🔗 Share this article

A defendant has been found guilty on higher court review of raping Gisele Pelicot following she was rendered comatose by her spouse – and received his jail term increased to a decade.

Appeal Trial

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

A panel of nine jurors, accompanied by three judges, convicted Dogan on Thursday of sexually assaulting Pelicot in her home in Provence in the early hours of 29 June 2019.

The testimony revealed that the accused, a family man, reached out to the victim's then husband, Dominique Pelicot, in an internet forum titled “without her knowledge”, where the husband was seeking men to come to his home to assault his wife once he had rendered her unconscious into a deep sleep.

“We hope the panel will say loud and clear that in this society, human rights are also rights of women – that permission is individual, not transferred,” stated the victim's lawyer, her legal representative. “Agreement is secured personally and not by proxy from a spouse.”

Case History

Dominique Pelicot, one of the worst sex offenders in France's contemporary records, was given a prison term to two decades in prison last year for sedating his wife at the time and bringing in dozens of men to rape her in her home in the community of the village of Mazan over a duration of almost a decade of their union.

Dozens of additional defendants were found culpable in a high-profile trial last year, and the appellant was the sole individual to challenge his sentence. He was originally sentenced to nine years in prison, a penalty enhanced on Thursday to 10 years.

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

Testimony and Proof

The defendant had initially sent Dominique Pelicot sexually explicit photos and then traveled an hour from his residence in the region to assault Gisèle Pelicot, after telling his wife he was stepping out, the testimony revealed.

Pelicot, who was transported from solitary confinement in prison to briefly testify at the appeal trial, stated to the court that Dogan had known his wife had been “drugged” and he told to men by phone: “I’m looking for someone to abuse my wife after I’ve rendered her unconscious unbeknownst to her.”

The trial became a focus point for a wider discussion on rape culture in society as the defendant continued to say he was innocent and had not committed rape, arguing that because Gisèle Pelicot’s husband had allowed him into the bedroom, his conduct had been acceptable.

The jury in the Nîmes appeals court was shown video evidence of Gisèle Pelicot’s unresponsive form, comatose and snoring in a deep sleep, while a smiling the perpetrator performed assault multiple times over a duration of what authorities reported was several hours. The presiding judge said she had been at risk of fatal outcome by suffocation. The state's case said there was no question that she had been incapacitated and had not agreed.

Dogan's Claims

The defendant stated to the court the footage were simply “intimate moments” and denied it was assault. He said what he did was “a consensual activity”, not rape. He stated 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 wanted to stop,” Dogan informed the court. “I proceeded because he reassured me.”

Inquired if he wanted to make a final statement to the court, Dogan said: “I did not intend to injure that woman.”

Survivor's Statement

The victim, who was cheered upon departing the trial each day by onlookers gathered to stand with her, told the defendant in court: “You haven’t understood. When are you going to recognise you raped me? It’s a crime to assault an unconscious woman. How could I have give you agreement? Not once.”

The victim, 72, became an symbol of resistance after she gave up her right to anonymity in the trial last year when she said: “Shame must change sides.”

State's Argument

The prosecutor, speaking to the victim in court, said the defendant's unwillingness to take responsibility showed that: “Guilt has not shifted. The public is perhaps in the process of that, maybe driven by the collective awareness resulting from the publication of your situation.”

The prosecutor said Dogan’s claims of non-guilt showed how societal tolerance 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 addressed the defendant: “As long as you reject it, it’s not just a individual, it’s an entire sordid social system that you are upholding.”

Biographical Details

Dogan was born in Turkey and at the age of 5 moved to the nation of France, where his parent worked as a concierge. The court heard that his parent was abusive and that Dogan began using drugs at the age of ten. When Dogan was 17 he was stopped by authorities for selling narcotics and his father evicted him the family house. He was incarcerated in prison for narcotics offenses in his twenties and had worked as a construction worker but had experienced periods of living on the streets.

He was wed and had a son with a genetic condition, who he was the primary guardian for, as his spouse worked in a educational cafeteria. The evidence showed his spouse did not know he had regular intimate relations outside their marriage. His legal team said this was his way of coping with his challenging existence. The defendant had stated to a court psychologist that each year he looked for transactional encounters on his special day. His legal representatives told the court he had arthritis triggered by the stress of the initial proceedings.