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An individual has been found guilty on higher court review of sexually assaulting Gisèle Pelicot following she was sedated by her husband – and was given his jail term raised to a decade.

Appeal Trial

Husamettin Dogan, 44, an unemployed builder, who had challenged his first conviction last year, underwent a appeal hearing this week at the Nîmes court of appeal.

A panel of nine jurors, sitting with three judges, convicted Dogan on Thursday of raping the victim in her home in Provence in the morning of 29 June 2019.

The testimony revealed that Dogan, a family man, reached out to the victim's husband at the time, the husband, in an digital platform titled “without her knowledge”, where the husband was seeking men to come to his home to rape his wife after he had rendered her unconscious into a comatose state.

We trust the court will say loud and clear that in this nation, human rights are also rights of women – that permission is individual, not transferred,” declared the victim's attorney, her legal representative. “Permission is received directly and not by proxy from a spouse.”

Case History

The ex-husband, one of the worst sexual predators in France's contemporary records, was given a prison term to two decades in prison last year for sedating his spouse and bringing in multiple perpetrators to rape her in her home in the town of Mazan over a period of nearly ten years of their union.

Fifty other men were found culpable in a notable trial last year, and the appellant was the sole individual to challenge his verdict. He was initially sentenced to nine years in prison, a punishment enhanced on Thursday to ten years.

The chief prosecutor, Dominique Sie, had contended he should serve 12 years, because he “absolutely refuses to take any blame”.

Testimony and Proof

The defendant had first sent the husband sexually explicit photos and then driven an hour from his village in Provence to rape Gisèle Pelicot, after informing his wife he was stepping out, the court heard.

Pelicot, who was brought from solitary confinement in prison to briefly provide testimony at the hearing, told the court that the accused had understood his wife had been “drugged” and he communicated to men by phone: “I want someone to assault my wife after I’ve sedated her unbeknownst to her.”

The proceedings became a key topic for a wider discussion on sexual violence norms in society as the defendant continued to say he was not guilty and had not perpetrated assault, arguing that because Gisèle Pelicot’s husband had allowed him into the room, his actions had been acceptable.

The panel in the higher court was displayed visual proof of Gisèle Pelicot’s unconscious figure, unconscious and breathing heavily in a deep sleep, while a smiling Dogan performed assault multiple times over a period of what police said was three and a half hours. The presiding judge said she had been at peril of death by choking. The prosecution said there was no doubt that she had been unaware and had not consented.

Dogan's Claims

The defendant stated to the court the recordings were simply “sexual encounters” and disputed it was assault. He said what he did was “a sexual act”, not rape. He told the court: “I am innocent of assault.” He said the victim's husband had brought him to the residence, and therefore it was OK. He said he was manipulated by the husband. “I attempted to cease,” Dogan stated to the court. “I proceeded because he persuaded me.”

Questioned if he wanted to make a last words to the court, the defendant said: “I had no desire to hurt that lady.”

Pelicot's Words

Gisèle Pelicot, who was applauded upon leaving court each day by supporters gathered to stand with her, told the defendant in court: “You haven’t understood. When are you going to recognise you raped me? It is illegal to rape an unaware woman. When did I ever give you agreement? Not once.”

The victim, 72, became an international feminist hero after she waived her right to confidentiality in the trial last year when she said: “Shame must change sides.”

Legal Commentary

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

The prosecutor said Dogan’s claims of blamelessness showed how rape culture was still prevalent in society as part of “outdated” forms of “patriarchal control”. He said: “We need to change the culture of violence to a society based on agreement.”

The prosecutor told the defendant: “As long as you reject it, it’s not just a individual, it’s an whole unpleasant social system that you are supporting.”

Biographical Details

The accused was originated from Turkey and at the age of five moved to the nation of France, where his parent worked as a building manager. The testimony revealed that his parent was aggressive and that the defendant began using drugs at the age of 10. When Dogan was seventeen he was stopped by authorities for drug trafficking and his father kicked him out the family house. He was incarcerated in prison for drug dealing in his young adulthood and had worked as a builder but had undergone periods of being unhoused.

He was wed and had a son with special needs, who he was the main caregiver for, as his wife worked in a institution's dining hall. The evidence showed his wife did not know he had repeated intimate relations beyond their marriage. His defence said this was his way of coping with his difficult circumstances. The defendant had stated to a mental health expert that once a year he engaged in commercial sex on his birthday. His lawyers informed the court he had a medical condition triggered by the anxiety of the initial proceedings.