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A defendant was convicted on appeal of raping Gisèle Pelicot after she was drugged unconscious by her then-husband – and was given his incarceration period increased to a decade.

Retrial Proceedings

The defendant, 44, an out-of-work construction worker, who had contested his first conviction last year, underwent a retrial this week at the appeals court in Nîmes.

A panel of four women and five men, joined by three judges, found Dogan guilty on Thursday of raping Pelicot in her residence in Provence in the morning of June 29, 2019.

The evidence showed that the accused, a married father, made contact with the victim's husband at the time, Dominique Pelicot, in an online chatroom named “unbeknownst to her”, where the husband was recruiting men to enter his residence to assault his wife once he had drugged her into a deep sleep.

“We hope the jury will declare that in this country, human rights are also rights of women – that permission is individual, not transferred,” stated Gisèle Pelicot’s lawyer, her legal representative. “Agreement is received personally and not through someone else from a spouse.”

Case History

The husband, a notorious sexual predators in France's contemporary records, was sentenced to two decades in prison last year for drugging his spouse and bringing in dozens of men to sexually assault her in her home in the Provence village of the village of Mazan over a period of almost a decade of their marriage.

Dozens of additional defendants were found convicted in a high-profile trial last year, and the appellant was the single defendant to contest his conviction. He was originally handed a term to nine years in prison, a punishment enhanced on Thursday to ten years.

The lead state prosecutor, Dominique Sie, had contended he should serve twelve years, because he “stubbornly rejects to take any blame”.

Courtroom Details

The defendant had initially sent the husband inappropriate pictures and then traveled an hour from his residence in the region to assault Gisèle Pelicot, after telling his wife he was stepping out, the court heard.

The ex-husband, who was transported from segregation in prison to temporarily provide testimony at the appeal trial, stated to the court that Dogan had been aware his wife had been “drugged” and he communicated to men by phone: “I want someone to violate my wife after I’ve rendered her unconscious without her knowledge.”

The trial became a central issue for a wider discussion on rape culture in society as the defendant continued to say he was not guilty and had not committed rape, stating that because Gisèle Pelicot’s husband had allowed him into the residence, his behavior had been permissible.

The panel in the Nîmes appeals court was shown recorded footage of the victim's limp body, comatose and snoring in a comatose state, while a grinning Dogan engaged in violation on several occasions over a period of what police said was three and a half hours. The presiding judge said she had been at danger of death by asphyxiation. The prosecution said there was absolute certainty that she had been unconscious and had not agreed.

Defendant's Statements

Dogan stated to the court the recordings were simply “sexual encounters” and disputed it was violation. He said what he did was “a sexual act”, not rape. He told 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 Dominique Pelicot. “I attempted to cease,” Dogan informed the court. “I proceeded because he persuaded me.”

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

Victim's Response

Gisèle Pelicot, who was cheered upon exiting the courtroom each day by supporters assembled to back her, addressed the defendant in court: “You do not grasp. When are you going to recognise you raped me? It’s a crime to rape an incapacitated woman. At what point did I give you consent? At no time.”

The victim, 72, became an symbol of resistance after she relinquished her right to anonymity in the trial last year when she said: “Shame must change sides.”

Legal Commentary

Sie, addressing Gisèle Pelicot in court, said Dogan’s failure to take blame showed that: “The shame remains. Society is maybe in the midst of that, maybe driven by the collective awareness brought by the revelation of your case.”

Sie said Dogan’s claims of non-guilt showed how societal tolerance 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.”

The prosecutor addressed the defendant: “As long as you reject it, it’s not just a individual, it’s an entire sordid societal structure that you are endorsing.”

Biographical Details

The accused was originated from Turkey and at the age of five moved to France, where his parent worked as a building manager. The testimony revealed that his father was violent and that the defendant began using drugs at the age of ten. When he was seventeen he was caught by authorities for selling narcotics and his father kicked him out of home. He spent time in prison for trafficking in his twenties and had worked as a laborer but had undergone periods of being unhoused.

He was wed and had a son with special needs, who he was the principal carer for, as his wife worked in a institution's dining hall. The testimony revealed his spouse did not know he had repeated extramarital activities beyond their marriage. His defence said this was his method of dealing with his stressful life. Dogan had told a mental health expert that once a year he sought transactional encounters on his special day. His legal representatives told the court he had a medical condition triggered by the anxiety of the original case.