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An individual has been found guilty on higher court review of sexually assaulting Gisèle Pelicot following she was rendered comatose by her spouse – and was given his prison sentence increased to ten years.

Retrial Proceedings

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

A panel of nine jurors, joined by three judges, found Dogan guilty on Thursday of sexually assaulting Pelicot in her bedroom in the south of France in the morning of 29 June 2019.

The evidence showed that the accused, a married father, made contact with Gisèle Pelicot’s then husband, Dominique Pelicot, in an internet forum called “without her knowledge”, where the husband was recruiting men to visit his house 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 individual, not delegated,” declared Gisèle Pelicot’s lawyer, her legal representative. “Agreement is secured personally and not by proxy from a husband.”

Case History

The ex-husband, among the most severe sexual predators in recent French history, was sentenced to twenty years in prison last year for sedating his then wife and bringing in multiple perpetrators to rape her in her home in the town of the village of Mazan over a span of almost a decade of their union.

Fifty other men were found convicted in a widely publicized trial last year, and the appellant was the sole individual to appeal against his sentence. He was initially given a sentence to nine years in prison, a sentence increased on Thursday to a decade.

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

Courtroom Details

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

Pelicot, who was brought from isolation in prison to briefly testify at the hearing, informed the court that Dogan had understood his wife had been “sedated” and he communicated 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 key topic for a larger conversation on rape culture in society as the defendant continued to claim he was not guilty and had not engaged in violation, contending that because Gisèle Pelicot’s husband had welcomed him into the room, his actions had been permissible.

The jury in the Nîmes appeals court was shown video evidence of Gisèle Pelicot’s unconscious figure, comatose and breathing heavily in a comatose state, while a smiling Dogan performed assault repeatedly over a timeframe of what police said was several hours. The court official said she had been at danger of fatal outcome by choking. The state prosecution said there was no doubt that she had been unconscious and had not agreed.

Accused's Testimony

Dogan stated to the court the videos were simply “sexual encounters” and rejected it was assault. He said what he did was “a sexual act”, not assault. He declared the court: “I never raped.” He said the victim's husband had invited him to the residence, and therefore it was acceptable. He said he was influenced by Dominique Pelicot. “I attempted to cease,” the accused stated to the court. “I proceeded because he reassured me.”

Asked if he wanted to make a closing remarks to the court, the defendant said: “I did not intend to harm that lady.”

Pelicot's Words

The victim, who was cheered upon leaving court each day by onlookers present to back her, told the defendant in court: “You do not grasp. When will you admit you assaulted me? It is unlawful to assault an unconscious woman. At what point did I give you permission? At no time.”

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

State's Argument

The prosecutor, turning to the victim in court, said Dogan’s unwillingness to take responsibility showed that: “The shame remains. The community is perhaps in the process of that, possibly driven by the collective awareness resulting from the revelation of your case.”

The prosecutor 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: “Now we must change rape culture to a ethos of permission.”

Sie said to the defendant: “As long as you refuse to admit it, it’s not just a individual, it’s an complete unpleasant cultural framework that you are upholding.”

Biographical Details

The accused was born in Turkey and at the age of five relocated 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 at the age of ten. When Dogan was 17 he was caught by authorities for selling narcotics and his parent kicked him out of home. He was incarcerated in prison for drug dealing in his early 20s and had worked as a laborer but had undergone periods of living on the streets.

He was married and had a child with special needs, who he was the main caregiver for, as his spouse worked in a educational cafeteria. The court heard his spouse did not know he had repeated sexual encounters beyond their union. His defence said this was his strategy for managing with his difficult circumstances. Dogan had informed a court psychologist that each year he sought transactional encounters on his birthday. His legal representatives told the court he had joint inflammation triggered by the pressure of the initial proceedings.