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A defendant was convicted on appeal of sexually assaulting Gisèle Pelicot following she was rendered comatose by her then-husband – and received his jail term raised to ten years.

Higher Court Case

Dogan, 44, an unemployed builder, who had appealed his initial guilty verdict last year, faced a new trial this week at the Nîmes court of appeal.

A panel of four women and five men, accompanied by three judges, ruled against Dogan on Thursday of sexually assaulting the victim in her residence in southern France in the early hours of 29 June 2019.

The testimony revealed that the accused, a family man, connected with the victim's husband at the time, the husband, in an internet forum named “without her consent”, where Pelicot was looking for men to visit his house to assault his wife once he had drugged her into a deep sleep.

“We hope the jury will affirm that in this country, human rights are also women’s rights – that consent is individual, not given by another,” said Gisèle Pelicot’s attorney, Antoine Camus. “Agreement is obtained personally and not through someone else from a husband.”

Context

The ex-husband, among the most severe sexual predators in modern French history, was given a prison term to 20 years in prison last year for sedating his then wife and soliciting dozens of men to sexually assault her in her home in the town of Mazan over a period of nearly ten years of their union.

Fifty other men were found convicted in a notable trial last year, and Dogan was the only man to appeal against his conviction. He was initially handed a term to 9 years in prison, a punishment raised on Thursday to a decade.

The state's attorney, the prosecutor, had contended he should serve 12 years, because he “completely denies to take any responsibility”.

Courtroom Details

The defendant had first sent the husband sexually explicit photos and then driven an hour from his town in the region to assault the victim, after informing his wife he was going out, the testimony revealed.

The ex-husband, who was brought from segregation in prison to briefly provide testimony at the appeal trial, stated to the court that Dogan had known his wife had been “incapacitated” and he communicated to men by phone: “I’m looking for someone to abuse my wife after I’ve sedated her without her knowledge.”

The proceedings became a key topic for a wider discussion on societal attitudes in society as Dogan continued to say he was blameless and had not engaged in violation, arguing that because Gisèle Pelicot’s husband had allowed him into the bedroom, his actions had been permissible.

The panel in the higher court was shown visual proof of Gisèle Pelicot’s unconscious figure, unconscious and breathing heavily in a unconscious condition, while a grinning Dogan performed assault repeatedly over a period of what authorities reported was several hours. The court official said she had been at risk of fatal outcome by choking. The state's case said there was no question that she had been unaware and had not consented.

Accused's Testimony

Dogan told the court the videos were simply “sexual encounters” and rejected it was rape. He said what he did was “an intimate behavior”, not assault. He told the court: “I am innocent of assault.” He said the victim's husband had allowed him to the residence, and therefore it was OK. He said he was influenced by the husband. “I attempted to cease,” Dogan stated to the court. “I proceeded because he convinced me.”

Inquired if he wanted to make a closing remarks to the court, Dogan said: “I had no desire to hurt that individual.”

Victim's Response

Gisèle Pelicot, who was applauded upon leaving court each day by supporters assembled to back her, addressed Dogan in court: “You haven’t understood. When are you going to recognise you assaulted me? It is unlawful to assault an unaware woman. At what point did I give you permission? Not once.”

Gisèle Pelicot, 72, became an international feminist hero after she gave up her right to anonymity in the trial last year when she said: “Shame must change sides.”

Legal Commentary

Sie, turning to the victim in court, said Dogan’s failure to take blame showed that: “The shame remains. Society is perhaps in the process of that, perhaps driven by the public consciousness brought by the publication of your situation.”

The prosecutor said the defendant's claims of innocence showed how rape culture was still widespread in society as part of “archaic” forms of “gender-based power”. He said: “It is imperative to change the culture of violence to a culture of consent.”

Sie said to the defendant: “For as much as you deny it, it’s not just a person, it’s an complete unpleasant societal structure that you are endorsing.”

Biographical Details

Dogan was originated from Turkey and at the age of five moved to France, where his father worked as a concierge. The evidence indicated that his father was aggressive and that Dogan began smoking cannabis at the age of 10. When he was 17 he was caught by authorities for drug trafficking and his father evicted him of home. He served time in prison for trafficking in his twenties and had worked as a laborer but had undergone periods of being unhoused.

He was wed and had a son with special needs, who he was the main caregiver for, as his spouse worked in a school canteen. The evidence showed his wife did not know he had frequent intimate relations outside their marriage. His defence said this was his method of dealing with his stressful life. The defendant had told a mental health expert that once a year he sought transactional encounters on his special day. His lawyers told the court he had joint inflammation caused by the pressure of the initial proceedings.