A man has been found guilty on higher court review of raping Gisele Pelicot after she was rendered comatose by her spouse – and has had his incarceration period raised to 10 years.
Higher Court Case
Dogan, 44, an out-of-work construction worker, who had challenged his initial guilty verdict last year, faced a retrial this week at the higher court in Nîmes.
A jury of five men and four women, sitting with three judges, convicted Dogan on Thursday of sexually assaulting Pelicot in her home in the south of France in the early hours of June 29, 2019.
The evidence showed that the accused, a married father, made contact with the victim's then husband, the husband, in an internet forum named “without her knowledge”, where Pelicot was looking for men to enter his residence to rape his wife after he had rendered her unconscious into a deep sleep.
We expect the jury will affirm that in this country, fundamental rights are also women’s rights – that permission is individual, not delegated,” stated the victim's lawyer, her legal representative. “Permission is received personally and not through someone else from a spouse.”
Case History
The ex-husband, among the most severe sexual predators in recent French history, was handed a sentence to 20 years in prison last year for sedating his spouse and soliciting multiple perpetrators to sexually assault her in her home in the community of the village of Mazan over a duration of almost a decade of their union.
Numerous other individuals were found culpable in a widely publicized trial last year, and the appellant was the single defendant to challenge his sentence. He was first sentenced to nine years in prison, a punishment enhanced on Thursday to ten years.
The lead state prosecutor, the prosecutor, had argued he should serve twelve years, because he “completely denies to take any responsibility”.
Testimony and Proof
Dogan had initially sent the husband graphic images and then driven an hour from his town in Provence to rape the victim, after informing his wife he was going out, the court heard.
Pelicot, who was brought from solitary confinement in prison to temporarily provide testimony at the hearing, told the court that Dogan had known his wife had been “drugged” and he said to men by phone: “I seek someone to assault my wife after I’ve rendered her unconscious without her consent.”
The trial became a focus point for a wider discussion on sexual violence norms in society as Dogan continued to say he was blameless and had not engaged in violation, arguing that because Gisèle Pelicot’s husband had welcomed him into the room, his conduct had been permissible.
The panel in the higher court was displayed visual proof of Gisèle Pelicot’s unconscious figure, unconscious and snoring in a comatose state, while a smiling the perpetrator committed rape multiple times over a timeframe of what authorities reported was three and a half hours. The court official said she had been at danger of fatal outcome by choking. The prosecution said there was absolute certainty that she had been unaware and had not consented.
Dogan's Claims
The defendant informed the court the videos were simply “intimate moments” and rejected it was assault. He said what he did was “a sexual act”, not assault. He told the court: “I am innocent of assault.” He said Gisèle Pelicot’s husband had allowed him to the house, and therefore it was OK. He said he was deceived by Dominique Pelicot. “I tried to halt,” Dogan informed the court. “I carried on because he reassured me.”
Inquired if he wanted to make a final statement to the court, the defendant said: “I never wanted to harm that woman.”
Pelicot's Words
The survivor, who was supported upon departing the trial each day by onlookers present to back her, told the defendant in court: “You do not grasp. When will you acknowledge you raped me? It is unlawful to assault an incapacitated woman. When did I ever give you permission? At no time.”
Gisèle Pelicot, seventy-two, became an international feminist hero after she waived her right to anonymity in the trial last year when she said: “The shame should shift.”
Prosecutor's Remarks
Sie, addressing Gisèle Pelicot in court, said the defendant's unwillingness to take blame showed that: “Guilt has not shifted. The community is maybe in the course of that, perhaps motivated by the societal understanding brought by the revelation of your case.”
The prosecutor said the defendant's claims of non-guilt showed how rape culture was still prevalent in society as part of “outdated” forms of “patriarchal control”. He said: “It is imperative to change rape culture to a culture of consent.”
The prosecutor said to Dogan: “For as much as you refuse to admit it, it’s not just a individual, it’s an whole disturbing societal structure that you are supporting.”
Biographical Details
The accused was originated from the country of Turkey and at the age of five relocated to France, where his parent worked as a concierge. The testimony revealed that his parent was aggressive and that the defendant began consuming marijuana at the age of 10. When Dogan was seventeen he was stopped by authorities for drug trafficking and his father evicted him the family house. He was incarcerated in prison for trafficking in his twenties and had worked as a laborer but had faced periods of being unhoused.
He was married and had a child with a genetic condition, who he was the main caregiver for, as his wife worked in a educational cafeteria. The evidence showed his spouse did not know he had repeated sexual encounters beyond their union. His defence said this was his method of dealing with his difficult circumstances. Dogan had told a mental health expert that each year he looked for paid sex on his birthday. His legal representatives stated to the court he had joint inflammation resulting from the stress of the initial proceedings.
