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A defendant has been found guilty on appeal of raping Gisèle Pelicot after she was rendered comatose by her spouse – and was given his prison sentence raised to 10 years.

Retrial Proceedings

Husamettin Dogan, 44, an out-of-work construction worker, who had appealed his initial guilty verdict last year, faced a retrial this week at the higher court in Nîmes.

A panel of five men and four women, sitting with three judges, ruled against Dogan on Thursday of raping the victim in her bedroom in Provence in the morning of 29 June 2019.

The court heard that Dogan, a married father, connected with Gisèle Pelicot’s spouse, Dominique Pelicot, in an online chatroom called “unbeknownst to her”, where the husband was recruiting men to visit his house to rape his wife once he had drugged her into a unconscious state.

We trust the court will say loud and clear that in this society, human rights are also women’s rights – that consent is personal, not delegated,” said Gisèle Pelicot’s attorney, her legal representative. “Agreement is obtained personally and not by proxy from a husband.”

Background

The husband, among the most severe sexual predators in modern French history, was given a prison term to twenty years in prison last year for sedating his wife at the time and inviting multiple perpetrators to sexually assault her in her home in the town of Mazan over a span of many years of their marriage.

Dozens of additional defendants were found convicted in a high-profile trial last year, and the appellant was the single defendant to challenge his conviction. He was first given a sentence to 9 years in prison, a penalty increased on Thursday to a decade.

The state's attorney, the prosecutor, had stated he should serve twelve years, because he “completely denies to take any responsibility”.

Testimony and Proof

Dogan had initially sent Dominique Pelicot sexually explicit photos and then driven an hour from his village in the region to assault Gisèle Pelicot, after informing his wife he was leaving, the testimony revealed.

Pelicot, who was transported from segregation in prison to briefly give evidence at the hearing, stated to the court that Dogan had understood his wife had been “sedated” and he said to men by phone: “I’m looking for someone to assault my wife after I’ve rendered her unconscious without her consent.”

The courtroom became a central issue for a broader debate on societal attitudes in society as the defendant continued to claim he was innocent and had not committed rape, stating that because Gisèle Pelicot’s husband had allowed him into the room, his behavior had been acceptable.

The panel in the Nîmes appeals court was displayed recorded footage of Gisèle Pelicot’s unresponsive form, comatose and snoring in a comatose state, while a smiling Dogan engaged in violation multiple times over a duration of what police said was 3.5 hours. The judge said she had been at danger of fatal outcome by asphyxiation. The state's case said there was no doubt that she had been incapacitated and had not given permission.

Dogan's Claims

The defendant informed the court the videos were simply “sex scenes” and denied it was rape. He said what he did was “a consensual activity”, not assault. He stated the court: “I never raped.” He said Gisèle Pelicot’s husband had allowed him to the house, and therefore it was acceptable. He said he was deceived by Dominique Pelicot. “I attempted to cease,” the accused informed the court. “I proceeded because he convinced me.”

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

Pelicot's Words

Gisèle Pelicot, who was cheered upon exiting the courtroom each day by onlookers gathered to stand with her, addressed Dogan in court: “You haven’t understood. When are you going to recognise you raped me? It is illegal to rape an unaware woman. At what point did I give you agreement? Never.”

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

Prosecutor's Remarks

Sie, addressing Gisèle Pelicot in court, said the defendant's unwillingness to take blame showed that: “Shame has not yet changed sides. Society is possibly in the course of that, perhaps motivated by the public consciousness spurred by the publication of your situation.”

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

Sie told Dogan: “For as much as you reject it, it’s not just a individual, it’s an whole unpleasant societal structure that you are upholding.”

Defendant's Background

Dogan was originated from the country of Turkey and at the age of 5 relocated to the nation of France, where his parent worked as a concierge. The testimony revealed that his parent was violent and that the defendant began consuming marijuana aged 10. When Dogan was 17 he was stopped by police for dealing drugs and his parent evicted him of home. He spent time in prison for drug dealing in his young adulthood and had worked as a builder but had faced periods of being unhoused.

He was married and had a child with Down’s syndrome, who he was the primary guardian for, as his wife worked in a institution's dining hall. The evidence showed his wife did not know he had frequent sexual encounters outside their marriage. His defence said this was his way of coping with his challenging existence. Dogan had stated to a mental health expert that annually he engaged in commercial sex on his birthday. His lawyers told the court he had a medical condition resulting from the stress of the initial proceedings.