France's Higher Court Uphighers Sentence for Gisele Pelicot Perpetrator

A defendant was convicted on higher court review of sexually assaulting Gisele Pelicot following she was sedated by her then-husband – and was given his jail term extended to a decade.

Retrial Proceedings

The defendant, 44, an unemployed builder, who had contested his initial guilty verdict last year, faced a new trial this week at the appeals court in Nîmes.

A panel of five men and four women, accompanied by three judges, convicted Dogan on Thursday of sexually assaulting the victim in her residence in southern France in the early hours of 29 June 2019.

The court heard that the accused, a family man, reached out to Gisèle Pelicot’s then husband, the husband, in an online chatroom called “unbeknownst to her”, where the husband was seeking men to visit his house to rape his wife once he had drugged her into a comatose state.

We trust the jury will say loud and clear that in this nation, human rights are also rights of women – that agreement is individual, not given by another,” said the victim's attorney, Antoine Camus. “Consent is obtained directly and not by proxy from a spouse.”

Case History

The husband, a notorious sexual predators in recent French history, was sentenced to twenty years in prison last year for incapacitating his then wife and soliciting multiple perpetrators to sexually assault her in her home in the Provence village of the village of Mazan over a period of many years of their union.

Fifty other men were found guilty in a widely publicized trial last year, and the appellant was the sole individual to contest his conviction. He was first handed a term to 9 years in prison, a sentence increased on Thursday to 10 years.

The lead state prosecutor, Dominique Sie, had stated he should serve twelve years, because he “absolutely refuses to take any blame”.

Evidence Presented

The defendant had initially sent Dominique Pelicot inappropriate pictures and then traveled an hour from his village in the region to rape Gisèle Pelicot, after informing his wife he was leaving, the evidence indicated.

The ex-husband, who was brought from solitary confinement in prison to briefly testify at the retrial, stated to the court that Dogan had known his wife had been “drugged” and he said to men by phone: “I’m looking for someone to violate my wife after I’ve sedated her without her knowledge.”

The courtroom became a central issue for a wider discussion on sexual violence norms in society as Dogan continued to say he was not guilty and had not perpetrated assault, contending that because the victim's husband had invited him into the bedroom, his behavior had been acceptable.

The panel in the Nîmes appeals court was displayed recorded footage of Gisèle Pelicot’s limp body, unconscious and breathing heavily in a comatose state, while a smiling the perpetrator committed rape on several occasions over a duration of what investigators stated was several hours. The court official said she had been at danger of death by choking. The state's case said there was no doubt that she had been unaware and had not consented.

Dogan's Claims

The defendant stated to the court the recordings were simply “intimate moments” and denied it was assault. He said what he did was “a consensual activity”, not rape. He told the court: “I did not commit rape.” He said the victim's husband had allowed him to the home, and therefore it was permissible. He said he was deceived by the husband. “I wanted to stop,” Dogan stated to the court. “I carried on because he persuaded me.”

Asked if he wanted to make a last words to the court, the defendant said: “I had no desire to harm that woman.”

Pelicot's Words

Gisèle Pelicot, who was supported upon leaving court each day by onlookers assembled to back her, addressed Dogan in court: “You fail to comprehend. When will you acknowledge you assaulted me? It is illegal to rape an unconscious woman. How could I have give you agreement? Never.”

Gisèle Pelicot, 72, became an symbol of resistance after she gave up her right to anonymity in the trial last year when she said: “Guilt ought to transfer.”

Prosecutor's Remarks

The prosecutor, addressing Gisèle Pelicot in court, said Dogan’s unwillingness to take blame showed that: “Shame has not yet changed sides. The community is perhaps in the course of that, maybe motivated by the societal understanding resulting from the revelation of your situation.”

Sie said the defendant's claims of non-guilt showed how rape culture was still widespread in society as part of “outdated” forms of “patriarchal control”. He said: “It is imperative to change rape culture to a society based on agreement.”

The prosecutor said to Dogan: “As long as you deny it, it’s not just a individual, it’s an entire unpleasant social system that you are supporting.”

Defendant's Background

The accused 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 testimony revealed that his father was aggressive and that Dogan began smoking cannabis at the age of ten. When Dogan was seventeen he was stopped by police for selling narcotics and his father kicked him out the family house. He spent time in prison for narcotics offenses in his young adulthood and had worked as a laborer but had undergone periods of living on the streets.

He was married and had a child with Down’s syndrome, who he was the principal carer for, as his spouse worked in a school canteen. The evidence showed his wife did not know he had regular sexual encounters beyond their marriage. His legal team said this was his method of dealing with his challenging existence. Dogan had informed a mental health expert that annually he sought paid sex on his special day. His attorneys informed the court he had a medical condition caused by the anxiety of the initial proceedings.