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An individual was declared guilty on higher court review of sexually assaulting Gisèle Pelicot following she was sedated by her spouse – and was given his incarceration period increased to a decade.

Retrial Proceedings

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 panel of five men and four women, joined by three judges, convicted Dogan on Thursday of sexually assaulting Pelicot in her home in the south of France in the early hours of 29 June 2019.

The court heard that the accused, a married father, made contact with Gisèle Pelicot’s spouse, the husband, in an digital platform called “unbeknownst to her”, where Pelicot was recruiting men to visit his house to rape his wife after he had sedated her into a comatose state.

We trust the court will say loud and clear that in this country, fundamental rights are also women’s rights – that consent is individual, not given by another,” stated Gisèle Pelicot’s lawyer, her legal representative. “Permission is obtained personally and not by proxy from a spouse.”

Case History

The ex-husband, among the most severe sex offenders in France's contemporary records, was handed a sentence to twenty years in prison last year for drugging his then wife and bringing in dozens of men to rape her in her home in the community of the village of Mazan over a duration of nearly ten years of their marriage.

Fifty other men were found convicted in a notable trial last year, and the appellant was the only man to appeal against his conviction. He was first given a sentence to 9 years in prison, a sentence enhanced on Thursday to ten years.

The lead state prosecutor, Dominique Sie, had argued he should serve 12 years, because he “absolutely refuses to take any accountability”.

Testimony and Proof

Dogan had first sent Dominique Pelicot sexually explicit photos and then driven an hour from his village in Provence to assault Gisèle Pelicot, after informing his wife he was going out, the court heard.

The ex-husband, who was brought from solitary confinement in prison to briefly provide testimony at the appeal trial, informed the court that Dogan had known his wife had been “drugged” and he said to men by phone: “I’m looking for someone to abuse my wife after I’ve put her to sleep unbeknownst to her.”

The proceedings became a key topic for a broader debate on sexual violence norms in society as the defendant continued to assert he was not guilty and had not committed rape, contending that because Gisèle Pelicot’s husband had welcomed him into the room, his actions had been acceptable.

The jury in the higher court was shown visual proof of the victim's unconscious figure, comatose and snoring in a comatose state, while a smiling the perpetrator engaged in violation repeatedly over a period of what investigators stated was three and a half hours. The judge said she had been at peril of fatal outcome by asphyxiation. The state prosecution said there was no doubt that she had been unconscious and had not given permission.

Defendant's Statements

Dogan stated to the court the footage were simply “sex scenes” 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 Gisèle Pelicot’s husband had invited him to the residence, and therefore it was permissible. He said he was influenced by Dominique Pelicot. “I tried to halt,” Dogan stated to the court. “I proceeded because he persuaded me.”

Inquired if he wanted to make a final statement to the court, Dogan said: “I had no desire to harm that woman.”

Pelicot's Words

The victim, who was supported upon leaving court each day by supporters assembled to back her, said to Dogan in court: “You haven’t understood. When are you going to recognise you raped me? It is illegal to assault an unconscious woman. At what point did I give you agreement? Never.”

Gisèle Pelicot, 72, became an global icon after she waived her right to privacy in the trial last year when she said: “Shame must change sides.”

Legal Commentary

Sie, turning to the victim in court, said the defendant's failure to take blame showed that: “Shame has not yet changed sides. The community is maybe in the process of that, possibly propelled by the collective awareness brought by the publication of your case.”

Sie said Dogan’s claims of innocence showed how rape culture was still widespread in society as part of “archaic” forms of “patriarchal control”. He said: “It is imperative to change the culture of violence to a society based on agreement.”

Sie said to Dogan: “For as much as you refuse to admit it, it’s not just a woman, it’s an whole disturbing social system that you are upholding.”

Biographical Details

Dogan was originated from the country of Turkey and at the age of five moved to France, where his parent worked as a caretaker. The court heard that his parent was abusive and that the defendant began consuming marijuana at the age of 10. When he was 17 he was caught by police for dealing drugs and his father kicked him out the residence. He served time in prison for trafficking in his young adulthood and had worked as a laborer but had experienced periods of homelessness.

He was married and had a son with Down’s syndrome, who he was the primary guardian for, as his spouse worked in a educational cafeteria. The testimony revealed his wife did not know he had repeated sexual encounters outside their marriage. His defence said this was his method of dealing with his difficult circumstances. The defendant had stated to a court psychologist that each year he engaged in commercial sex on his special day. His lawyers stated to the court he had a medical condition triggered by the stress of the first trial.