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An individual was declared guilty on appeal of raping Gisele Pelicot following she was drugged unconscious by her husband – and has had his prison sentence extended to 10 years.

Higher Court Case

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

A panel of nine jurors, sitting with three judges, found Dogan guilty on Thursday of raping the victim in her home in the south of France in the morning of June 29, 2019.

The testimony revealed that the accused, a married father, connected with the victim's spouse, the husband, in an digital platform titled “without her knowledge”, where the husband was looking for men to come to his home to assault his wife after he had rendered her unconscious into a comatose state.

We trust the jury will declare that in this society, fundamental rights are also women’s rights – that agreement is individual, not delegated,” declared Gisèle Pelicot’s lawyer, Antoine Camus. “Consent is obtained directly and not via a representative from a spouse.”

Context

Dominique Pelicot, a notorious sexual predators in recent French history, was given a prison term to two decades in prison last year for incapacitating his then wife and bringing in dozens of men to sexually assault her in her home in the Provence village of the village of Mazan over a span of nearly ten years of their union.

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

The state's attorney, Dominique Sie, had contended he should serve 12 years, because he “stubbornly rejects to take any responsibility”.

Courtroom Details

Dogan had initially sent the husband inappropriate pictures and then driven an hour from his town in the region to rape the victim, after informing his wife he was leaving, the testimony revealed.

The ex-husband, who was brought from solitary confinement in prison to briefly provide testimony at the hearing, told the court that the accused had known his wife had been “incapacitated” and he told to men by phone: “I seek someone to assault my wife after I’ve rendered her unconscious unbeknownst to her.”

The trial became a focus point for a larger conversation on sexual violence norms in society as Dogan continued to assert he was not guilty and had not perpetrated assault, contending that because the victim's husband had invited him into the residence, his actions had been acceptable.

The jury in the higher court was displayed video evidence of Gisèle Pelicot’s unresponsive form, comatose and snoring in a deep sleep, while a grinning the perpetrator engaged in violation repeatedly over a period of what police said was 3.5 hours. The court official said she had been at danger of fatal outcome by asphyxiation. The state prosecution said there was absolute certainty that she had been incapacitated and had not agreed.

Defendant's Statements

The defendant told the court the footage were simply “intimate moments” and denied it was rape. He said what he did was “a sexual act”, not assault. He told the court: “I did not commit rape.” He said Gisèle Pelicot’s husband had invited him to the home, and therefore it was permissible. He said he was influenced by the husband. “I wanted to stop,” Dogan stated to the court. “I proceeded because he convinced me.”

Questioned if he wanted to make a closing remarks to the court, Dogan said: “I did not intend to injure that lady.”

Victim's Response

The victim, who was applauded upon exiting the courtroom each day by supporters present to support her, addressed the defendant in court: “You haven’t understood. When are you going to recognise you raped me? It is illegal to assault an unaware woman. How could I have give you consent? Never.”

The victim, seventy-two, became an international feminist hero after she waived her right to anonymity in the trial last year when she said: “Guilt ought to transfer.”

State's Argument

Sie, addressing the victim in court, said the defendant's unwillingness to take blame showed that: “The shame remains. The public is maybe in the process of that, maybe driven by the societal understanding resulting from the publication of your case.”

Sie said the defendant's claims of blamelessness showed how societal tolerance was still widespread in society as part of “archaic” forms of “patriarchal control”. He said: “Now we must change rape culture to a culture of consent.”

The prosecutor addressed Dogan: “As long as you refuse to admit it, it’s not just a person, it’s an whole disturbing societal structure that you are endorsing.”

Personal History

Dogan was born in the country of Turkey and at the age of 5 came to France, where his parent worked as a building manager. The evidence indicated that his father was abusive and that the defendant began smoking cannabis aged ten. When he was seventeen he was stopped by authorities for drug trafficking and his father forced him to leave of home. He served time in prison for trafficking in his twenties and had worked as a laborer but had experienced periods of living on the streets.

He was wed and had a son with Down’s syndrome, who he was the principal carer for, as his spouse worked in a educational cafeteria. The court heard his wife did not know he had frequent sexual encounters outside their marriage. His legal team said this was his method of dealing with his challenging existence. Dogan had stated to a court psychologist that annually he engaged in commercial sex on his special day. His attorneys stated to the court he had joint inflammation triggered by the anxiety of the initial proceedings.