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An individual was convicted on retrial of raping Gisèle Pelicot following she was drugged unconscious by her then-husband – and has had his incarceration period raised to a decade.

Higher Court Case

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

A jury of four women and five men, sitting with three judges, ruled against Dogan on Thursday of raping Pelicot in her residence in Provence in the morning of 29 June 2019.

The testimony revealed that Dogan, a married father, connected with the victim's then husband, the husband, in an internet forum called “without her knowledge”, where the husband was recruiting men to come to his home to rape his wife once he had drugged her into a unconscious state.

We trust the panel will say loud and clear that in this society, human rights are also rights of women – that permission is individual, not transferred,” declared the victim's attorney, her legal representative. “Permission is obtained personally and not via a representative from a spouse.”

Background

The husband, one of the worst sex offenders in modern French history, was handed a sentence to 20 years in prison last year for incapacitating his spouse and soliciting dozens of men to rape her in her home in the town of Mazan over a period of nearly ten years of their marriage.

Numerous other individuals were found culpable in a notable trial last year, and Dogan was the single defendant to challenge his verdict. He was originally sentenced to 9 years in prison, a punishment enhanced on Thursday to a decade.

The lead state prosecutor, the prosecutor, had stated he should serve 12 years, because he “completely denies to take any blame”.

Evidence Presented

The defendant had initially sent Dominique Pelicot graphic images and then traveled an hour from his town in Provence to assault the victim, after notifying his wife he was going out, the evidence indicated.

Pelicot, who was brought from solitary confinement in prison to temporarily give evidence at the appeal trial, informed the court that Dogan had known his wife had been “drugged” and he said to men by phone: “I want someone to abuse my wife after I’ve rendered her unconscious unbeknownst to her.”

The trial became a focus point for a wider discussion on sexual violence norms in society as the defendant continued to claim he was innocent and had not committed rape, arguing that because the victim's husband had welcomed him into the room, his behavior had been permissible.

The panel in the Nîmes appeals court was presented with recorded footage of the victim's unresponsive form, sedated and snoring in a unconscious condition, while a smiling Dogan committed rape repeatedly over a duration of what police said was 3.5 hours. The presiding judge said she had been at danger of death by asphyxiation. The state prosecution said there was absolute certainty that she had been unconscious and had not given permission.

Dogan's Claims

Dogan told the court the videos were simply “intimate moments” and denied it was assault. He said what he did was “a consensual activity”, not rape. He stated the court: “I did not commit rape.” He said Gisèle Pelicot’s husband had brought him to the house, and therefore it was acceptable. He said he was manipulated by the husband. “I attempted to cease,” Dogan told the court. “I carried on because he reassured me.”

Questioned if he wanted to make a last words to the court, the defendant said: “I never wanted to harm that lady.”

Pelicot's Words

The survivor, who was applauded upon exiting the courtroom each day by crowds gathered to stand with her, addressed Dogan in court: “You do not grasp. When will you admit you raped me? It’s a crime to assault an incapacitated woman. At what point did I give you permission? Not once.”

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

State's Argument

The prosecutor, speaking to Gisèle Pelicot in court, said the defendant's refusal to take responsibility showed that: “The shame remains. The public is maybe in the process of that, possibly driven by the collective awareness resulting from the exposure of your case.”

Sie said Dogan’s claims of blamelessness showed how societal tolerance was still widespread 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.”

Sie addressed Dogan: “For as much as you deny it, it’s not just a person, it’s an entire disturbing social system that you are supporting.”

Biographical Details

The accused was born in the country of Turkey and at the age of 5 came to the nation of France, where his parent worked as a building manager. The evidence indicated that his parent was abusive and that Dogan began smoking cannabis at the age of 10. When he was 17 he was caught by authorities for selling narcotics and his father kicked him out of home. He was incarcerated in prison for drug dealing in his twenties and had worked as a construction worker but had faced periods of homelessness.

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 evidence showed his wife did not know he had repeated sexual encounters beyond their marriage. His defence said this was his way of coping with his stressful life. Dogan had told a evaluator that once a year he looked for paid sex on his special day. His legal representatives informed the court he had joint inflammation caused by the pressure of the first trial.