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A man was convicted on retrial of raping Gisèle Pelicot following she was rendered comatose by her then-husband – and has had his jail term raised to a decade.

Retrial Proceedings

The defendant, forty-four, an unemployed builder, who had contested his initial guilty verdict last year, underwent a retrial this week at the appeals court in Nîmes.

A panel of five men and four women, accompanied by three judges, found Dogan guilty on Thursday of sexually assaulting the victim in her home in the south of France in the morning of 29 June 2019.

The court heard that the accused, a family man, connected with the victim's spouse, Dominique Pelicot, in an internet forum called “without her knowledge”, where Pelicot was seeking men to come to his home to rape his wife once he had rendered her unconscious into a comatose state.

“We hope the panel will affirm that in this country, fundamental rights are also women’s rights – that permission is individual, not transferred,” said Gisèle Pelicot’s lawyer, her legal representative. “Agreement is secured directly and not through someone else from a husband.”

Context

The ex-husband, one of the worst sex offenders in modern French history, was given a prison term to twenty years in prison last year for incapacitating his wife at the time and soliciting numerous individuals to rape her in her home in the town of Mazan over a span of nearly ten years of their marriage.

Dozens of additional defendants were found guilty in a high-profile trial last year, and the appellant was the single defendant to challenge his sentence. He was first handed a term to nine years in prison, a punishment raised on Thursday to 10 years.

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

Testimony and Proof

Dogan had initially sent Dominique Pelicot sexually explicit photos and then traveled an hour from his town in Provence to assault the victim, after telling his wife he was leaving, the testimony revealed.

The ex-husband, who was brought from solitary confinement in prison to briefly testify at the appeal trial, stated to the court that Dogan had understood his wife had been “sedated” and he told to men by phone: “I seek someone to assault my wife after I’ve rendered her unconscious without her knowledge.”

The courtroom became a focus point for a wider discussion on sexual violence norms in society as Dogan continued to assert he was innocent and had not perpetrated assault, stating that because Gisèle Pelicot’s husband had invited him into the bedroom, his behavior had been justifiable.

The jury in the Nîmes appeals court was presented with video evidence 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 duration of what police said was several hours. The presiding judge said she had been at danger of death by asphyxiation. The prosecution said there was absolute certainty that she had been unconscious and had not given permission.

Dogan's Claims

The defendant told the court the footage were simply “intimate moments” and disputed it was assault. He said what he did was “a sexual act”, not assault. He stated the court: “I am innocent of assault.” He said Gisèle Pelicot’s husband had allowed him to the home, and therefore it was acceptable. He said he was manipulated by Dominique Pelicot. “I attempted to cease,” Dogan stated to the court. “I carried on because he persuaded me.”

Inquired if he wanted to make a last words to the court, Dogan said: “I had no desire to injure that woman.”

Victim's Response

Gisèle Pelicot, who was supported upon departing the trial each day by onlookers assembled to back her, told the defendant in court: “You haven’t understood. When will you acknowledge you assaulted me? It’s a crime to rape an unaware woman. When did I ever give you consent? Never.”

Gisèle Pelicot, 72, became an global icon 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 unwillingness to take accountability showed that: “Shame has not yet changed sides. The community is perhaps in the process of that, maybe driven by the public consciousness resulting from the revelation of your ordeal.”

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

Sie said to the defendant: “While you refuse to admit it, it’s not just a individual, it’s an complete disturbing societal structure that you are endorsing.”

Personal History

The accused was originated from the country of Turkey and at the age of 5 relocated to the nation of France, where his father worked as a concierge. The court heard that his parent was aggressive and that Dogan began using drugs at the age of ten. When Dogan was seventeen he was caught by authorities for drug trafficking and his parent kicked him out of home. He spent time in prison for narcotics offenses in his twenties and had worked as a laborer but had faced periods of homelessness.

He was married and had a son with special needs, who he was the main caregiver for, as his wife worked in a school canteen. The court heard 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. The defendant had informed a mental health expert that each year he engaged in paid sex on his special day. His lawyers informed the court he had a medical condition triggered by the anxiety of the initial proceedings.