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A defendant was declared guilty on higher court review of sexually assaulting Gisele Pelicot after she was rendered comatose by her spouse – and has had his incarceration period extended to 10 years.

Higher Court Case

Dogan, 44, an out-of-work construction worker, who had appealed his first conviction last year, underwent a new trial this week at the Nîmes court of appeal.

A jury of nine jurors, accompanied by three judges, ruled against Dogan on Thursday of raping Pelicot in her residence in Provence in the early hours of 29 June 2019.

The court heard that the accused, a family man, reached out to the victim's husband at the time, Dominique Pelicot, in an digital platform named “unbeknownst to her”, where the husband was seeking men to visit his house to rape his wife once he had sedated her into a comatose state.

We trust the court will declare that in this country, fundamental rights are also rights of women – that agreement is personal, not delegated,” said Gisèle Pelicot’s attorney, her legal representative. “Permission is obtained personally and not through someone else from a spouse.”

Case History

Dominique Pelicot, among the most severe sex offenders in France's contemporary records, was given a prison term to two decades in prison last year for drugging his spouse and inviting dozens of men to rape her in her home in the Provence village of the village of Mazan over a span of many years of their union.

Numerous other individuals were found convicted in a high-profile trial last year, and Dogan was the only man to contest his sentence. He was originally handed a term to 9 years in prison, a penalty enhanced on Thursday to ten years.

The state's attorney, Dominique Sie, had contended he should serve twelve years, because he “completely denies to take any accountability”.

Testimony and Proof

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

Pelicot, who was transported from isolation in prison to temporarily provide testimony at the appeal trial, told the court that the accused had understood his wife had been “drugged” and he communicated to men by phone: “I’m looking for someone to assault my wife after I’ve sedated her without her knowledge.”

The courtroom became a focus point for a broader debate on sexual violence norms in society as Dogan continued to claim he was not guilty and had not perpetrated assault, stating that because Gisèle Pelicot’s husband had invited him into the residence, his behavior had been acceptable.

The panel in the higher court was presented with recorded footage of the victim's unresponsive form, unconscious and snoring in a deep sleep, while a smiling the perpetrator committed rape repeatedly over a period of what police said was 3.5 hours. The judge said she had been at peril of death by choking. The state prosecution said there was absolute certainty that she had been incapacitated and had not consented.

Defendant's Statements

Dogan told the court the recordings were simply “sex scenes” and rejected it was violation. He said what he did was “a consensual activity”, not assault. He declared the court: “I never raped.” He said the victim's husband had allowed him to the house, and therefore it was permissible. He said he was influenced by Dominique Pelicot. “I attempted to cease,” Dogan told the court. “I proceeded because he convinced me.”

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

Pelicot's Words

The survivor, who was cheered upon leaving court each day by supporters assembled to support her, said to Dogan in court: “You fail to comprehend. When will you acknowledge you assaulted me? It’s a crime to assault an incapacitated woman. How could I have give you agreement? Never.”

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

State's Argument

The prosecutor, addressing the victim in court, said Dogan’s failure to take accountability showed that: “Shame has not yet changed sides. The public is possibly in the midst of that, possibly motivated by the societal understanding brought by the publication of your case.”

The prosecutor said Dogan’s claims of blamelessness showed how normalized violence was still prevalent in society as part of “outdated” forms of “gender-based power”. He said: “Now we must change rape culture to a ethos of permission.”

The prosecutor told Dogan: “As long as you reject it, it’s not just a person, it’s an entire sordid social system that you are supporting.”

Personal History

Dogan was born in the country of Turkey and at the age of five moved to France, where his parent worked as a concierge. The testimony revealed that his father was violent and that the defendant began using drugs aged 10. When he was seventeen he was apprehended by authorities for selling narcotics and his parent forced him to leave the family house. He served time in prison for trafficking in his twenties and had worked as a construction worker but had undergone periods of homelessness.

He was wed and had a son with a genetic condition, who he was the main caregiver for, as his spouse worked in a educational cafeteria. The court heard his wife did not know he had repeated sexual encounters beyond their union. His legal team said this was his strategy for managing with his challenging existence. Dogan had stated to a mental health expert that annually he sought transactional encounters on his birthday. His legal representatives told the court he had arthritis caused by the stress of the first trial.