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A defendant was convicted on appeal of raping Gisele Pelicot following she was sedated by her husband – and has had his jail term extended to a decade.

Retrial Proceedings

Husamettin Dogan, 44, an unemployed builder, who had contested his first conviction last year, experienced a retrial this week at the Nîmes court of appeal.

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

The court heard that the accused, a family man, made contact with the victim's husband at the time, the husband, in an online chatroom called “without her consent”, where the husband was seeking men to visit his house to assault his wife once he had drugged her into a unconscious state.

We expect the jury will say loud and clear that in this nation, human rights are also rights of women – that permission is individual, not transferred,” declared the victim's attorney, her legal representative. “Agreement is secured personally and not through someone else from a husband.”

Context

The ex-husband, among the most severe sexual predators in France's contemporary records, was given a prison term to twenty years in prison last year for incapacitating his spouse and soliciting numerous individuals to rape her in her home in the town of the village of Mazan over a period of almost a decade of their marriage.

Numerous other individuals were found convicted in a high-profile trial last year, and the appellant was the only man to challenge his conviction. He was initially handed a term to nine years in prison, a punishment increased on Thursday to 10 years.

The chief prosecutor, the prosecutor, had contended he should serve 12 years, because he “absolutely refuses to take any accountability”.

Courtroom Details

The defendant had initially sent Dominique Pelicot inappropriate pictures and then traveled an hour from his village in Provence to rape Gisèle Pelicot, after telling his wife he was going out, the testimony revealed.

Pelicot, who was brought from isolation in prison to temporarily testify at the retrial, stated to the court that Dogan had understood his wife had been “sedated” and he communicated 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 wider discussion on rape culture in society as the defendant continued to claim he was not guilty and had not engaged in violation, stating that because the victim's husband had invited him into the residence, his behavior had been acceptable.

The jury in the Nîmes appeals court was shown video evidence of Gisèle Pelicot’s unconscious figure, comatose and snoring in a deep sleep, while a grinning Dogan engaged in violation repeatedly over a timeframe of what authorities reported was 3.5 hours. The judge said she had been at risk of fatal outcome by asphyxiation. The prosecution said there was no doubt that she had been unaware and had not agreed.

Defendant's Statements

The defendant stated to the court the recordings were simply “sex scenes” and rejected it was rape. He said what he did was “an intimate behavior”, not assault. He stated the court: “I never raped.” He said the victim's husband had brought him to the residence, and therefore it was acceptable. He said he was deceived by the husband. “I wanted to stop,” the accused informed the court. “I proceeded because he convinced me.”

Inquired if he wanted to make a final statement to the court, the defendant said: “I never wanted to hurt that individual.”

Survivor's Statement

The survivor, who was cheered upon leaving court each day by crowds present to back her, told Dogan in court: “You do not grasp. When will you admit you assaulted me? It is illegal to assault an incapacitated woman. At what point did I give you consent? At no time.”

The victim, 72, became an global icon after she relinquished her right to confidentiality in the trial last year when she said: “The shame should shift.”

Legal Commentary

The prosecutor, speaking to the victim in court, said Dogan’s unwillingness to take responsibility showed that: “The shame remains. Society is possibly in the midst of that, maybe propelled by the public consciousness spurred by the exposure of your ordeal.”

Sie said the defendant's claims of blamelessness showed how societal tolerance 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.”

The prosecutor addressed the defendant: “For as much as you refuse to admit it, it’s not just a individual, it’s an complete disturbing cultural framework that you are upholding.”

Biographical Details

The accused was originated from the country of Turkey and at the age of five relocated to France, where his father worked as a caretaker. The testimony revealed that his parent was abusive and that Dogan began using drugs aged 10. When Dogan was 17 he was caught by police for selling narcotics and his parent forced him to leave the residence. He spent time in prison for drug dealing in his twenties and had worked as a laborer but had experienced periods of homelessness.

He was married and had a son with special needs, who he was the principal carer for, as his spouse worked in a institution's dining hall. The testimony revealed his spouse did not know he had repeated intimate relations outside their union. His defence said this was his method of dealing with his challenging existence. The defendant had told a evaluator that annually he looked for paid sex on his special day. His legal representatives told the court he had a medical condition triggered by the stress of the initial proceedings.