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An individual was convicted on retrial of raping Gisèle Pelicot after she was rendered comatose by her then-husband – and was given his prison sentence increased to a decade.

Retrial Proceedings

The defendant, 44, an unemployed builder, who had appealed his initial guilty verdict last year, experienced a retrial this week at the Nîmes court of appeal.

A jury of nine jurors, joined by three judges, ruled against Dogan on Thursday of sexually assaulting the victim in her home in southern France in the morning of June 29, 2019.

The testimony revealed that Dogan, a married father, reached out to the victim's then husband, the husband, in an digital platform named “without her knowledge”, where the husband was recruiting men to enter his residence to rape his wife after he had sedated her into a unconscious state.

We trust the court will say loud and clear that in this nation, human rights are also women’s rights – that consent is personal, not transferred,” declared the victim's lawyer, Antoine Camus. “Agreement is secured personally and not via a representative from a husband.”

Context

The husband, one of the worst sexual predators in recent French history, was handed a sentence to 20 years in prison last year for sedating his wife at the time and inviting numerous individuals to rape her in her home in the town of the village of Mazan over a span of many years of their marriage.

Fifty other men were found convicted in a notable trial last year, and Dogan was the sole individual to challenge his conviction. He was first sentenced to 9 years in prison, a penalty raised on Thursday to a decade.

The lead state prosecutor, the prosecutor, had contended he should serve 12 years, because he “stubbornly rejects to take any blame”.

Testimony and Proof

Dogan had first sent the husband sexually explicit photos and then traveled an hour from his town in the region to rape Gisèle Pelicot, after informing his wife he was stepping out, the evidence indicated.

The ex-husband, who was brought from isolation in prison to temporarily provide testimony at the appeal trial, told the court that Dogan had known his wife had been “drugged” and he said to men by phone: “I seek someone to violate my wife after I’ve rendered her unconscious without her consent.”

The trial became a focus point for a wider discussion on sexual violence norms in society as the defendant continued to say he was blameless and had not engaged in violation, arguing that because Gisèle Pelicot’s husband had allowed him into the room, his behavior had been acceptable.

The panel in the Nîmes appeals court was displayed visual proof of the victim's limp body, sedated and breathing heavily in a deep sleep, while a grinning Dogan committed rape repeatedly over a period of what police said was 3.5 hours. The presiding judge said she had been at peril of death by choking. The state's case said there was no doubt that she had been unaware and had not given permission.

Dogan's Claims

The defendant stated to the court the recordings were simply “sexual encounters” and disputed it was rape. He said what he did was “an intimate behavior”, not rape. He stated the court: “I never raped.” He said the victim's husband had brought him to the house, and therefore it was OK. He said he was deceived by the husband. “I wanted to stop,” the accused stated to the court. “I continued because he persuaded me.”

Asked if he wanted to make a final statement to the court, Dogan said: “I did not intend to hurt that lady.”

Victim's Response

Gisèle Pelicot, who was applauded upon leaving court each day by supporters gathered to support her, said to the defendant in court: “You do not grasp. When will you admit you raped me? It is illegal to assault an unaware woman. When did I ever give you agreement? At no time.”

The victim, 72, became an symbol of resistance after she waived her right to anonymity in the trial last year when she said: “The shame should shift.”

State's Argument

Sie, speaking to the victim in court, said Dogan’s refusal to take responsibility showed that: “The shame remains. The public is maybe in the course of that, maybe propelled by the collective awareness resulting from the publication of your ordeal.”

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

The prosecutor told Dogan: “While you deny it, it’s not just a individual, it’s an complete unpleasant social system that you are endorsing.”

Defendant's Background

The accused was originated from Turkey and at the age of five moved to France, where his parent worked as a building manager. The court heard that his father was aggressive and that the defendant began smoking cannabis at the age of ten. When Dogan was 17 he was caught by authorities for drug trafficking and his parent forced him to leave the residence. He spent time in prison for trafficking in his early 20s and had worked as a construction worker but had undergone periods of living on the streets.

He was married and had a child with Down’s syndrome, who he was the primary guardian for, as his spouse worked in a institution's dining hall. The testimony revealed his wife did not know he had frequent intimate relations beyond their union. His defence said this was his strategy for managing with his challenging existence. Dogan had informed a evaluator that once a year he sought commercial sex on his birthday. His lawyers stated to the court he had arthritis resulting from the pressure of the initial proceedings.