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A man was convicted on retrial of raping Gisele Pelicot following she was rendered comatose by her spouse – and has had his jail term increased to 10 years.

Higher Court Case

Husamettin Dogan, 44, an unemployed builder, who had contested his initial guilty verdict last year, faced a retrial this week at the Nîmes court of appeal.

A panel of nine jurors, sitting with three judges, convicted Dogan on Thursday of sexually assaulting Pelicot in her home in Provence in the morning of June 29, 2019.

The court heard that the accused, a married father, made contact with Gisèle Pelicot’s husband at the time, Dominique Pelicot, in an online chatroom named “without her knowledge”, where the husband was looking for men to visit his house to assault his wife after he had drugged her into a deep sleep.

We trust the jury will declare that in this nation, fundamental rights are also rights of women – that consent is individual, not delegated,” said the victim's lawyer, her legal representative. “Consent is received directly and not via a representative from a spouse.”

Context

Dominique Pelicot, among the most severe sex offenders in recent French history, was sentenced to twenty years in prison last year for drugging his then wife and soliciting dozens of men to sexually assault her in her home in the Provence village of the village of Mazan over a period of almost a decade of their marriage.

Numerous other individuals were found convicted in a notable trial last year, and Dogan was the single defendant to appeal against his sentence. He was first handed a term to 9 years in prison, a penalty raised on Thursday to a decade.

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

Courtroom Details

The defendant had first sent the husband inappropriate pictures and then traveled an hour from his village in Provence to rape the victim, after telling his wife he was going out, the evidence indicated.

The ex-husband, who was transported from isolation in prison to briefly testify at the appeal trial, informed the court that Dogan had known his wife had been “incapacitated” and he said to men by phone: “I want someone to assault my wife after I’ve sedated her without her consent.”

The courtroom became a central issue for a larger conversation on sexual violence norms in society as the defendant continued to claim he was not guilty and had not engaged in violation, arguing that because the victim's husband had welcomed him into the room, his behavior had been justifiable.

The jury in the Nîmes appeals court was displayed visual proof of the victim's limp body, comatose and breathing heavily in a deep sleep, while a grinning the perpetrator engaged in violation on several occasions over a period of what authorities reported was several hours. The judge said she had been at danger of death by suffocation. The prosecution said there was no doubt that she had been incapacitated and had not consented.

Dogan's Claims

The defendant stated to the court the footage were simply “sexual encounters” and rejected it was assault. 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 brought him to the residence, and therefore it was OK. He said he was manipulated by the husband. “I attempted to cease,” the accused stated to the court. “I continued because he reassured me.”

Inquired if he wanted to make a closing remarks to the court, Dogan said: “I did not intend to hurt that lady.”

Pelicot's Words

The survivor, who was cheered upon exiting the courtroom each day by supporters assembled to stand with her, addressed the defendant in court: “You do not grasp. When are you going to recognise you violated me? It is illegal to rape an unaware woman. When did I ever give you consent? At no time.”

The victim, 72, became an international feminist hero after she gave up her right to privacy in the trial last year when she said: “Guilt ought to transfer.”

Legal Commentary

The prosecutor, turning to the victim in court, said the defendant's failure to take responsibility showed that: “Shame has not yet changed sides. The public is maybe in the midst of that, maybe driven by the societal understanding resulting from the exposure of your ordeal.”

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 rape culture to a society based on agreement.”

The prosecutor addressed the defendant: “While you reject it, it’s not just a woman, it’s an complete disturbing cultural framework that you are upholding.”

Defendant's Background

The accused was originated from the country of Turkey and at the age of 5 moved to France, where his parent worked as a concierge. The evidence indicated that his father was abusive and that Dogan began using drugs at the age of 10. When he was 17 he was stopped by police for dealing drugs and his parent kicked him out of home. He was incarcerated in prison for trafficking in his twenties and had worked as a builder but had faced periods of living on the streets.

He was wed and had a child with Down’s syndrome, who he was the main caregiver for, as his spouse worked in a educational cafeteria. The evidence showed his spouse did not know he had regular extramarital activities outside their union. His defence said this was his method of dealing with his stressful life. The defendant had informed a mental health expert that annually he sought paid sex on his special day. His legal representatives informed the court he had arthritis resulting from the anxiety of the first trial.