🔗 Share this article

An individual was declared guilty on appeal of raping Gisèle Pelicot following she was rendered comatose by her spouse – and has had his incarceration period extended to ten years.

Retrial Proceedings

Dogan, 44, an unemployed builder, who had appealed his initial guilty verdict last year, faced a appeal hearing this week at the appeals court in Nîmes.

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

The testimony revealed that Dogan, a married father, reached out to the victim's then husband, Dominique Pelicot, in an internet forum named “without her consent”, where Pelicot was seeking men to come to his home to rape his wife once he had sedated her into a unconscious state.

We expect the court will affirm that in this nation, fundamental rights are also rights of women – that consent is personal, not given by another,” said the victim's lawyer, her legal representative. “Consent is received personally and not via a representative from a spouse.”

Case History

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

Numerous other individuals were found convicted in a widely publicized trial last year, and the appellant was the sole individual to challenge his verdict. He was initially given a sentence to nine years in prison, a sentence enhanced on Thursday to ten years.

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

Evidence Presented

The defendant had first sent the husband sexually explicit photos and then traveled an hour from his town in Provence to assault the victim, after informing his wife he was going out, the evidence indicated.

Pelicot, who was brought from segregation in prison to temporarily testify at the hearing, told the court that Dogan had understood his wife had been “sedated” and he told to men by phone: “I seek someone to violate my wife after I’ve rendered her unconscious without her knowledge.”

The courtroom became a focus point for a wider discussion on societal attitudes in society as Dogan continued to claim he was blameless and had not perpetrated assault, arguing that because Gisèle Pelicot’s husband had invited him into the room, his behavior had been permissible.

The panel in the Nîmes appeals court was presented with recorded footage of the victim's limp body, comatose and breathing heavily in a deep sleep, while a smiling the perpetrator performed assault on several occasions over a period of what authorities reported was 3.5 hours. The court official said she had been at risk of death by choking. The prosecution said there was no doubt that she had been incapacitated and had not given permission.

Dogan's Claims

The defendant stated to the court the footage were simply “intimate moments” and rejected it was violation. He said what he did was “a sexual act”, not assault. He told the court: “I am innocent of assault.” He said the victim's husband had allowed him to the residence, and therefore it was permissible. He said he was influenced by Dominique Pelicot. “I tried to halt,” Dogan informed the court. “I carried on because he reassured me.”

Questioned if he wanted to make a closing remarks to the court, the defendant said: “I did not intend to harm that woman.”

Survivor's Statement

The victim, who was cheered upon exiting the courtroom each day by supporters present to back her, told Dogan in court: “You fail to comprehend. When will you admit you raped me? It is illegal to rape an incapacitated woman. How could I have give you permission? Never.”

Gisèle Pelicot, seventy-two, became an symbol of resistance after she relinquished her right to confidentiality in the trial last year when she said: “Guilt ought to transfer.”

Prosecutor's Remarks

Sie, turning to Gisèle Pelicot in court, said Dogan’s refusal to take accountability showed that: “Guilt has not shifted. The community is maybe in the process of that, maybe driven by the societal understanding brought by the revelation of your ordeal.”

The prosecutor said the defendant's claims of non-guilt showed how normalized violence was still prevalent in society as part of “old-fashioned” forms of “male domination”. He said: “It is imperative to change the culture of violence to a culture of consent.”

Sie addressed the defendant: “As long as you reject it, it’s not just a woman, it’s an complete sordid cultural framework that you are endorsing.”

Biographical Details

The accused was born in Turkey and at the age of five came to the nation of France, where his parent worked as a concierge. The testimony revealed that his parent was violent and that Dogan began consuming marijuana at the age of 10. When he was seventeen he was caught by police for drug trafficking and his father kicked him out the residence. He served time in prison for narcotics offenses in his early 20s and had worked as a laborer but had faced periods of being unhoused.

He was married and had a son with a genetic condition, who he was the primary guardian for, as his wife worked in a institution's dining hall. The evidence showed his spouse did not know he had frequent sexual encounters outside their union. His legal team said this was his way of coping with his stressful life. The defendant had informed a mental health expert that annually he sought paid sex on his birthday. His legal representatives told the court he had a medical condition caused by the stress of the initial proceedings.