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A defendant has been found guilty on appeal of raping Gisele Pelicot after she was sedated by her spouse – and has had his jail term extended to 10 years.

Retrial Proceedings

Husamettin Dogan, 44, an unemployed builder, who had challenged his initial guilty verdict last year, experienced a retrial this week at the appeals court in Nîmes.

A jury of nine jurors, accompanied by three judges, ruled against Dogan on Thursday of sexually assaulting Pelicot in her bedroom in southern France in the early hours of June 29, 2019.

The evidence showed that Dogan, a married father, connected with the victim's spouse, the husband, in an online chatroom called “unbeknownst to her”, where the husband was seeking men to visit his house to assault his wife after he had rendered her unconscious into a deep sleep.

“We hope the court will say loud and clear that in this country, fundamental rights are also women’s rights – that consent is individual, not transferred,” said the victim's lawyer, Antoine Camus. “Consent is received directly and not through someone else from a husband.”

Context

The ex-husband, among the most severe sexual predators in France's contemporary records, was sentenced to twenty years in prison last year for incapacitating his then wife and bringing in dozens of men to sexually assault her in her home in the Provence village of the village of Mazan over a duration of nearly ten years of their union.

Numerous other individuals were found guilty in a notable trial last year, and Dogan was the sole individual to challenge his verdict. He was first handed a term to nine years in prison, a penalty enhanced on Thursday to 10 years.

The chief prosecutor, the prosecutor, had stated he should serve 12 years, because he “completely denies to take any responsibility”.

Evidence Presented

Dogan had first sent the husband graphic images and then driven an hour from his village in Provence to assault the victim, after notifying his wife he was going out, the evidence indicated.

The ex-husband, who was brought from segregation in prison to briefly provide testimony at the hearing, stated to the court that Dogan had understood his wife had been “sedated” and he told to men by phone: “I want someone to violate my wife after I’ve put her to sleep without her consent.”

The trial became a central issue for a larger conversation on societal attitudes in society as the defendant continued to say he was innocent and had not committed rape, stating that because the victim's husband had invited him into the residence, his behavior had been justifiable.

The panel in the Nîmes appeals court was displayed visual proof of Gisèle Pelicot’s limp body, comatose and breathing heavily in a comatose state, while a smiling the perpetrator committed rape on several occasions over a duration of what police said was 3.5 hours. The court official said she had been at peril of fatal outcome by asphyxiation. The prosecution said there was no doubt that she had been unaware and had not given permission.

Defendant's Statements

Dogan stated to the court the videos were simply “sex scenes” and denied it was assault. He said what he did was “an intimate behavior”, not rape. He told 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 the husband. “I wanted to stop,” the accused told the court. “I continued because he convinced me.”

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

Survivor's Statement

The victim, who was supported upon departing the trial each day by supporters gathered to support her, told Dogan in court: “You do not grasp. When are you going to recognise you raped me? It is unlawful to rape an unaware woman. At what point did I give you agreement? Never.”

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

Legal Commentary

Sie, addressing the victim in court, said Dogan’s unwillingness to take accountability showed that: “Shame has not yet changed sides. The community is maybe in the course of that, possibly motivated by the public consciousness brought by the revelation of your situation.”

Sie said the defendant's claims of non-guilt showed how societal tolerance was still prevalent in society as part of “outdated” forms of “patriarchal control”. He said: “We need to change the culture of violence to a culture of consent.”

The prosecutor addressed Dogan: “As long as you reject it, it’s not just a individual, it’s an entire disturbing cultural framework that you are endorsing.”

Defendant's Background

The accused was born in the country of Turkey and at the age of five moved to the nation of France, where his father worked as a concierge. The evidence indicated that his father was violent and that Dogan began using drugs aged 10. When he was seventeen he was caught by authorities for selling narcotics and his father evicted him of home. He was incarcerated in prison for drug dealing in his early 20s and had worked as a laborer but had undergone periods of being unhoused.

He was wed and had a son with a genetic condition, who he was the primary guardian for, as his spouse worked in a school canteen. The court heard his spouse did not know he had regular intimate relations beyond their marriage. His defence said this was his way of coping with his challenging existence. The defendant had told a mental health expert that once a year he looked for paid sex on his special day. His lawyers stated to the court he had joint inflammation resulting from the pressure of the original case.