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A man has been found guilty on retrial of raping Gisèle Pelicot after she was sedated by her spouse – and received his incarceration period extended to a decade.

Retrial Proceedings

The defendant, 44, an unemployed builder, who had challenged his initial guilty verdict last year, underwent a retrial this week at the appeals court in Nîmes.

A jury of four women and five men, joined by three judges, found Dogan guilty on Thursday of raping the victim in her residence in the south of France in the morning of June 29, 2019.

The testimony revealed that Dogan, a married father, reached out to Gisèle Pelicot’s spouse, Dominique Pelicot, in an digital platform named “without her consent”, where Pelicot was recruiting men to come to his home to assault his wife after he had sedated her into a unconscious state.

We expect the court will declare that in this nation, fundamental rights are also women’s rights – that permission is individual, not given by another,” said the victim's attorney, her legal representative. “Permission is secured personally and not through someone else from a husband.”

Context

The ex-husband, a notorious sexual predators in France's contemporary records, was handed a sentence to twenty years in prison last year for sedating his then wife and bringing in dozens of men to sexually assault her in her home in the Provence 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 sole individual to challenge his sentence. He was originally given a sentence to 9 years in prison, a punishment enhanced on Thursday to 10 years.

The state's attorney, the prosecutor, had contended he should serve twelve years, because he “stubbornly rejects to take any blame”.

Evidence Presented

The defendant had initially sent the husband inappropriate pictures and then driven an hour from his village in the region to rape the victim, after telling his wife he was going out, the testimony revealed.

The ex-husband, who was transported from solitary confinement in prison to temporarily testify at the retrial, informed the court that Dogan had understood his wife had been “incapacitated” and he communicated to men by phone: “I’m looking for someone to abuse my wife after I’ve put her to sleep without her consent.”

The courtroom became a key topic for a wider discussion on societal attitudes in society as the defendant continued to assert he was innocent and had not engaged in violation, arguing that because Gisèle Pelicot’s husband had allowed him into the room, his conduct had been permissible.

The panel in the Nîmes appeals court was shown visual proof of the victim's limp body, comatose and snoring in a comatose state, while a grinning the perpetrator committed rape on several occasions over a timeframe of what investigators stated was 3.5 hours. The presiding judge said she had been at risk of fatal outcome by choking. The prosecution said there was absolute certainty that she had been unconscious and had not agreed.

Dogan's Claims

Dogan told the court the recordings were simply “intimate moments” and rejected it was rape. He said what he did was “a sexual act”, not assault. He stated the court: “I am innocent of assault.” He said the victim's husband had brought him to the home, and therefore it was acceptable. He said he was influenced by the husband. “I attempted to cease,” Dogan informed the court. “I continued because he persuaded me.”

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

Survivor's Statement

Gisèle Pelicot, who was cheered upon exiting the courtroom each day by supporters assembled to support her, said to the defendant in court: “You do not grasp. When will you acknowledge you assaulted me? It’s a crime to rape an unconscious woman. At what point did I give you agreement? At no time.”

Gisèle Pelicot, seventy-two, became an international feminist hero after she relinquished her right to confidentiality in the trial last year when she said: “Shame must change sides.”

State's Argument

The prosecutor, turning to the victim in court, said the defendant's refusal to take accountability showed that: “Guilt has not shifted. The public is possibly in the process of that, maybe motivated by the public consciousness spurred by the publication of your case.”

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

Sie said to Dogan: “For as much as you reject it, it’s not just a individual, it’s an entire unpleasant social system that you are supporting.”

Personal History

Dogan was originated from Turkey and at the age of five moved to the nation of France, where his parent worked as a caretaker. The testimony revealed that his parent was abusive and that Dogan began smoking cannabis at the age of 10. When he was 17 he was caught by authorities for selling narcotics and his father forced him to leave of home. He spent time in prison for trafficking in his twenties and had worked as a builder but had faced periods of homelessness.

He was wed and had a son with a genetic condition, who he was the main caregiver for, as his spouse worked in a institution's dining hall. The testimony revealed his wife did not know he had repeated extramarital activities outside their marriage. His legal team said this was his way of coping with his stressful life. Dogan had stated to a mental health expert that once a year he engaged in transactional encounters on his special day. His lawyers told the court he had joint inflammation resulting from the stress of the initial proceedings.