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A man was convicted on retrial of raping Gisele Pelicot after she was drugged unconscious by her then-husband – and was given his prison sentence extended to 10 years.

Higher Court Case

Dogan, forty-four, an unemployed builder, who had contested his initial guilty verdict last year, experienced a appeal hearing this week at the higher court in Nîmes.

A panel of four women and five men, accompanied by three judges, found Dogan guilty on Thursday of raping Pelicot in her residence in southern France in the early hours of June 29, 2019.

The testimony revealed that Dogan, a married father, reached out to Gisèle Pelicot’s husband at the time, Dominique Pelicot, in an digital platform called “without her knowledge”, where the husband was recruiting men to come to his home to rape his wife after he had sedated her into a deep sleep.

“We hope the panel will affirm that in this nation, fundamental rights are also women’s rights – that agreement is individual, not given by another,” stated the victim's attorney, her legal representative. “Permission is obtained personally and not by proxy from a husband.”

Case History

The ex-husband, one of the worst sex offenders in France's contemporary records, was sentenced to 20 years in prison last year for sedating his spouse and bringing in dozens of men to sexually assault her in her home in the community of Mazan over a span of almost a decade of their marriage.

Fifty other men were found culpable in a notable trial last year, and Dogan was the sole individual to challenge his conviction. He was originally sentenced to nine years in prison, a penalty enhanced on Thursday to ten years.

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

Testimony and Proof

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

Pelicot, who was brought from isolation in prison to briefly testify at the hearing, informed the court that the accused had been aware his wife had been “drugged” and he said to men by phone: “I’m looking for someone to abuse my wife after I’ve rendered her unconscious unbeknownst to her.”

The proceedings became a central issue for a wider discussion on societal attitudes in society as Dogan continued to assert he was not guilty and had not committed rape, arguing that because the victim's husband had invited him into the residence, his actions had been acceptable.

The panel in the higher court was shown visual proof of Gisèle Pelicot’s unresponsive form, sedated and snoring in a unconscious condition, while a smiling Dogan committed rape repeatedly over a duration of what authorities reported was three and a half hours. The judge said she had been at peril of fatal outcome by asphyxiation. The state prosecution said there was no doubt that she had been unaware and had not agreed.

Dogan's Claims

The defendant told the court the footage were simply “sex scenes” and rejected it was violation. He said what he did was “a sexual act”, not assault. He stated the court: “I am innocent of assault.” He said Gisèle Pelicot’s husband had brought him to the residence, and therefore it was acceptable. He said he was deceived by Dominique Pelicot. “I tried to halt,” Dogan informed the court. “I continued because he convinced me.”

Inquired if he wanted to make a last words to the court, the defendant said: “I never wanted to injure that woman.”

Pelicot's Words

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

Gisèle Pelicot, 72, became an international feminist hero after she waived her right to confidentiality in the trial last year when she said: “Guilt ought to transfer.”

Legal Commentary

The prosecutor, speaking to Gisèle Pelicot in court, said Dogan’s failure to take accountability showed that: “Guilt has not shifted. Society is possibly in the process of that, maybe driven by the public consciousness resulting from the exposure of your ordeal.”

The prosecutor said the defendant's claims of non-guilt showed how normalized violence was still common in society as part of “archaic” forms of “male domination”. He said: “It is imperative to change rape culture to a society based on agreement.”

Sie told the defendant: “For as much as you refuse to admit it, it’s not just a woman, it’s an entire unpleasant social system that you are upholding.”

Biographical Details

Dogan was originated from the country of Turkey and at the age of five relocated to the nation of France, where his father worked as a caretaker. The testimony revealed that his parent was abusive and that Dogan began smoking cannabis at the age of ten. When he was 17 he was caught by authorities for dealing drugs and his father evicted him the residence. He served time in prison for trafficking in his twenties and had worked as a laborer but had faced periods of homelessness.

He was married and had a son with Down’s syndrome, who he was the principal carer for, as his wife worked in a institution's dining hall. The court heard his wife did not know he had regular sexual encounters beyond their marriage. His defence said this was his method of dealing with his stressful life. Dogan had informed a court psychologist that once a year he engaged in paid sex on his special day. His attorneys told the court he had joint inflammation resulting from the pressure of the first trial.