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A man has been found guilty on appeal of sexually assaulting Gisèle Pelicot after she was drugged unconscious by her husband – and was given his jail term increased to ten years.

Appeal Trial

Dogan, 44, an out-of-work construction worker, who had appealed his initial guilty verdict last year, underwent a appeal hearing this week at the higher court in Nîmes.

A panel of five men and four women, joined by three judges, convicted Dogan on Thursday of raping the victim in her home in the south of France in the early hours of 29 June 2019.

The evidence showed that Dogan, a family man, reached out to the victim's then husband, the husband, in an internet forum named “without her knowledge”, where the husband was seeking men to enter his residence to rape his wife once he had drugged her into a deep sleep.

We expect the panel will affirm that in this society, human rights are also women’s rights – that agreement is individual, not transferred,” said the victim's lawyer, Antoine Camus. “Consent is obtained personally and not through someone else from a spouse.”

Case History

The husband, one of the worst sex offenders in modern French history, was sentenced 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 span of many years of their union.

Fifty other men were found culpable in a high-profile trial last year, and the appellant was the only man to challenge his sentence. He was originally handed a term to 9 years in prison, a sentence enhanced on Thursday to a decade.

The state's attorney, the prosecutor, had argued he should serve 12 years, because he “stubbornly rejects to take any responsibility”.

Evidence Presented

The defendant had initially sent the husband graphic images and then driven an hour from his town in Provence to rape Gisèle Pelicot, after telling his wife he was leaving, the testimony revealed.

Pelicot, who was brought from solitary confinement in prison to briefly give evidence at the hearing, stated to the court that Dogan had been aware his wife had been “drugged” and he communicated to men by phone: “I seek someone to abuse my wife after I’ve put her to sleep unbeknownst to her.”

The proceedings became a focus point for a wider discussion on rape culture in society as the defendant continued to assert he was not guilty and had not perpetrated assault, arguing that because Gisèle Pelicot’s husband had welcomed him into the residence, his conduct had been permissible.

The panel in the Nîmes appeals court was displayed recorded footage of Gisèle Pelicot’s unresponsive form, unconscious and breathing heavily in a unconscious condition, while a grinning the perpetrator engaged in violation on several occasions over a timeframe of what police said was 3.5 hours. The presiding judge said she had been at danger of fatal outcome by asphyxiation. The state's case said there was no question that she had been unconscious and had not consented.

Dogan's Claims

Dogan informed the court the videos were simply “sexual encounters” and disputed it was rape. He said what he did was “an intimate behavior”, not rape. He declared the court: “I am innocent of assault.” He said the victim's husband had brought him to the residence, and therefore it was OK. He said he was manipulated by Dominique Pelicot. “I wanted to stop,” the accused stated to the court. “I proceeded because he reassured me.”

Inquired if he wanted to make a closing remarks to the court, Dogan said: “I did not intend to injure that woman.”

Pelicot's Words

The victim, who was cheered upon exiting the courtroom each day by supporters gathered to stand with her, addressed the defendant in court: “You haven’t understood. When are you going to recognise you raped me? It’s a crime to rape an incapacitated woman. When did I ever give you permission? Never.”

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

Prosecutor's Remarks

The prosecutor, turning to the victim in court, said Dogan’s refusal to take blame showed that: “Guilt has not shifted. Society is maybe in the process of that, perhaps propelled by the collective awareness spurred by the publication of your ordeal.”

Sie said Dogan’s claims of blamelessness showed how societal tolerance was still prevalent in society as part of “old-fashioned” forms of “patriarchal control”. He said: “It is imperative to change the culture of violence to a culture of consent.”

Sie addressed the defendant: “For as much as you refuse to admit it, it’s not just a woman, it’s an complete disturbing cultural framework that you are supporting.”

Personal History

The accused was originated from the country of Turkey and at the age of five relocated to the nation of France, where his parent worked as a caretaker. The evidence indicated that his parent was abusive and that Dogan began using drugs aged 10. When he was 17 he was caught by police for dealing drugs and his parent evicted him of home. He spent time in prison for trafficking in his twenties and had worked as a builder but had faced periods of living on the streets.

He was married 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 frequent sexual encounters beyond their marriage. His defence said this was his strategy for managing with his difficult circumstances. Dogan had informed a court psychologist that annually he sought commercial sex on his special day. His lawyers told the court he had arthritis triggered by the anxiety of the initial proceedings.