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A defendant was convicted on higher court review of raping Gisèle Pelicot following she was rendered comatose by her then-husband – and has had his prison sentence raised to a decade.

Higher Court Case

The defendant, forty-four, an unemployed builder, who had challenged his first conviction last year, underwent a appeal hearing this week at the higher court in Nîmes.

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

The court heard that the accused, a married father, reached out to the victim's spouse, the husband, in an digital platform called “without her knowledge”, where Pelicot was seeking men to come to his home to assault his wife once he had sedated her into a unconscious state.

We trust the jury will affirm that in this country, fundamental rights are also women’s rights – that permission is personal, not delegated,” declared Gisèle Pelicot’s attorney, Antoine Camus. “Consent is received directly and not by proxy from a husband.”

Case History

The husband, one of the worst sex offenders in modern French history, was handed a sentence to 20 years in prison last year for incapacitating his spouse and bringing in dozens of men to sexually assault her in her home in the Provence village of the village of Mazan over a period of many years of their union.

Dozens of additional defendants were found guilty in a high-profile trial last year, and Dogan was the single defendant to challenge his conviction. He was initially handed a term to nine years in prison, a penalty increased on Thursday to 10 years.

The lead state prosecutor, the prosecutor, had contended he should serve twelve years, because he “stubbornly rejects to take any responsibility”.

Courtroom Details

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

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 “incapacitated” and he told to men by phone: “I want someone to violate my wife after I’ve sedated her unbeknownst to her.”

The trial became a focus point for a broader debate on sexual violence norms in society as Dogan continued to assert he was not guilty and had not engaged in violation, stating that because Gisèle Pelicot’s husband had invited him into the room, his actions had been justifiable.

The panel in the Nîmes appeals court was presented with visual proof of the victim's unresponsive form, sedated and breathing heavily in a comatose state, while a smiling Dogan performed assault repeatedly over a period of what authorities reported was 3.5 hours. The court official said she had been at danger of fatal outcome by suffocation. The prosecution said there was absolute certainty that she had been unconscious and had not consented.

Defendant's Statements

Dogan informed the court the footage were simply “sex scenes” and rejected it was rape. He said what he did was “an intimate behavior”, not rape. He told the court: “I am innocent of assault.” He said the victim's husband had allowed him to the home, and therefore it was acceptable. He said he was manipulated by Dominique Pelicot. “I tried to halt,” the accused told the court. “I carried on because he persuaded me.”

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

Survivor's Statement

The victim, who was applauded upon leaving court each day by onlookers gathered to back her, said to the defendant in court: “You fail to comprehend. When are you going to recognise you assaulted me? It is unlawful to assault an unconscious woman. At what point did I give you permission? Not once.”

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

Prosecutor's Remarks

Sie, speaking to the victim in court, said the defendant's refusal to take responsibility showed that: “Shame has not yet changed sides. The public is maybe in the process of that, perhaps propelled by the public consciousness resulting from the revelation of your situation.”

Sie said Dogan’s claims of non-guilt showed how normalized violence was still widespread in society as part of “archaic” forms of “patriarchal control”. He said: “We need to change rape culture to a ethos of permission.”

The prosecutor addressed the defendant: “For as much as you deny it, it’s not just a woman, it’s an complete unpleasant cultural framework that you are supporting.”

Biographical Details

Dogan was originated from Turkey and at the age of five moved to the nation of France, where his father worked as a concierge. The evidence indicated that his father was abusive and that Dogan began using drugs aged 10. When he was seventeen he was caught by authorities for dealing drugs and his parent kicked him out of home. He was incarcerated in prison for narcotics offenses in his early 20s and had worked as a builder but had faced periods of living on the streets.

He was married and had a son with special needs, 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 beyond their union. His defence said this was his method of dealing with his difficult circumstances. The defendant had informed a mental health expert that annually he engaged in paid sex on his special day. His lawyers informed the court he had a medical condition triggered by the pressure of the first trial.