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A defendant was convicted on appeal of raping Gisèle Pelicot after she was sedated by her spouse – and was given his prison sentence increased to a decade.

Retrial Proceedings

Husamettin Dogan, forty-four, an unemployed builder, who had challenged his first conviction last year, experienced a retrial this week at the Nîmes court of appeal.

A panel of five men and four women, sitting with three judges, found Dogan guilty on Thursday of sexually assaulting the victim in her bedroom in the south of France in the early hours of June 29, 2019.

The evidence showed that the accused, a married father, connected with Gisèle Pelicot’s husband at the time, Dominique Pelicot, in an online chatroom named “without her consent”, where the husband was recruiting men to enter his residence to rape his wife after he had rendered her unconscious into a unconscious state.

We expect the court will affirm that in this nation, human rights are also women’s rights – that permission is individual, not delegated,” declared Gisèle Pelicot’s attorney, her legal representative. “Permission is received directly and not via a representative from a husband.”

Case History

Dominique Pelicot, one of the worst sex offenders in recent French history, was sentenced to 20 years in prison last year for drugging his spouse and bringing in numerous individuals to sexually assault her in her home in the community of the village of Mazan over a period of many years of their union.

Numerous other individuals were found culpable in a high-profile trial last year, and Dogan was the sole individual to contest his conviction. He was initially sentenced to nine years in prison, a penalty raised on Thursday to a decade.

The state's attorney, Dominique Sie, had contended he should serve 12 years, because he “completely denies to take any accountability”.

Testimony and Proof

Dogan had initially sent the husband sexually explicit photos and then driven an hour from his village in the region to rape Gisèle Pelicot, after telling his wife he was leaving, the court heard.

Pelicot, who was brought from segregation in prison to temporarily testify at the hearing, informed the court that the accused had known his wife had been “sedated” and he told to men by phone: “I seek someone to violate my wife after I’ve put her to sleep unbeknownst to her.”

The courtroom became a focus point for a wider discussion on sexual violence norms in society as Dogan continued to claim he was innocent and had not engaged in violation, stating that because Gisèle Pelicot’s husband had allowed him into the room, his conduct had been permissible.

The jury in the Nîmes appeals court was shown video evidence of Gisèle Pelicot’s unconscious figure, sedated and snoring in a deep sleep, while a smiling Dogan performed assault on several occasions over a timeframe of what investigators stated was 3.5 hours. The judge said she had been at danger of fatal outcome by choking. The state's case said there was no question that she had been incapacitated and had not consented.

Defendant's Statements

Dogan informed the court the footage were simply “sexual encounters” and disputed it was rape. He said what he did was “an intimate behavior”, not rape. He stated the court: “I never raped.” He said the victim's husband had allowed him to the house, and therefore it was acceptable. He said he was manipulated by Dominique Pelicot. “I wanted to stop,” the accused informed the court. “I proceeded because he persuaded me.”

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

Pelicot's Words

Gisèle Pelicot, who was supported upon departing the trial each day by supporters assembled to support her, said to Dogan in court: “You haven’t understood. When will you acknowledge you raped me? It is illegal to rape an unconscious woman. How could I have give you agreement? At no time.”

The victim, seventy-two, became an global icon after she gave up her right to anonymity in the trial last year when she said: “Guilt ought to transfer.”

Prosecutor's Remarks

The prosecutor, speaking to the victim in court, said Dogan’s refusal to take accountability showed that: “The shame remains. The public is possibly in the process of that, perhaps driven by the collective awareness spurred by the exposure of your case.”

The prosecutor said the defendant's claims of innocence showed how normalized violence was still common in society as part of “archaic” forms of “patriarchal control”. He said: “We need to change rape culture to a culture of consent.”

The prosecutor told Dogan: “While you refuse to admit it, it’s not just a individual, it’s an entire sordid cultural framework that you are endorsing.”

Defendant's Background

The accused was originated from the country of Turkey and at the age of 5 came to the nation of France, where his parent worked as a concierge. The evidence indicated that his parent was abusive and that Dogan began smoking cannabis at the age of ten. When he was seventeen he was stopped by police for drug trafficking and his father forced him to leave of home. He was incarcerated in prison for narcotics offenses in his early 20s and had worked as a builder but had experienced periods of being unhoused.

He was married and had a son with a genetic condition, who he was the primary guardian for, as his spouse worked in a educational cafeteria. The evidence showed his wife did not know he had frequent sexual encounters beyond their marriage. His defence said this was his way of coping with his difficult circumstances. The defendant had informed a court psychologist that once a year he engaged in commercial sex on his birthday. His attorneys informed the court he had joint inflammation caused by the stress of the initial proceedings.