’s husband had allowed him into the bedroom, his actions had been acceptable.

The panel in the Nîmes appeals court was presented with video evidence of the victim's unconscious figure, comatose and breathing heavily in a comatose state, while a grinning Dogan engaged in violation multiple times over a duration of what investigators stated was 3.5 hours. The judge said she had been at danger of fatal outcome by choking. The prosecution said there was no doubt that she had been incapacitated and had not given permission.

Accused's Testimony

Dogan told the court the recordings were simply “intimate moments” and denied it was violation. He said what he did was “an intimate behavior”, not rape. He declared the court: “I did not commit rape.” He said Gisèle Pelicot’s husband had invited him to the house, and therefore it was permissible. He said he was deceived by Dominique Pelicot. “I tried to halt,” the accused informed the court. “I proceeded because he reassured me.”

Asked if he wanted to make a closing remarks to the court, the defendant said: “I had no desire to hurt that individual.”

Pelicot's Words

Gisèle Pelicot, who was applauded upon leaving court each day by onlookers present to back her, said to the defendant in court: “You haven’t understood. When are you going to recognise you violated me? It is illegal to assault an incapacitated woman. At what point did I give you permission? Not once.”

The victim, seventy-two, became an global icon after she waived her right to anonymity in the trial last year when she said: “The shame should shift.”

State's Argument

The prosecutor, speaking to Gisèle Pelicot in court, said Dogan’s unwillingness to take blame showed that: “Shame has not yet changed sides. Society is maybe in the course of that, maybe propelled by the public consciousness spurred by the exposure of your situation.”

The prosecutor said the defendant's claims of non-guilt showed how rape culture was still prevalent in society as part of “old-fashioned” forms of “male domination”. He said: “We need to change rape culture to a culture of consent.”

The prosecutor said to the defendant: “As long as you refuse to admit it, it’s not just a woman, it’s an entire unpleasant social system that you are supporting.”

Biographical Details

The accused was originated from Turkey and at the age of five relocated to the nation of France, where his father worked as a caretaker. The court heard that his father was abusive and that Dogan began consuming marijuana at the age of ten. When he was seventeen he was apprehended by authorities for dealing drugs and his parent forced him to leave the family house. He was incarcerated in prison for trafficking in his young adulthood and had worked as a laborer but had faced 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 school canteen. The evidence showed his wife did not know he had regular intimate relations outside their union. His defence said this was his method of dealing with his difficult circumstances. Dogan had told a evaluator that once a year he looked for commercial sex on his special day. His lawyers informed the court he had a medical condition caused by the pressure of the first trial.