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A man has been found guilty on retrial of raping Gisèle Pelicot following she was sedated by her husband – and received his incarceration period raised to 10 years.

Appeal Trial

Husamettin Dogan, 44, an unemployed builder, who had challenged his first conviction last year, experienced a appeal hearing this week at the appeals court in Nîmes.

A jury of nine jurors, joined by three judges, found Dogan guilty on Thursday of sexually assaulting Pelicot in her bedroom in southern France in the morning of 29 June 2019.

The court heard that the accused, a family man, reached out to the victim's husband at the time, Dominique Pelicot, in an internet forum called “without her consent”, where Pelicot was recruiting men to visit his house to assault his wife once he had sedated her into a comatose state.

We expect the panel will declare that in this country, human rights are also women’s rights – that permission is personal, not given by another,” said Gisèle Pelicot’s attorney, her legal representative. “Permission is obtained directly and not by proxy from a husband.”

Context

Dominique Pelicot, one of the worst sexual predators in recent French history, was given a prison term to twenty years in prison last year for sedating his spouse and soliciting multiple perpetrators to sexually assault her in her home in the community of Mazan over a duration of nearly ten years of their union.

Numerous other individuals were found culpable in a high-profile trial last year, and the appellant was the single defendant to appeal against his sentence. He was initially handed a term to 9 years in prison, a punishment enhanced on Thursday to 10 years.

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

Courtroom Details

The defendant had first sent Dominique Pelicot sexually explicit photos and then driven an hour from his village in the region to assault Gisèle Pelicot, after telling his wife he was leaving, the evidence indicated.

The ex-husband, who was brought from solitary confinement in prison to temporarily give evidence at the hearing, informed the court that Dogan had understood his wife had been “sedated” and he told to men by phone: “I want someone to assault my wife after I’ve put her to sleep without her consent.”

The trial became a focus point for a broader debate on rape culture 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 actions had been justifiable.

The jury in the higher court was shown visual proof of the victim's unconscious figure, sedated and breathing heavily in a comatose state, while a smiling the perpetrator performed assault multiple times over a period of what investigators stated was several hours. The judge said she had been at risk of death by suffocation. The prosecution said there was absolute certainty that she had been unaware and had not given permission.

Defendant's Statements

The defendant informed the court the recordings were simply “intimate moments” and disputed it was rape. He said what he did was “a consensual activity”, not rape. He told the court: “I never raped.” He said the victim's husband had allowed him to the house, and therefore it was permissible. He said he was manipulated by Dominique Pelicot. “I wanted to stop,” the accused informed the court. “I carried on because he convinced me.”

Inquired if he wanted to make a last words to the court, the defendant said: “I had no desire to injure that individual.”

Victim's Response

The victim, who was applauded upon exiting the courtroom each day by onlookers present to back her, addressed Dogan in court: “You fail to comprehend. When will you acknowledge you assaulted me? It’s a crime to assault an unconscious woman. When did I ever give you agreement? Never.”

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

Legal Commentary

The prosecutor, turning to the victim in court, said Dogan’s unwillingness to take responsibility showed that: “Shame has not yet changed sides. The community is possibly in the course of that, maybe propelled by the collective awareness resulting from the revelation of your ordeal.”

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

The prosecutor addressed Dogan: “While you refuse to admit it, it’s not just a woman, it’s an entire sordid social system that you are upholding.”

Defendant's Background

Dogan was born in Turkey and at the age of five relocated to the nation of France, where his father worked as a building manager. The testimony revealed that his father was aggressive and that Dogan began consuming marijuana at the age of ten. When he was 17 he was caught by police for selling narcotics and his parent kicked him out the family house. He was incarcerated in prison for drug dealing in his young adulthood and had worked as a builder but had faced periods of living on the streets.

He was married and had a child with special needs, who he was the main caregiver for, as his spouse worked in a school canteen. The evidence showed his wife did not know he had frequent extramarital activities beyond their marriage. His legal team said this was his method of dealing with his challenging existence. Dogan had told a evaluator that once a year he looked for transactional encounters on his special day. His lawyers stated to the court he had joint inflammation resulting from the pressure of the original case.