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A man was declared guilty on appeal of sexually assaulting Gisèle Pelicot following she was sedated by her spouse – and was given his jail term raised to ten years.

Appeal Trial

Dogan, 44, an unemployed builder, who had challenged his first conviction last year, underwent a appeal hearing this week at the appeals court in Nîmes.

A panel of nine jurors, joined by three judges, ruled against Dogan on Thursday of sexually assaulting the victim in her home in the south of France in the early hours of 29 June 2019.

The evidence showed that the accused, a family man, reached out to Gisèle Pelicot’s husband at the time, Dominique Pelicot, in an digital platform named “without her consent”, where the husband was seeking men to enter his residence to assault his wife once he had sedated her into a comatose state.

We trust the jury will affirm that in this country, human rights are also rights of women – that consent is individual, not transferred,” said the victim's attorney, her legal representative. “Consent is obtained directly and not by proxy from a spouse.”

Case History

Dominique Pelicot, one of the worst sex offenders in modern French history, was given a prison term to twenty years in prison last year for sedating his spouse and inviting multiple perpetrators to sexually assault her in her home in the community of the village of Mazan over a span of many years of their union.

Numerous other individuals were found convicted in a widely publicized trial last year, and the appellant was the sole individual to challenge his sentence. He was originally handed a term to 9 years in prison, a punishment increased on Thursday to 10 years.

The lead state prosecutor, Dominique Sie, had stated he should serve twelve years, because he “absolutely refuses to take any accountability”.

Courtroom Details

The defendant had first sent the husband graphic images and then traveled an hour from his village in the region to assault Gisèle Pelicot, after telling his wife he was stepping out, the court heard.

The ex-husband, who was brought from isolation in prison to temporarily provide testimony at the appeal trial, told the court that Dogan had been aware his wife had been “drugged” and he communicated to men by phone: “I want someone to violate my wife after I’ve sedated her unbeknownst to her.”

The trial became a central issue for a larger conversation on rape culture in society as Dogan continued to claim he was not guilty and had not engaged in violation, stating that because the victim's husband had invited him into the room, his behavior had been justifiable.

The panel in the Nîmes appeals court was shown video evidence of Gisèle Pelicot’s unconscious figure, unconscious and breathing heavily in a unconscious condition, while a grinning Dogan engaged in violation multiple times over a period of what authorities reported was several hours. The judge said she had been at risk of death by choking. The prosecution said there was absolute certainty that she had been unconscious and had not given permission.

Dogan's Claims

The defendant stated to the court the recordings were simply “intimate moments” and rejected it was violation. He said what he did was “a sexual act”, not assault. He told the court: “I never raped.” He said the victim's husband had allowed him to the residence, and therefore it was OK. He said he was manipulated by Dominique Pelicot. “I wanted to stop,” Dogan stated to the court. “I continued because he convinced me.”

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

Survivor's Statement

Gisèle Pelicot, who was supported upon departing the trial each day by crowds present to stand with her, addressed Dogan in court: “You haven’t understood. When are you going to recognise you violated me? It’s a crime to assault an incapacitated woman. At what point did I give you agreement? At no time.”

The victim, 72, became an international feminist hero after she relinquished her right to anonymity in the trial last year when she said: “The shame should shift.”

State's Argument

The prosecutor, addressing Gisèle Pelicot in court, said the defendant's unwillingness to take blame showed that: “Shame has not yet changed sides. Society is maybe in the course of that, maybe propelled by the societal understanding brought by the revelation of your situation.”

The prosecutor said the defendant's claims of non-guilt showed how rape culture was still prevalent in society as part of “old-fashioned” forms of “gender-based power”. He said: “Now we must change the culture of violence to a ethos of permission.”

The prosecutor said to Dogan: “As long as you reject it, it’s not just a individual, it’s an entire disturbing societal structure that you are endorsing.”

Defendant's Background

Dogan was originated from the country of Turkey and at the age of five came to the nation of France, where his father worked as a concierge. The testimony revealed that his father was abusive and that Dogan began consuming marijuana aged ten. When Dogan was 17 he was stopped by authorities for drug trafficking and his father evicted him the residence. He was incarcerated in prison for trafficking in his young adulthood and had worked as a builder but had faced periods of homelessness.

He was wed and had a child with special needs, who he was the primary guardian for, as his wife worked in a educational cafeteria. The testimony revealed his wife did not know he had repeated sexual encounters outside their union. His legal team said this was his strategy for managing with his challenging existence. Dogan had told a court psychologist that annually he sought paid sex on his birthday. His attorneys informed the court he had arthritis triggered by the anxiety of the first trial.