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A defendant has been found guilty on retrial of raping Gisele Pelicot following she was rendered comatose by her husband – and has had his incarceration period increased to ten years.

Higher Court Case

The defendant, 44, an out-of-work construction worker, who had appealed his initial guilty verdict last year, faced a new trial this week at the appeals court in Nîmes.

A panel of nine jurors, joined by three judges, found Dogan guilty on Thursday of raping the victim in her residence in Provence in the early hours of June 29, 2019.

The evidence showed that Dogan, a family man, made contact with the victim's spouse, Dominique Pelicot, in an online chatroom named “without her consent”, where the husband was recruiting men to visit his house to rape his wife once he had drugged her into a unconscious state.

We expect the court will say loud and clear that in this society, human 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 directly and not through someone else from a husband.”

Case History

Dominique Pelicot, a notorious sex offenders in recent French history, was given a prison term to 20 years in prison last year for incapacitating his spouse and inviting numerous individuals to rape her in her home in the Provence village of Mazan over a span of many years of their marriage.

Numerous other individuals were found convicted in a notable trial last year, and Dogan was the sole individual to contest his sentence. He was originally handed a term to 9 years in prison, a punishment increased on Thursday to ten years.

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

Evidence Presented

Dogan had first sent the husband inappropriate pictures and then traveled an hour from his town in the region to assault Gisèle Pelicot, after informing his wife he was going out, the court heard.

The ex-husband, who was brought from segregation in prison to temporarily testify at the appeal trial, informed the court that Dogan 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 unbeknownst to her.”

The courtroom became a focus point for a wider discussion on societal attitudes in society as Dogan continued to claim he was not guilty and had not perpetrated assault, arguing that because the victim's husband had welcomed him into the residence, his behavior had been acceptable.

The jury in the higher court was shown recorded footage of the victim's limp body, unconscious and snoring in a deep sleep, while a grinning Dogan committed rape on several occasions over a period of what authorities reported was 3.5 hours. The presiding judge said she had been at risk of fatal outcome by suffocation. The state prosecution said there was no question that she had been incapacitated and had not given permission.

Defendant's Statements

The defendant stated to the court the footage were simply “sexual encounters” and disputed it was rape. He said what he did was “an intimate behavior”, not rape. He stated the court: “I did not commit rape.” He said Gisèle Pelicot’s husband had allowed him to the home, and therefore it was OK. He said he was influenced by the husband. “I attempted to cease,” Dogan told the court. “I carried on because he convinced me.”

Inquired if he wanted to make a closing remarks to the court, Dogan said: “I had no desire to harm that lady.”

Victim's Response

The victim, who was supported upon exiting the courtroom each day by supporters assembled to stand with her, said to Dogan in court: “You fail to comprehend. When will you admit you raped me? It’s a crime to assault an incapacitated woman. At what point did I give you permission? At no time.”

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

Legal Commentary

Sie, addressing the victim in court, said Dogan’s refusal to take accountability showed that: “The shame remains. The public is perhaps in the course of that, possibly motivated by the public consciousness resulting from the publication of your case.”

The prosecutor said Dogan’s claims of blamelessness showed how societal tolerance was still common in society as part of “archaic” forms of “male domination”. He said: “Now we must change the culture of violence to a society based on agreement.”

The prosecutor told Dogan: “While you refuse to admit it, it’s not just a individual, it’s an complete disturbing societal structure that you are endorsing.”

Personal History

Dogan was originated from the country of Turkey and at the age of 5 relocated to the nation of France, where his parent worked as a caretaker. The court heard that his parent was abusive and that the defendant began using drugs aged ten. When Dogan was seventeen he was stopped by authorities for selling narcotics and his father forced him to leave of home. He served time in prison for narcotics offenses in his young adulthood and had worked as a construction worker but had experienced periods of being unhoused.

He was wed and had a child with Down’s syndrome, who he was the main caregiver for, as his spouse worked in a school canteen. The court heard his wife did not know he had regular sexual encounters beyond their marriage. His legal team said this was his strategy for managing with his stressful life. The defendant had informed a court psychologist that each year he sought commercial sex on his special day. His attorneys told the court he had arthritis resulting from the pressure of the initial proceedings.