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A man was declared guilty on retrial of raping Gisele Pelicot following she was rendered comatose by her then-husband – and received his prison sentence increased to a decade.

Higher Court Case

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

A panel of nine jurors, joined by three judges, convicted Dogan on Thursday of sexually assaulting Pelicot in her home in the south of France in the morning of June 29, 2019.

The evidence showed that Dogan, a family man, made contact with the victim's then husband, Dominique Pelicot, in an internet forum called “without her knowledge”, where Pelicot was recruiting men to come to his home to assault his wife after he had sedated her into a deep sleep.

We trust the court will say loud and clear that in this nation, fundamental rights are also women’s rights – that agreement is individual, not given by another,” declared the victim's attorney, her legal representative. “Permission is received personally and not by proxy from a spouse.”

Context

The husband, among the most severe sexual predators in recent French history, was handed a sentence to two decades in prison last year for drugging his wife at the time and soliciting numerous individuals to rape her in her home in the town of the village of Mazan over a duration of almost a decade of their union.

Numerous other individuals were found guilty in a notable trial last year, and the appellant was the single defendant to appeal against his verdict. He was first given a sentence to 9 years in prison, a sentence enhanced on Thursday to ten years.

The state's attorney, the prosecutor, had argued he should serve twelve years, because he “absolutely refuses to take any responsibility”.

Testimony and Proof

Dogan had first sent Dominique Pelicot graphic images and then driven an hour from his village in the region to rape Gisèle Pelicot, after informing his wife he was leaving, the testimony revealed.

The ex-husband, who was transported from solitary confinement in prison to briefly give evidence at the hearing, informed the court that the accused had been aware his wife had been “sedated” and he told to men by phone: “I’m looking for someone to violate my wife after I’ve rendered her unconscious without her consent.”

The proceedings became a key topic for a larger conversation on societal attitudes in society as the defendant continued to claim he was blameless and had not committed rape, arguing that because Gisèle Pelicot’s husband had allowed him into the room, his actions had been permissible.

The panel in the Nîmes appeals court was displayed recorded footage of Gisèle Pelicot’s unresponsive form, sedated and breathing heavily in a comatose state, while a grinning Dogan engaged in violation multiple times over a period of what authorities reported was three and a half hours. The court official said she had been at peril of death by asphyxiation. The state prosecution said there was no doubt that she had been unconscious and had not given permission.

Defendant's Statements

The defendant told the court the footage were simply “intimate moments” and disputed it was rape. He said what he did was “a sexual act”, not assault. He declared the court: “I never raped.” He said the victim's husband had brought him to the residence, and therefore it was acceptable. He said he was influenced by the husband. “I wanted to stop,” the accused told the court. “I proceeded because he convinced me.”

Asked if he wanted to make a last words to the court, the defendant said: “I did not intend to hurt that woman.”

Pelicot's Words

The victim, who was applauded upon exiting the courtroom each day by crowds present to stand with her, addressed Dogan in court: “You fail to comprehend. When are you going to recognise you violated me? It is unlawful to rape an incapacitated woman. How could I have give you permission? Never.”

The victim, seventy-two, became an international feminist hero after she waived her right to privacy in the trial last year when she said: “Guilt ought to transfer.”

State's Argument

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

The prosecutor said Dogan’s claims of non-guilt showed how normalized violence was still widespread in society as part of “outdated” forms of “male domination”. He said: “It is imperative to change the culture of violence to a culture of consent.”

Sie told the defendant: “While you reject it, it’s not just a individual, it’s an entire disturbing societal structure that you are supporting.”

Defendant's Background

Dogan was born in Turkey and at the age of five moved to France, where his father worked as a concierge. The court heard that his father was abusive and that the defendant began smoking cannabis aged ten. When he was 17 he was apprehended by police for selling narcotics and his parent kicked him out 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 living on the streets.

He was married and had a child with special needs, who he was the primary guardian for, as his wife worked in a school canteen. The testimony revealed his spouse did not know he had repeated sexual encounters outside their union. His legal team said this was his strategy for managing with his stressful life. Dogan had informed a evaluator that each year he sought transactional encounters on his special day. His legal representatives stated to the court he had a medical condition resulting from the anxiety of the first trial.