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An individual was convicted on retrial of sexually assaulting Gisèle Pelicot after she was sedated by her then-husband – and received his jail term increased to ten years.

Higher Court Case

The defendant, forty-four, an out-of-work construction worker, who had appealed his first conviction last year, experienced a new trial this week at the higher court in Nîmes.

A panel of five men and four women, joined by three judges, ruled against Dogan on Thursday of raping the victim in her home in Provence in the early hours of June 29, 2019.

The testimony revealed that the accused, a family man, reached out to the victim's husband at the time, the husband, in an online chatroom called “without her consent”, where the husband was recruiting men to come to his home to rape his wife once he had rendered her unconscious into a deep sleep.

We expect the court will affirm that in this society, fundamental rights are also rights of women – that permission is personal, not transferred,” stated the victim's attorney, her legal representative. “Permission is received directly and not by proxy from a husband.”

Case History

Dominique Pelicot, one of the worst sexual predators in recent French history, was given a prison term to 20 years in prison last year for incapacitating his then wife and soliciting dozens of men to sexually assault her in her home in the community of the village of Mazan over a duration of many years of their union.

Fifty other men were found convicted in a high-profile trial last year, and Dogan was the sole individual to contest his sentence. He was initially given a sentence to 9 years in prison, a punishment increased on Thursday to a decade.

The state's attorney, the prosecutor, had argued he should serve twelve years, because he “absolutely refuses to take any accountability”.

Courtroom Details

The defendant had initially sent the husband inappropriate pictures and then driven an hour from his residence in the region to rape Gisèle Pelicot, after notifying his wife he was stepping out, the court heard.

Pelicot, who was transported from isolation in prison to briefly provide testimony at the retrial, told the court that the accused had known his wife had been “drugged” and he said to men by phone: “I want someone to violate my wife after I’ve put her to sleep unbeknownst to her.”

The proceedings became a central issue for a wider discussion on rape culture in society as Dogan 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 room, his behavior had been justifiable.

The jury in the higher court was displayed video evidence of Gisèle Pelicot’s unresponsive form, unconscious and snoring in a unconscious condition, while a grinning the perpetrator performed assault on several occasions over a timeframe of what authorities reported was several hours. The judge said she had been at risk of fatal outcome by choking. The prosecution said there was no doubt that she had been unconscious and had not agreed.

Accused's Testimony

Dogan told the court the videos were simply “intimate moments” and rejected it was rape. He said what he did was “an intimate behavior”, not assault. He declared the court: “I never raped.” He said Gisèle Pelicot’s husband had invited him to the home, and therefore it was OK. He said he was manipulated by Dominique Pelicot. “I tried to halt,” Dogan stated to the court. “I proceeded because he convinced me.”

Inquired 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 cheered upon leaving court each day by supporters assembled to stand with her, addressed Dogan in court: “You do not grasp. When are you going to recognise you violated me? It’s a crime to assault an unaware woman. How could I have give you permission? At no time.”

Gisèle Pelicot, 72, became an global icon after she relinquished her right to anonymity in the trial last year when she said: “Shame must change sides.”

Legal Commentary

The prosecutor, speaking to Gisèle Pelicot in court, said the defendant's failure to take accountability showed that: “Guilt has not shifted. Society is maybe in the process of that, perhaps motivated by the societal understanding resulting from the revelation of your situation.”

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

Sie said to Dogan: “While you reject it, it’s not just a woman, it’s an entire unpleasant societal structure that you are endorsing.”

Defendant's Background

Dogan was born in Turkey and at the age of five moved to France, where his father worked as a caretaker. The testimony revealed that his parent was violent and that Dogan began consuming marijuana aged 10. When he was 17 he was caught by police for drug trafficking and his father forced him to leave the residence. He served time in prison for drug dealing in his twenties and had worked as a builder but had undergone periods of being unhoused.

He was married and had a son with a genetic condition, who he was the primary guardian for, as his wife worked in a school canteen. The testimony revealed his spouse did not know he had regular intimate relations beyond their union. His defence said this was his way of coping with his difficult circumstances. The defendant had stated to a court psychologist that annually he looked for paid sex on his birthday. His lawyers stated to the court he had a medical condition caused by the pressure of the original case.