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A defendant has been found guilty on appeal of sexually assaulting Gisele Pelicot following she was drugged unconscious by her then-husband – and received his jail term extended to a decade.

Retrial Proceedings

Husamettin Dogan, 44, an out-of-work construction worker, who had challenged his first conviction last year, faced a retrial this week at the Nîmes court of appeal.

A jury of five men and four women, sitting with three judges, convicted Dogan on Thursday of sexually assaulting Pelicot in her home in southern France in the early hours of 29 June 2019.

The evidence showed that Dogan, a married father, made contact with the victim's spouse, the husband, in an online chatroom titled “without her knowledge”, where Pelicot was looking for men to come to his home to rape his wife once he had sedated her into a comatose state.

We expect the court will declare that in this nation, human rights are also women’s rights – that agreement is personal, not transferred,” said the victim's lawyer, her legal representative. “Consent is secured directly and not by proxy from a husband.”

Context

The ex-husband, among the most severe sexual predators in recent French history, was handed a sentence to 20 years in prison last year for incapacitating his spouse and bringing in multiple perpetrators to sexually assault her in her home in the town of the village of Mazan over a duration of almost a decade of their marriage.

Dozens of additional defendants were found convicted in a notable trial last year, and Dogan was the sole individual to appeal against his conviction. He was originally given a sentence to nine years in prison, a penalty enhanced on Thursday to ten years.

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

Testimony and Proof

Dogan had initially sent the husband graphic images and then traveled an hour from his town in Provence to assault Gisèle Pelicot, after informing his wife he was going out, the evidence indicated.

The ex-husband, who was brought from isolation in prison to briefly give evidence at the retrial, told the court that Dogan had understood his wife had been “sedated” and he told to men by phone: “I’m looking for someone to assault my wife after I’ve rendered her unconscious unbeknownst to her.”

The courtroom became a focus point for a broader debate on societal attitudes in society as the defendant continued to claim he was blameless and had not engaged in violation, arguing that because Gisèle Pelicot’s husband had invited him into the bedroom, his behavior had been justifiable.

The panel in the higher court was presented with video evidence of Gisèle Pelicot’s unconscious figure, sedated and snoring in a comatose state, while a grinning Dogan engaged in violation repeatedly over a period of what authorities reported was three and a half hours. The judge said she had been at peril of fatal outcome by choking. The state's case said there was absolute certainty that she had been unconscious and had not consented.

Accused's Testimony

Dogan told the court the videos were simply “sex scenes” and denied it was rape. He said what he did was “an intimate behavior”, not rape. He stated the court: “I never raped.” He said the victim's husband had invited him to the house, and therefore it was acceptable. He said he was deceived by Dominique Pelicot. “I attempted to cease,” Dogan told the court. “I continued because he reassured me.”

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

Victim's Response

The survivor, who was supported upon leaving court each day by onlookers present to support her, addressed Dogan in court: “You haven’t understood. When will you admit you assaulted me? It is illegal to rape an unaware woman. When did I ever give you agreement? Not once.”

The victim, 72, became an international feminist hero after she relinquished her right to privacy in the trial last year when she said: “The shame should shift.”

State's Argument

The prosecutor, turning to the victim in court, said the defendant's failure to take responsibility showed that: “The shame remains. The public is maybe in the process of that, perhaps motivated by the societal understanding brought by the exposure of your case.”

The prosecutor said the defendant's claims of innocence showed how rape culture was still prevalent in society as part of “archaic” forms of “gender-based power”. He said: “We need to change the culture of violence to a society based on agreement.”

The prosecutor addressed the defendant: “For as much as you refuse to admit it, it’s not just a individual, it’s an entire unpleasant societal structure that you are upholding.”

Personal History

Dogan was born in the country of Turkey and at the age of five moved to France, where his father worked as a concierge. The court heard that his parent was aggressive and that Dogan began using drugs at the age of ten. When he was 17 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 builder but had experienced periods of being unhoused.

He was married and had a child with Down’s syndrome, who he was the main caregiver for, as his spouse worked in a institution's dining hall. The testimony revealed his spouse did not know he had frequent extramarital activities beyond their marriage. His defence said this was his strategy for managing with his challenging existence. The defendant had informed a court psychologist that once a year he sought transactional encounters on his special day. His lawyers stated to the court he had arthritis triggered by the anxiety of the first trial.