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A defendant was declared guilty on higher court review of sexually assaulting Gisèle Pelicot following she was rendered comatose by her husband – and received his prison sentence raised to 10 years.

Higher Court Case

Husamettin Dogan, 44, an unemployed builder, who had challenged his first conviction last year, underwent a new trial this week at the higher court in Nîmes.

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

The evidence showed that the accused, a family man, made contact with the victim's husband at the time, Dominique Pelicot, in an digital platform named “unbeknownst to her”, where the husband was looking for men to visit his house to rape his wife after he had rendered her unconscious into a deep sleep.

We trust the court will say loud and clear that in this society, fundamental rights are also rights of women – that consent is individual, not given by another,” stated the victim's lawyer, her legal representative. “Consent is obtained personally and not by proxy from a husband.”

Background

Dominique Pelicot, a notorious sex offenders in recent French history, was handed a sentence to two decades 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 period of nearly ten years of their marriage.

Dozens of additional defendants were found guilty in a notable trial last year, and the appellant was the sole individual to contest his conviction. He was originally handed a term to nine years in prison, a punishment enhanced on Thursday to ten years.

The chief prosecutor, the prosecutor, had stated he should serve twelve years, because he “absolutely refuses to take any accountability”.

Evidence Presented

Dogan had initially sent the husband inappropriate pictures and then driven an hour from his residence in the region to rape the victim, after informing his wife he was going out, the evidence indicated.

Pelicot, who was transported from isolation in prison to briefly give evidence at the appeal trial, informed the court that the accused had understood his wife had been “sedated” and he told to men by phone: “I seek someone to abuse my wife after I’ve put her to sleep without her knowledge.”

The trial became a focus point for a broader debate on societal attitudes in society as the defendant continued to claim he was not guilty and had not perpetrated assault, contending that because the victim's husband had welcomed him into the room, his actions had been justifiable.

The jury in the Nîmes appeals court was shown recorded footage of Gisèle Pelicot’s unconscious figure, unconscious and breathing heavily in a deep sleep, while a smiling the perpetrator performed assault on several occasions over a duration of what police said was three and a half hours. The presiding judge said she had been at risk of fatal outcome by asphyxiation. The prosecution said there was no question that she had been unaware and had not consented.

Accused's Testimony

The defendant told the court the videos were simply “sexual encounters” and rejected it was assault. He said what he did was “an intimate behavior”, not assault. He stated the court: “I never raped.” He said the victim's husband had invited him to the residence, and therefore it was permissible. He said he was deceived by the husband. “I attempted to cease,” Dogan informed the court. “I continued because he reassured me.”

Asked if he wanted to make a final statement to the court, Dogan said: “I did not intend to hurt that lady.”

Victim's Response

The victim, who was applauded upon leaving court each day by crowds gathered to stand with her, told the defendant in court: “You fail to comprehend. When are you going to recognise you violated me? It is unlawful to assault an unaware woman. At what point did I give you permission? Not once.”

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

State's Argument

Sie, addressing the victim in court, said the defendant's failure to take accountability showed that: “Shame has not yet changed sides. Society is possibly in the process of that, perhaps propelled by the public consciousness resulting from the publication of your situation.”

The prosecutor said the defendant's claims of innocence showed how societal tolerance was still common in society as part of “outdated” forms of “gender-based power”. He said: “It is imperative to change the culture of violence to a culture of consent.”

The prosecutor told the defendant: “For as much as you deny it, it’s not just a woman, it’s an entire sordid societal structure that you are supporting.”

Biographical Details

The accused was born in the country of Turkey and at the age of five came to France, where his parent worked as a building manager. The testimony revealed that his parent was violent and that Dogan began smoking cannabis at the age of 10. When he was 17 he was caught by police for dealing drugs and his father forced him to leave of home. He spent time in prison for trafficking in his young adulthood and had worked as a builder but had undergone periods of homelessness.

He was wed and had a son with a genetic condition, who he was the main caregiver for, as his spouse worked in a institution's dining hall. The court heard his wife did not know he had repeated intimate relations beyond their union. His defence said this was his way of coping with his stressful life. The defendant had stated to a evaluator that each year he engaged in paid sex on his birthday. His attorneys told the court he had arthritis triggered by the pressure of the first trial.