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An individual was declared guilty on appeal of sexually assaulting Gisele Pelicot following she was rendered comatose by her spouse – and was given his incarceration period increased to 10 years.

Higher Court Case

Husamettin Dogan, forty-four, an unemployed builder, who had challenged his initial guilty verdict last year, faced a new trial this week at the appeals court in Nîmes.

A panel of four women and five men, sitting with three judges, ruled against Dogan on Thursday of raping the victim in her bedroom in southern France in the morning of June 29, 2019.

The court heard that the accused, a married father, connected with Gisèle Pelicot’s then husband, the husband, in an digital platform named “unbeknownst to her”, where Pelicot was recruiting men to enter his residence to assault his wife once he had rendered her unconscious into a unconscious state.

“We hope the panel will affirm that in this nation, human rights are also women’s rights – that permission is personal, not given by another,” said Gisèle Pelicot’s lawyer, her legal representative. “Consent is secured directly and not via a representative from a spouse.”

Background

Dominique Pelicot, among the most severe sexual predators in recent French history, was given a prison term to 20 years in prison last year for drugging his spouse and inviting dozens of men to rape her in her home in the town of Mazan over a duration of almost a decade of their union.

Numerous other individuals were found guilty in a widely publicized trial last year, and Dogan was the sole individual to contest his sentence. He was originally given a sentence to 9 years in prison, a punishment raised on Thursday to 10 years.

The state's attorney, the prosecutor, had stated he should serve twelve years, because he “stubbornly rejects to take any accountability”.

Testimony and Proof

The defendant had initially sent Dominique Pelicot inappropriate pictures and then driven an hour from his village in Provence to assault the victim, after telling his wife he was leaving, the evidence indicated.

Pelicot, who was transported from isolation in prison to briefly give evidence at the appeal trial, told the court that Dogan had been aware his wife had been “incapacitated” and he told to men by phone: “I’m looking for someone to assault my wife after I’ve put her to sleep unbeknownst to her.”

The proceedings became a key topic for a wider discussion on rape culture in society as Dogan continued to assert he was not guilty and had not engaged in violation, arguing that because Gisèle Pelicot’s husband had allowed him into the bedroom, his conduct had been justifiable.

The jury in the higher court was presented with visual proof of the victim's unconscious figure, sedated and snoring in a unconscious condition, while a grinning the perpetrator performed assault repeatedly over a period of what police said was 3.5 hours. The presiding judge said she had been at danger of death by asphyxiation. The state's case said there was no doubt that she had been incapacitated and had not agreed.

Defendant's Statements

The defendant informed the court the footage were simply “sex scenes” and rejected it was assault. He said what he did was “a sexual act”, not rape. He told the court: “I did not commit rape.” He said the victim's husband had invited him to the house, and therefore it was permissible. He said he was influenced by Dominique Pelicot. “I attempted to cease,” Dogan stated to the court. “I continued because he convinced me.”

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

Pelicot's Words

The survivor, who was applauded upon exiting the courtroom each day by crowds assembled to stand with her, addressed the defendant in court: “You haven’t understood. When will you acknowledge you violated me? It is illegal to rape an unaware woman. When did I ever give you consent? Never.”

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

Legal Commentary

The prosecutor, turning to Gisèle Pelicot in court, said the defendant's unwillingness to take responsibility showed that: “The shame remains. The public is maybe in the midst of that, possibly motivated by the collective awareness spurred by the publication of your case.”

Sie said the defendant's claims of blamelessness showed how normalized violence was still common in society as part of “outdated” forms of “male domination”. He said: “Now we must change the culture of violence to a culture of consent.”

Sie said to Dogan: “As long as you reject it, it’s not just a woman, it’s an whole sordid social system that you are supporting.”

Personal History

Dogan was born in the country of Turkey and at the age of 5 moved to the nation of France, where his father worked as a caretaker. The court heard that his father was abusive and that Dogan began using drugs aged ten. When Dogan was seventeen he was stopped by police for drug trafficking and his father kicked him out the residence. He was incarcerated in prison for trafficking in his twenties and had worked as a laborer but had undergone periods of being unhoused.

He was married and had a child with Down’s syndrome, who he was the main caregiver for, as his spouse worked in a school canteen. The court heard his spouse did not know he had repeated extramarital activities beyond their union. His defence said this was his strategy for managing with his challenging existence. The defendant had stated to a mental health expert that annually he engaged in transactional encounters on his birthday. His legal representatives informed the court he had a medical condition resulting from the anxiety of the first trial.