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A man has been found guilty on retrial of sexually assaulting Gisèle Pelicot after she was drugged unconscious by her spouse – and received his jail term increased to a decade.

Retrial Proceedings

The defendant, 44, an unemployed builder, who had appealed his first conviction last year, underwent a new trial this week at the Nîmes court of appeal.

A jury of nine jurors, sitting with three judges, ruled against Dogan on Thursday of raping Pelicot in her bedroom in the south of France in the morning of June 29, 2019.

The testimony revealed that the accused, a family man, reached out to Gisèle Pelicot’s spouse, the husband, in an internet forum called “unbeknownst to her”, where the husband was looking for men to enter his residence to rape his wife once he had drugged her into a comatose state.

“We hope the jury will say loud and clear that in this country, human rights are also women’s rights – that permission is personal, not delegated,” stated the victim's lawyer, her legal representative. “Permission is obtained personally and not through someone else from a husband.”

Background

The ex-husband, a notorious sexual predators in recent French history, was given a prison term to twenty years in prison last year for drugging his spouse and inviting dozens of men to rape her in her home in the town of Mazan over a span of many years of their marriage.

Dozens of additional defendants were found convicted in a widely publicized trial last year, and Dogan was the sole individual to challenge his sentence. He was first given a sentence to 9 years in prison, a sentence enhanced on Thursday to 10 years.

The lead state prosecutor, the prosecutor, had contended he should serve 12 years, because he “stubbornly rejects to take any responsibility”.

Courtroom Details

The defendant had first sent Dominique Pelicot inappropriate pictures and then driven an hour from his town in the region to assault Gisèle Pelicot, after notifying his wife he was stepping out, the testimony revealed.

The ex-husband, who was transported from segregation in prison to temporarily give evidence at the hearing, informed the court that Dogan had been aware his wife had been “drugged” and he said to men by phone: “I seek someone to assault my wife after I’ve put her to sleep without her knowledge.”

The proceedings became a key topic for a broader debate on sexual violence norms in society as the defendant continued to claim he was innocent and had not committed rape, stating that because Gisèle Pelicot’s husband had welcomed him into the residence, his conduct had been acceptable.

The jury in the higher court was displayed recorded footage of Gisèle Pelicot’s unresponsive form, unconscious and snoring in a comatose state, while a smiling Dogan performed assault multiple times over a period of what authorities reported was several hours. The judge said she had been at danger of death by asphyxiation. The prosecution said there was no question that she had been unaware and had not agreed.

Dogan's Claims

Dogan informed the court the recordings were simply “intimate moments” and disputed it was rape. He said what he did was “an intimate behavior”, not assault. He stated the court: “I never raped.” He said Gisèle Pelicot’s husband had brought him to the house, and therefore it was acceptable. He said he was influenced by Dominique Pelicot. “I tried to halt,” the accused told the court. “I carried on because he convinced me.”

Questioned if he wanted to make a final statement to the court, the defendant said: “I had no desire to injure that woman.”

Pelicot's Words

The survivor, who was cheered upon leaving court each day by onlookers assembled to back her, said to Dogan in court: “You do not grasp. When will you acknowledge you assaulted me? It is unlawful to assault an unaware woman. How could I have give you agreement? Never.”

Gisèle Pelicot, 72, became an global icon after she relinquished her right to anonymity in the trial last year when she said: “The shame should shift.”

Legal Commentary

Sie, speaking to Gisèle Pelicot in court, said the defendant's unwillingness to take blame showed that: “Shame has not yet changed sides. The public is perhaps in the course of that, perhaps propelled by the societal understanding brought by the exposure of your case.”

Sie said Dogan’s claims of innocence showed how normalized violence was still common in society as part of “archaic” forms of “patriarchal control”. He said: “We need to change rape culture to a society based on agreement.”

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

Biographical Details

Dogan was born in Turkey and at the age of five relocated to France, where his father worked as a caretaker. The evidence indicated that his father was aggressive and that Dogan began smoking cannabis at the age of ten. When he was seventeen he was apprehended by police for dealing drugs and his father kicked him out the family house. He was incarcerated in prison for trafficking in his early 20s and had worked as a builder but had undergone periods of homelessness.

He was married and had a son with Down’s syndrome, who he was the principal carer for, as his wife worked in a institution's dining hall. The court heard his spouse did not know he had frequent sexual encounters beyond their union. His legal team said this was his way of coping with his difficult circumstances. The defendant had stated to a mental health expert that annually he sought commercial sex on his birthday. His lawyers informed the court he had joint inflammation caused by the anxiety of the original case.