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A man was convicted on retrial of sexually assaulting Gisele Pelicot following she was drugged unconscious by her husband – and received his prison sentence extended to a decade.

Appeal Trial

Husamettin Dogan, forty-four, an out-of-work construction worker, who had appealed his initial guilty verdict last year, experienced a appeal hearing this week at the higher court in Nîmes.

A panel of nine jurors, accompanied by three judges, found Dogan guilty on Thursday of raping the victim in her residence in southern France in the early hours of 29 June 2019.

The evidence showed that the accused, a married father, reached out to the victim's husband at the time, Dominique Pelicot, in an internet forum titled “without her knowledge”, where the husband was looking for men to enter his residence to rape his wife once he had rendered her unconscious into a comatose state.

We expect the panel will affirm that in this country, human rights are also rights of women – that consent is personal, not transferred,” declared the victim's lawyer, Antoine Camus. “Consent is received directly and not by proxy from a spouse.”

Case History

The husband, among the most severe sex offenders in modern French history, was handed a sentence to 20 years in prison last year for sedating his then wife and soliciting multiple perpetrators to rape her in her home in the town of Mazan over a period of almost a decade of their union.

Numerous other individuals were found culpable in a notable trial last year, and Dogan was the only man to challenge his sentence. He was initially sentenced to 9 years in prison, a sentence raised on Thursday to a decade.

The state's attorney, Dominique Sie, had stated he should serve twelve years, because he “stubbornly rejects to take any accountability”.

Testimony and Proof

The defendant had first sent Dominique Pelicot sexually explicit photos and then driven an hour from his village in the region to rape Gisèle Pelicot, after telling his wife he was going out, the testimony revealed.

The ex-husband, who was transported from solitary confinement in prison to temporarily give evidence at the appeal trial, told the court that the accused had understood his wife had been “incapacitated” and he said to men by phone: “I seek someone to violate my wife after I’ve rendered her unconscious unbeknownst to her.”

The courtroom became a central issue for a wider discussion on rape culture in society as the defendant continued to assert he was not guilty and had not committed rape, contending that because the victim's husband had welcomed him into the room, his actions had been justifiable.

The jury in the higher court was displayed recorded footage of Gisèle Pelicot’s limp body, comatose and snoring in a deep sleep, while a grinning Dogan engaged in violation repeatedly over a period of what authorities reported was several hours. The court official said she had been at peril of fatal outcome by suffocation. The prosecution said there was no doubt that she had been unaware and had not consented.

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 “an intimate behavior”, not rape. He stated the court: “I did not commit rape.” He said Gisèle Pelicot’s husband had invited him to the home, and therefore it was OK. He said he was influenced by the husband. “I wanted to stop,” Dogan told the court. “I continued because he convinced me.”

Inquired if he wanted to make a last words to the court, Dogan said: “I did not intend to hurt that woman.”

Victim's Response

The survivor, who was applauded upon exiting the courtroom each day by onlookers assembled to stand with her, told Dogan in court: “You fail to comprehend. When will you acknowledge you violated me? It is unlawful to assault an unconscious woman. At what point did I give you permission? Never.”

The victim, seventy-two, became an global icon after she waived her right to anonymity in the trial last year when she said: “Shame must change sides.”

Prosecutor's Remarks

Sie, addressing the victim in court, said Dogan’s unwillingness to take responsibility showed that: “Shame has not yet changed sides. Society is perhaps in the midst of that, maybe propelled by the collective awareness resulting from the revelation of your situation.”

The prosecutor said Dogan’s claims of blamelessness showed how societal tolerance was still common in society as part of “old-fashioned” forms of “male domination”. He said: “We need to change the culture of violence to a ethos of permission.”

Sie said to Dogan: “For as much as you reject it, it’s not just a woman, it’s an entire unpleasant cultural framework that you are endorsing.”

Personal History

The accused was originated from the country of Turkey and at the age of 5 moved to the nation of France, where his parent worked as a building manager. The evidence indicated that his parent was abusive and that the defendant began consuming marijuana aged 10. When Dogan was 17 he was stopped by authorities for dealing drugs and his father kicked him out the family house. He spent time in prison for narcotics offenses in his twenties and had worked as a laborer but had undergone periods of homelessness.

He was wed and had a child with special needs, who he was the main caregiver for, as his spouse worked in a educational cafeteria. The testimony revealed his wife did not know he had repeated intimate relations beyond their union. His legal team said this was his method of dealing with his difficult circumstances. The defendant had told a court psychologist that each year he engaged in transactional encounters on his birthday. His attorneys informed the court he had a medical condition caused by the stress of the original case.