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A defendant was convicted on appeal of sexually assaulting Gisele Pelicot following she was sedated by her then-husband – and has had his jail term raised to ten years.

Retrial Proceedings

Husamettin Dogan, forty-four, an unemployed builder, who had challenged his initial guilty verdict last year, underwent a appeal hearing this week at the higher court in Nîmes.

A panel of nine jurors, joined by three judges, ruled against Dogan on Thursday of raping the victim in her residence in the south of France in the early hours of 29 June 2019.

The evidence showed that Dogan, a married father, connected with Gisèle Pelicot’s husband at the time, Dominique Pelicot, in an internet forum called “without her knowledge”, where the husband was recruiting men to come to his home to assault his wife once he had rendered her unconscious into a deep sleep.

“We hope the jury will declare that in this country, fundamental rights are also rights of women – that agreement is individual, not transferred,” stated the victim's attorney, her legal representative. “Permission is secured personally and not through someone else from a spouse.”

Context

The husband, among the most severe sex offenders in France's contemporary records, was given a prison term to two decades in prison last year for sedating his wife at the time and bringing in dozens of men to rape her in her home in the community of Mazan over a period of many years of their union.

Dozens of additional defendants were found convicted in a high-profile trial last year, and Dogan was the single defendant to contest his conviction. He was initially sentenced to nine years in prison, a punishment enhanced on Thursday to ten years.

The state's attorney, Dominique Sie, had contended he should serve 12 years, because he “absolutely refuses to take any blame”.

Courtroom Details

The defendant had first sent Dominique Pelicot inappropriate pictures and then traveled an hour from his town in the region to assault Gisèle Pelicot, after informing his wife he was leaving, the court heard.

The ex-husband, who was transported from segregation in prison to temporarily provide testimony at the appeal trial, informed the court that Dogan had understood his wife had been “incapacitated” and he said to men by phone: “I seek someone to assault my wife after I’ve rendered her unconscious unbeknownst to her.”

The courtroom became a central issue for a wider discussion on societal attitudes in society as the defendant continued to say he was not guilty and had not committed rape, arguing that because the victim's husband had welcomed him into the room, his conduct had been acceptable.

The panel in the higher court was presented with video evidence of Gisèle Pelicot’s limp body, sedated and snoring in a deep sleep, while a smiling the perpetrator performed assault repeatedly over a duration of what police said was several hours. The court official said she had been at risk of death by suffocation. The state's case said there was no doubt that she had been unaware and had not consented.

Accused's Testimony

The defendant stated to the court the videos were simply “sex scenes” and denied it was rape. He said what he did was “a consensual activity”, not rape. He told the court: “I am innocent of assault.” He said Gisèle Pelicot’s husband had allowed him to the home, and therefore it was acceptable. He said he was influenced by Dominique Pelicot. “I attempted to cease,” Dogan informed the court. “I proceeded because he reassured me.”

Questioned if he wanted to make a last words to the court, the defendant said: “I did not intend to injure that individual.”

Victim's Response

The victim, who was cheered upon leaving court each day by crowds present to stand with her, said to the defendant in court: “You haven’t understood. When will you admit you assaulted me? It is illegal to assault an incapacitated woman. At what point did I give you permission? Not once.”

Gisèle Pelicot, 72, became an symbol of resistance after she relinquished her right to privacy in the trial last year when she said: “The shame should shift.”

Prosecutor's Remarks

The prosecutor, addressing the victim in court, said the defendant's unwillingness to take blame showed that: “Guilt has not shifted. Society is maybe in the midst of that, possibly driven by the collective awareness spurred by the exposure of your situation.”

Sie said Dogan’s claims of blamelessness showed how normalized violence was still prevalent in society as part of “outdated” forms of “patriarchal control”. He said: “We need to change rape culture to a culture of consent.”

Sie told the defendant: “While you deny it, it’s not just a person, it’s an entire unpleasant societal structure that you are upholding.”

Defendant's Background

The accused was originated from the country of Turkey and at the age of 5 moved to the nation of France, where his parent worked as a caretaker. The testimony revealed that his parent was abusive and that the defendant began smoking cannabis at the age of ten. When he was 17 he was stopped by police for selling narcotics and his parent forced him to leave the residence. He served time in prison for drug dealing in his young adulthood and had worked as a construction worker but had undergone periods of being unhoused.

He was wed and had a son with special needs, 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 frequent intimate relations outside their marriage. His legal team said this was his strategy for managing with his challenging existence. Dogan had told a mental health expert that once a year he engaged in paid sex on his birthday. His legal representatives stated to the court he had joint inflammation resulting from the stress of the initial proceedings.