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An individual has been found guilty on higher court review of sexually assaulting Gisèle Pelicot after she was sedated by her then-husband – and has had his incarceration period increased to a decade.

Higher Court Case

Husamettin Dogan, forty-four, an out-of-work construction worker, who had contested his initial guilty verdict last year, faced a retrial this week at the higher court in Nîmes.

A panel of four women and five men, sitting with three judges, convicted Dogan on Thursday of sexually assaulting Pelicot in her bedroom in southern France in the morning of 29 June 2019.

The evidence showed that Dogan, a family man, connected with the victim's spouse, Dominique Pelicot, in an digital platform named “without her consent”, where the husband was looking for men to come to his home to assault his wife after he had rendered her unconscious into a unconscious state.

“We hope the jury will say loud and clear that in this nation, fundamental rights are also women’s rights – that consent is individual, not transferred,” stated the victim's attorney, Antoine Camus. “Consent is received personally and not via a representative from a husband.”

Context

Dominique Pelicot, among the most severe sex offenders in modern French history, was given a prison term to two decades in prison last year for drugging his then wife and inviting dozens of men to rape her in her home in the town of the village of Mazan over a duration of nearly ten years of their union.

Fifty other men were found convicted in a widely publicized trial last year, and Dogan was the sole individual to contest his conviction. He was first sentenced to nine years in prison, a punishment enhanced on Thursday to a decade.

The chief prosecutor, the prosecutor, had stated he should serve twelve years, because he “completely denies to take any accountability”.

Testimony and Proof

Dogan had initially sent Dominique Pelicot graphic images and then driven an hour from his town in the region to rape Gisèle Pelicot, after notifying his wife he was going out, the evidence indicated.

The ex-husband, who was brought from segregation in prison to temporarily give evidence at the appeal trial, stated to the court that Dogan had understood his wife had been “sedated” and he said to men by phone: “I want someone to violate my wife after I’ve sedated her without her knowledge.”

The proceedings became a central issue for a larger conversation on sexual violence norms in society as Dogan continued to say he was blameless and had not perpetrated assault, stating that because the victim's husband had welcomed him into the residence, his actions had been acceptable.

The jury in the Nîmes appeals court was presented with video evidence of the victim's unconscious figure, unconscious and snoring in a comatose state, while a grinning the perpetrator engaged in violation repeatedly over a timeframe of what police said was several hours. The judge said she had been at peril of fatal outcome by suffocation. The state's case said there was no doubt that she had been incapacitated and had not given permission.

Accused's Testimony

The defendant stated to the court the recordings were simply “sex scenes” and disputed it was rape. He said what he did was “a consensual activity”, not assault. He declared the court: “I never raped.” He said the victim's husband had brought him to the home, and therefore it was permissible. He said he was influenced by Dominique Pelicot. “I wanted to stop,” the accused stated to the court. “I carried on because he convinced me.”

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

Survivor's Statement

Gisèle Pelicot, who was applauded upon leaving court each day by supporters gathered to stand with her, said to Dogan in court: “You fail to comprehend. When are you going to recognise you assaulted me? It is illegal to assault an unaware woman. At what point did I give you consent? At no time.”

Gisèle Pelicot, seventy-two, became an symbol of resistance after she gave up her right to confidentiality in the trial last year when she said: “The shame should shift.”

Prosecutor's Remarks

Sie, turning to the victim in court, said the defendant's unwillingness to take accountability showed that: “The shame remains. The public is perhaps in the midst of that, maybe propelled by the public consciousness brought by the revelation of your case.”

The prosecutor said Dogan’s claims of innocence showed how normalized violence was still common in society as part of “outdated” forms of “patriarchal control”. He said: “Now we must change the culture of violence to a society based on agreement.”

The prosecutor told the defendant: “For as much as you reject it, it’s not just a individual, it’s an whole disturbing social system 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 caretaker. The court heard that his father was violent and that the defendant began consuming marijuana at the age of 10. When he was seventeen he was stopped by police for dealing drugs and his parent kicked him out of home. He spent time in prison for narcotics offenses in his twenties and had worked as a construction worker but had undergone periods of living on the streets.

He was wed and had a son with special needs, who he was the primary guardian for, as his spouse worked in a school canteen. The testimony revealed his wife did not know he had regular intimate relations beyond their marriage. His defence said this was his strategy for managing with his difficult circumstances. Dogan had told a court psychologist that each year he sought paid sex on his special day. His legal representatives stated to the court he had a medical condition triggered by the stress of the initial proceedings.