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A man was convicted on retrial of sexually assaulting Gisèle Pelicot after she was rendered comatose by her husband – and was given his incarceration period extended to a decade.

Retrial Proceedings

Husamettin Dogan, forty-four, an unemployed builder, who had challenged his first conviction last year, faced a appeal hearing this week at the appeals court in Nîmes.

A jury of five men and four women, sitting with three judges, found Dogan guilty on Thursday of sexually assaulting Pelicot in her home in southern France in the early hours of 29 June 2019.

The evidence showed that the accused, a married father, reached out to the victim's then husband, the husband, in an internet forum called “unbeknownst to her”, where Pelicot was looking for men to visit his house to rape his wife after he had rendered her unconscious into a unconscious state.

“We hope the jury will declare that in this society, human rights are also women’s rights – that agreement is personal, not delegated,” stated Gisèle Pelicot’s attorney, her legal representative. “Agreement is secured directly and not by proxy from a husband.”

Case History

Dominique Pelicot, a notorious sexual predators in modern French history, was given a prison term to twenty years in prison last year for sedating his then wife and soliciting multiple perpetrators to rape her in her home in the community of the village of Mazan over a duration of nearly ten years of their marriage.

Numerous other individuals were found culpable in a high-profile trial last year, and the appellant was the sole individual to contest his sentence. He was originally sentenced to 9 years in prison, a punishment increased on Thursday to 10 years.

The state's attorney, the prosecutor, had stated he should serve 12 years, because he “completely denies to take any accountability”.

Evidence Presented

The defendant had initially sent the husband inappropriate pictures and then driven an hour from his town in Provence to assault the victim, after telling his wife he was stepping out, the evidence indicated.

The ex-husband, who was brought from segregation in prison to temporarily give evidence at the hearing, informed the court that the accused had been aware his wife had been “sedated” and he communicated to men by phone: “I’m looking for someone to assault my wife after I’ve sedated her without her consent.”

The courtroom became a central issue for a larger conversation on rape culture in society as the defendant continued to claim he was innocent and had not committed rape, contending that because the victim's husband had welcomed him into the residence, his conduct had been permissible.

The panel in the higher court was shown video evidence of Gisèle Pelicot’s unconscious figure, comatose and breathing heavily in a unconscious condition, while a grinning Dogan committed rape repeatedly over a timeframe of what authorities reported was several hours. The presiding judge said she had been at danger of death by suffocation. The state's case said there was absolute certainty that she had been incapacitated and had not agreed.

Accused's Testimony

The defendant informed the court the footage were simply “sex scenes” and denied it was violation. He said what he did was “an intimate behavior”, not assault. He told the court: “I never raped.” He said Gisèle Pelicot’s husband had brought him to the residence, and therefore it was acceptable. He said he was deceived by the husband. “I attempted to cease,” Dogan stated to the court. “I proceeded because he convinced me.”

Questioned if he wanted to make a final statement to the court, the defendant said: “I never wanted to hurt that individual.”

Victim's Response

The survivor, who was applauded upon leaving court each day by crowds gathered to back her, told Dogan in court: “You fail to comprehend. When will you admit you violated me? It’s a crime to rape an unconscious woman. When did I ever give you agreement? At no time.”

The victim, 72, became an symbol of resistance after she waived her right to confidentiality in the trial last year when she said: “The shame should shift.”

Prosecutor's Remarks

Sie, speaking to the victim in court, said the defendant's refusal to take responsibility showed that: “Shame has not yet changed sides. The community is possibly in the course of that, maybe motivated by the collective awareness spurred by the exposure of your situation.”

Sie said Dogan’s claims of non-guilt showed how rape culture was still prevalent in society as part of “archaic” forms of “patriarchal control”. He said: “We need to change the culture of violence to a culture of consent.”

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

Biographical Details

The accused was born in the country of Turkey and at the age of 5 moved to France, where his parent worked as a building manager. The testimony revealed that his parent was aggressive and that the defendant began smoking cannabis aged ten. When he was seventeen he was stopped by police for selling narcotics and his father forced him to leave the family house. He served time in prison for trafficking in his early 20s and had worked as a laborer but had undergone periods of living on the streets.

He was married and had a son with Down’s syndrome, who he was the principal carer for, as his wife worked in a school canteen. The evidence showed his spouse did not know he had frequent intimate relations outside their marriage. His legal team said this was his strategy for managing with his challenging existence. Dogan had informed a evaluator that annually he engaged in commercial sex on his birthday. His lawyers told the court he had joint inflammation caused by the stress of the first trial.