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An individual was declared guilty on higher court review of raping Gisele Pelicot after she was rendered comatose by her spouse – and has had his jail term increased to a decade.

Higher Court Case

Husamettin Dogan, 44, an out-of-work construction worker, who had appealed his initial guilty verdict last year, faced a new trial this week at the appeals court in Nîmes.

A jury of five men and four women, sitting with three judges, found Dogan guilty on Thursday of raping Pelicot in her home in the south of France in the morning of June 29, 2019.

The evidence showed that Dogan, a family man, made contact with Gisèle Pelicot’s husband at the time, the husband, in an online chatroom called “unbeknownst to her”, where the husband was looking for men to enter his residence to assault his wife after he had drugged her into a deep sleep.

“We hope the court will affirm that in this nation, human rights are also women’s rights – that consent is individual, not given by another,” said the victim's attorney, Antoine Camus. “Consent is secured personally and not through someone else from a spouse.”

Background

The husband, among the most severe sexual predators in recent French history, was sentenced to two decades in prison last year for sedating his spouse and inviting multiple perpetrators to rape her in her home in the town of the village of Mazan over a duration of nearly ten years of their marriage.

Dozens of additional defendants were found convicted in a notable trial last year, and Dogan was the only man to challenge his conviction. He was originally sentenced to 9 years in prison, a penalty increased on Thursday to 10 years.

The lead state prosecutor, Dominique Sie, had argued he should serve twelve years, because he “stubbornly rejects to take any accountability”.

Courtroom Details

Dogan had initially sent the husband graphic images and then traveled an hour from his town in the region to assault the victim, after telling his wife he was leaving, the court heard.

Pelicot, who was transported from isolation in prison to briefly testify at the appeal trial, stated to the court that Dogan had known his wife had been “incapacitated” and he communicated to men by phone: “I’m looking for someone to assault my wife after I’ve put her to sleep unbeknownst to her.”

The trial became a central issue for a broader debate on rape culture in society as the defendant continued to say he was not guilty and had not perpetrated assault, stating that because the victim's husband had welcomed him into the residence, his actions had been justifiable.

The jury in the Nîmes appeals court was displayed video evidence of the victim's unresponsive form, sedated and breathing heavily in a comatose state, while a smiling the perpetrator performed assault on several occasions over a duration of what police said was 3.5 hours. The presiding judge said she had been at peril of death by asphyxiation. The prosecution said there was absolute certainty that she had been incapacitated and had not agreed.

Defendant's Statements

Dogan informed the court the footage were simply “intimate moments” and denied it was assault. He said what he did was “a consensual activity”, not assault. He told the court: “I did not commit rape.” He said the victim's husband had allowed him to the home, and therefore it was permissible. He said he was deceived by Dominique Pelicot. “I tried to halt,” Dogan stated to the court. “I continued because he convinced me.”

Questioned if he wanted to make a closing remarks to the court, the defendant said: “I never wanted to hurt that woman.”

Survivor's Statement

The victim, who was supported upon leaving court each day by onlookers present to back her, told Dogan in court: “You fail to comprehend. When will you admit you violated me? It is illegal to assault an unconscious woman. At what point did I give you consent? Not once.”

Gisèle Pelicot, seventy-two, became an international feminist hero after she waived her right to confidentiality in the trial last year when she said: “The shame should shift.”

Legal Commentary

The prosecutor, addressing Gisèle Pelicot in court, said Dogan’s failure to take responsibility showed that: “The shame remains. Society is perhaps in the course of that, maybe motivated by the collective awareness resulting from the revelation of your situation.”

Sie said Dogan’s claims of non-guilt showed how rape culture was still common in society as part of “archaic” forms of “male domination”. He said: “Now we must change the culture of violence to a ethos of permission.”

The prosecutor addressed Dogan: “As long as you refuse to admit it, it’s not just a woman, it’s an entire disturbing social system that you are upholding.”

Personal History

Dogan was originated from Turkey and at the age of five came to France, where his parent worked as a building manager. The testimony revealed that his parent was aggressive and that the defendant began using drugs at the age of 10. When he was 17 he was apprehended by authorities for drug trafficking and his father kicked him out of home. He was incarcerated in prison for trafficking in his twenties and had worked as a builder but had experienced periods of living on the streets.

He was married and had a son with Down’s syndrome, who he was the primary guardian for, as his spouse worked in a school canteen. The court heard his spouse did not know he had regular sexual encounters outside their union. His defence said this was his strategy for managing with his difficult circumstances. The defendant had stated to a evaluator that annually he engaged in commercial sex on his birthday. His attorneys stated to the court he had arthritis caused by the pressure of the first trial.