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A defendant has been found guilty on higher court review of sexually assaulting Gisele Pelicot following she was rendered comatose by her then-husband – and received his prison sentence increased to ten years.

Appeal Trial

The defendant, 44, an unemployed builder, who had contested his first conviction last year, underwent a retrial this week at the higher court in Nîmes.

A panel of nine jurors, joined by three judges, convicted Dogan on Thursday of raping the victim in her residence in Provence in the early hours of 29 June 2019.

The court heard that Dogan, a family man, made contact with the victim's husband at the time, the husband, in an digital platform titled “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 say loud and clear that in this society, human rights are also women’s rights – that permission is individual, not transferred,” stated the victim's lawyer, Antoine Camus. “Agreement is received personally and not through someone else from a spouse.”

Case History

The husband, a notorious sex offenders in modern French history, was given a prison term to two decades in prison last year for incapacitating his then wife and soliciting multiple perpetrators to sexually assault her in her home in the town of Mazan over a span of many years of their union.

Fifty other men were found convicted in a notable trial last year, and Dogan was the sole individual to contest his sentence. He was originally sentenced 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 “stubbornly rejects to take any responsibility”.

Testimony and Proof

Dogan had initially sent the husband sexually explicit photos and then driven an hour from his village in Provence to assault Gisèle Pelicot, after notifying his wife he was going out, the court heard.

The ex-husband, who was brought from segregation in prison to temporarily testify at the appeal trial, told the court that the accused had understood his wife had been “incapacitated” 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 broader debate on sexual violence norms in society as the defendant continued to claim he was blameless and had not engaged in violation, arguing that because the victim's husband had invited him into the room, his conduct had been justifiable.

The jury in the higher court was displayed visual proof of Gisèle Pelicot’s unresponsive form, unconscious and snoring in a unconscious condition, while a smiling Dogan committed rape on several occasions over a duration of what police said was several hours. The court official said she had been at danger of death by choking. The state prosecution said there was absolute certainty that she had been unaware and had not agreed.

Defendant's Statements

The defendant stated to the court the recordings were simply “intimate moments” and denied it was violation. He said what he did was “a sexual act”, not assault. He declared the court: “I never raped.” He said Gisèle Pelicot’s husband had brought him to the house, and therefore it was OK. He said he was influenced by the husband. “I tried to halt,” Dogan informed the court. “I carried on because he reassured me.”

Questioned if he wanted to make a closing remarks to the court, the defendant said: “I did not intend to injure that individual.”

Victim's Response

The survivor, who was supported upon departing the trial each day by onlookers gathered to stand with her, addressed Dogan in court: “You fail to comprehend. When are you going to recognise you assaulted me? It is unlawful to assault an unconscious woman. At what point did I give you agreement? At no time.”

The victim, seventy-two, became an symbol of resistance after she waived her right to confidentiality in the trial last year when she said: “The shame should shift.”

Prosecutor's Remarks

The prosecutor, turning to the victim in court, said Dogan’s failure to take blame showed that: “Shame has not yet changed sides. Society is perhaps in the midst of that, possibly motivated by the societal understanding resulting from the revelation of your ordeal.”

Sie said Dogan’s claims of non-guilt showed how societal tolerance was still common in society as part of “old-fashioned” forms of “male domination”. He said: “Now we must change rape culture to a culture of consent.”

The prosecutor addressed Dogan: “While you deny it, it’s not just a woman, it’s an whole unpleasant cultural framework that you are upholding.”

Personal History

The accused was born in the country of Turkey and at the age of 5 moved to France, where his father worked as a building manager. The court heard that his parent was aggressive and that the defendant began using drugs at the age of ten. When Dogan was seventeen he was caught by authorities for selling narcotics and his parent evicted him the family house. He served time in prison for narcotics offenses in his young adulthood and had worked as a builder but had undergone periods of being unhoused.

He was married and had a child with special needs, who he was the principal carer for, as his spouse worked in a educational cafeteria. The evidence showed his wife did not know he had repeated intimate relations beyond their union. His defence said this was his strategy for managing with his stressful life. Dogan had informed a mental health expert that annually he looked for paid sex on his birthday. His attorneys informed the court he had a medical condition triggered by the pressure of the initial proceedings.