France's Appeal Court Uphighers Prison Term for Gisèle Pelicot Rapist

An individual was declared guilty on appeal of raping Gisele Pelicot after she was sedated by her husband – and received his incarceration period increased to a decade.

Appeal Trial

Dogan, forty-four, an unemployed builder, who had appealed his initial guilty verdict last year, faced a retrial this week at the Nîmes court of appeal.

A jury of nine jurors, sitting with three judges, convicted Dogan on Thursday of sexually assaulting Pelicot in her residence in the south of France in the morning of June 29, 2019.

The court heard that the accused, a married father, reached out to the victim's then husband, Dominique Pelicot, in an online chatroom titled “without her knowledge”, where the husband was looking for men to visit his house to assault his wife once he had rendered her unconscious into a unconscious state.

“We hope the jury will affirm that in this nation, fundamental rights are also rights of women – that permission is individual, not given by another,” said Gisèle Pelicot’s attorney, her legal representative. “Permission is received personally and not by proxy from a spouse.”

Case History

The ex-husband, a notorious sex offenders in recent French history, was sentenced to twenty years in prison last year for incapacitating his spouse and bringing in multiple perpetrators to sexually assault her in her home in the Provence village of the village of Mazan over a duration of nearly ten years of their union.

Dozens of additional defendants were found convicted in a notable trial last year, and the appellant was the only man to appeal against his sentence. He was first sentenced to nine years in prison, a punishment raised on Thursday to ten years.

The chief prosecutor, Dominique Sie, had stated he should serve twelve years, because he “completely denies to take any accountability”.

Testimony and Proof

The defendant had initially sent Dominique Pelicot inappropriate pictures and then driven an hour from his residence in the region to assault the victim, after informing his wife he was leaving, the testimony revealed.

Pelicot, who was transported from isolation in prison to temporarily testify at the retrial, stated to the court that the accused had understood his wife had been “incapacitated” and he communicated to men by phone: “I seek someone to assault my wife after I’ve rendered her unconscious unbeknownst to her.”

The proceedings became a focus point for a wider discussion on rape culture in society as Dogan continued to claim he was blameless and had not engaged in violation, stating that because Gisèle Pelicot’s husband had invited him into the room, his conduct had been permissible.

The panel in the higher court was displayed video evidence of Gisèle Pelicot’s unconscious figure, unconscious and breathing heavily in a comatose state, while a grinning the perpetrator engaged in violation on several occasions over a duration of what investigators stated was three and a half hours. The court official said she had been at risk of fatal outcome by asphyxiation. The prosecution said there was absolute certainty that she had been unconscious and had not consented.

Dogan's Claims

The defendant stated to the court the videos were simply “intimate moments” and disputed it was assault. He said what he did was “a consensual activity”, not rape. He declared the court: “I never raped.” He said Gisèle Pelicot’s husband had allowed him to the house, and therefore it was OK. He said he was influenced by the husband. “I tried to halt,” the accused informed the court. “I carried on because he convinced me.”

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

Pelicot's Words

Gisèle Pelicot, who was cheered upon departing the trial each day by onlookers gathered to stand with her, told Dogan in court: “You do not grasp. When will you acknowledge you assaulted me? It is unlawful to assault an incapacitated woman. How could I have give you permission? At no time.”

Gisèle Pelicot, seventy-two, became an symbol of resistance after she waived her right to anonymity in the trial last year when she said: “The shame should shift.”

State's Argument

Sie, speaking to the victim in court, said Dogan’s unwillingness to take blame showed that: “Shame has not yet changed sides. The public is maybe in the process of that, possibly driven by the societal understanding resulting from the exposure of your ordeal.”

The prosecutor said Dogan’s claims of blamelessness showed how societal tolerance was still prevalent in society as part of “old-fashioned” forms of “male domination”. He said: “Now we must change rape culture to a ethos of permission.”

Sie said to Dogan: “For as much as you reject it, it’s not just a individual, it’s an complete sordid societal structure that you are upholding.”

Defendant's Background

Dogan was originated from the country of Turkey and at the age of 5 moved to France, where his parent worked as a caretaker. The evidence indicated that his parent was aggressive and that the defendant began smoking cannabis at the age of ten. When he was 17 he was stopped by police for drug trafficking and his parent kicked him out the residence. He served time in prison for trafficking in his twenties and had worked as a construction worker but had faced periods of homelessness.

He was married and had a child with a genetic condition, who he was the primary guardian for, as his spouse worked in a school canteen. The testimony revealed his wife did not know he had regular extramarital activities outside their marriage. His defence said this was his method of dealing with his challenging existence. The defendant had informed a mental health expert that once a year he looked for paid sex on his special day. His attorneys informed the court he had a medical condition triggered by the stress of the original case.