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An individual was convicted on retrial of sexually assaulting Gisele Pelicot following she was rendered comatose by her spouse – and received his jail term raised to a decade.

Retrial Proceedings

Dogan, 44, an unemployed builder, who had contested his initial guilty verdict last year, experienced a retrial this week at the appeals court in Nîmes.

A panel of five men and four women, sitting with three judges, convicted Dogan on Thursday of sexually assaulting Pelicot in her home in Provence in the early hours of June 29, 2019.

The testimony revealed that the accused, a married father, made contact with the victim's then husband, the husband, in an online chatroom called “unbeknownst to her”, where Pelicot was looking for men to enter his residence to assault his wife once he had sedated her into a deep sleep.

“We hope the jury will declare that in this nation, fundamental rights are also women’s rights – that consent is individual, not delegated,” said the victim's lawyer, her legal representative. “Consent is secured directly and not through someone else from a spouse.”

Case History

The husband, among the most severe sex offenders in recent French history, was given a prison term to two decades in prison last year for sedating his then wife and inviting multiple perpetrators to sexually assault her in her home in the town of the village of Mazan over a period of nearly ten years of their union.

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 handed a term to 9 years in prison, a penalty enhanced on Thursday to 10 years.

The chief prosecutor, the prosecutor, had argued he should serve 12 years, because he “completely denies to take any responsibility”.

Testimony and Proof

The defendant had initially sent Dominique Pelicot inappropriate pictures and then traveled an hour from his town in the region to assault the victim, after informing his wife he was going out, the evidence indicated.

The ex-husband, who was brought from solitary confinement in prison to temporarily give evidence at the appeal trial, informed the court that Dogan had understood his wife had been “drugged” and he communicated to men by phone: “I seek someone to abuse my wife after I’ve put her to sleep unbeknownst to her.”

The courtroom became a key topic for a broader debate on societal attitudes in society as the defendant continued to assert he was not guilty and had not perpetrated assault, arguing that because Gisèle Pelicot’s husband had invited him into the residence, his conduct had been permissible.

The jury in the Nîmes appeals court was shown video evidence of the victim's unconscious figure, unconscious and snoring in a comatose state, while a grinning the perpetrator performed assault repeatedly over a period of what investigators stated was 3.5 hours. The presiding judge said she had been at danger of fatal outcome by asphyxiation. The state's case said there was no question that she had been unconscious and had not agreed.

Accused's Testimony

Dogan stated to the court the footage were simply “sex scenes” and disputed it was rape. He said what he did was “a sexual act”, not rape. He stated the court: “I did not commit rape.” He said the victim's husband had brought him to the home, and therefore it was acceptable. He said he was influenced by the husband. “I tried to halt,” Dogan told the court. “I continued because he convinced me.”

Questioned if he wanted to make a last words to the court, Dogan said: “I did not intend to injure that individual.”

Survivor's Statement

Gisèle Pelicot, who was cheered upon leaving court each day by crowds present to support her, said to the defendant in court: “You haven’t understood. When will you acknowledge you raped me? It is unlawful to rape an unconscious woman. At what point did I give you agreement? Not once.”

The victim, seventy-two, became an global icon after she gave up her right to privacy in the trial last year when she said: “Shame must change sides.”

Legal Commentary

Sie, turning to Gisèle Pelicot in court, said the defendant's failure to take accountability showed that: “Shame has not yet changed sides. The community is maybe in the course of that, perhaps driven by the societal understanding resulting from the revelation of your case.”

Sie said Dogan’s claims of blamelessness showed how normalized violence was still widespread in society as part of “outdated” forms of “patriarchal control”. He said: “We need to change rape culture to a society based on agreement.”

Sie told the defendant: “For as much as you reject it, it’s not just a person, it’s an entire disturbing societal structure that you are endorsing.”

Defendant's Background

The accused was born in Turkey and at the age of five came to France, where his father worked as a caretaker. The evidence indicated that his parent was violent and that the defendant began consuming marijuana at the age of 10. When Dogan was 17 he was stopped by police for dealing drugs and his father forced him to leave the family house. He was incarcerated in prison for narcotics offenses in his young adulthood and had worked as a builder but had experienced periods of living on the streets.

He was married and had a child with a genetic condition, 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 repeated extramarital activities beyond their marriage. His legal team said this was his way of coping with his challenging existence. The defendant had told a court psychologist that once a year he looked for transactional encounters on his birthday. His legal representatives told the court he had arthritis triggered by the stress of the original case.