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An individual was declared guilty on retrial of sexually assaulting Gisele Pelicot after she was drugged unconscious by her then-husband – and has had his prison sentence extended to 10 years.

Appeal Trial

Husamettin Dogan, 44, an unemployed builder, who had appealed his initial guilty verdict last year, experienced a new trial this week at the appeals court in Nîmes.

A jury of five men and four women, accompanied by three judges, found Dogan guilty on Thursday of raping the victim in her bedroom in southern France in the morning of June 29, 2019.

The testimony revealed that the accused, a family man, made contact with Gisèle Pelicot’s spouse, the husband, in an internet forum named “without her knowledge”, where Pelicot was looking for men to visit his house to assault his wife once he had sedated her into a deep sleep.

We expect the panel will declare that in this society, fundamental rights are also rights of women – that consent is personal, not delegated,” declared Gisèle Pelicot’s lawyer, Antoine Camus. “Consent is received directly and not through someone else from a husband.”

Background

The husband, among the most severe sex offenders in modern French history, was given a prison term to 20 years in prison last year for sedating his spouse and soliciting numerous individuals to rape her in her home in the town of the village of Mazan over a span of nearly ten years of their marriage.

Fifty other men were found culpable in a high-profile trial last year, and the appellant was the sole individual to contest his conviction. He was initially handed a term to nine years in prison, a sentence increased on Thursday to 10 years.

The chief prosecutor, the prosecutor, had contended he should serve twelve years, because he “stubbornly rejects to take any blame”.

Evidence Presented

Dogan had first sent Dominique Pelicot graphic images and then traveled an hour from his village in Provence to assault the victim, after notifying his wife he was stepping out, the evidence indicated.

Pelicot, who was brought from isolation in prison to briefly give evidence at the appeal trial, told the court that Dogan had understood his wife had been “drugged” and he communicated to men by phone: “I seek someone to violate my wife after I’ve rendered her unconscious unbeknownst to her.”

The trial became a central issue for a wider discussion on sexual violence norms in society as Dogan continued to say he was blameless and had not engaged in violation, arguing that because the victim's husband had welcomed him into the bedroom, his behavior had been acceptable.

The panel in the higher court was shown recorded footage of the victim's unconscious figure, comatose and breathing heavily in a comatose state, while a grinning Dogan committed rape repeatedly over a timeframe of what police said was several hours. The court official said she had been at risk of fatal outcome by choking. The state prosecution said there was no doubt that she had been unconscious and had not consented.

Dogan's Claims

Dogan told the court the footage were simply “sex scenes” and rejected it was rape. He said what he did was “a consensual activity”, not rape. He declared the court: “I did not commit rape.” He said Gisèle Pelicot’s husband had invited him to the house, and therefore it was acceptable. He said he was deceived by the husband. “I attempted to cease,” Dogan told the court. “I continued because he persuaded me.”

Inquired if he wanted to make a last words to the court, Dogan said: “I had no desire to hurt that woman.”

Pelicot's Words

Gisèle Pelicot, who was applauded upon departing the trial each day by crowds assembled to stand with her, told Dogan in court: “You do not grasp. When are you going to recognise you raped me? It is unlawful to assault an incapacitated woman. At what point did I give you agreement? At no time.”

Gisèle Pelicot, 72, became an international feminist hero after she waived her right to privacy in the trial last year when she said: “Guilt ought to transfer.”

Legal Commentary

The prosecutor, addressing the victim in court, said Dogan’s failure to take accountability showed that: “The shame remains. The community is possibly in the process of that, maybe motivated by the societal understanding resulting from the publication of your ordeal.”

Sie said Dogan’s claims of blamelessness showed how rape culture was still widespread in society as part of “archaic” 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: “As long as you deny it, it’s not just a individual, it’s an complete unpleasant cultural framework that you are upholding.”

Defendant's Background

Dogan was originated from Turkey and at the age of 5 relocated to the nation of France, where his father worked as a building manager. The evidence indicated that his parent was abusive and that the defendant began using drugs at the age of ten. When he was seventeen he was stopped by authorities for drug trafficking and his father forced him to leave the residence. He spent time in prison for narcotics offenses in his young adulthood and had worked as a construction worker but had undergone periods of living on the streets.

He was wed and had a child with special needs, who he was the primary guardian for, as his wife worked in a institution's dining hall. The testimony revealed his spouse did not know he had regular extramarital activities outside their union. His legal team said this was his method of dealing with his stressful life. The defendant had stated to a mental health expert that once a year he sought paid sex on his birthday. His lawyers informed the court he had a medical condition resulting from the stress of the initial proceedings.