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A defendant was declared guilty on higher court review of raping Gisele Pelicot after she was sedated by her then-husband – and received his prison sentence raised to a decade.

Appeal Trial

Husamettin Dogan, 44, an out-of-work construction worker, who had contested his initial guilty verdict last year, underwent a appeal hearing this week at the higher court in Nîmes.

A panel of four women and five men, accompanied by three judges, ruled against Dogan on Thursday of raping Pelicot in her residence in Provence in the early hours of 29 June 2019.

The court heard that Dogan, a married father, made contact with the victim's husband at the time, Dominique Pelicot, in an digital platform named “without her knowledge”, where the husband was seeking men to visit his house to rape his wife after he had sedated her into a comatose state.

We expect the court will affirm that in this country, fundamental rights are also rights of women – that agreement is individual, not given by another,” declared Gisèle Pelicot’s lawyer, her legal representative. “Consent is obtained personally and not by proxy from a husband.”

Case History

The ex-husband, one of the worst sex offenders in recent French history, was given a prison term to twenty years in prison last year for drugging his then wife and bringing in multiple perpetrators to sexually assault her in her home in the community of the village of Mazan over a span of nearly ten years of their marriage.

Numerous other individuals were found culpable in a high-profile trial last year, and Dogan was the single defendant to contest his conviction. He was initially handed a term to 9 years in prison, a sentence increased on Thursday to 10 years.

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

Evidence Presented

The defendant had first sent the husband sexually explicit photos and then driven an hour from his town in the region to rape Gisèle Pelicot, after telling his wife he was leaving, the court heard.

The ex-husband, who was transported from segregation in prison to briefly provide testimony at the hearing, informed the court that Dogan had known 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 without her consent.”

The trial became a central issue for a wider discussion on rape culture in society as Dogan continued to claim he was blameless and had not committed rape, contending that because Gisèle Pelicot’s husband had invited him into the bedroom, his actions had been justifiable.

The panel in the Nîmes appeals court was shown video evidence of Gisèle Pelicot’s limp body, sedated and snoring in a deep sleep, while a grinning Dogan committed rape repeatedly over a duration of what authorities reported was several hours. The court official said she had been at danger of fatal outcome by asphyxiation. The state prosecution said there was no question 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 rape. 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 allowed him to the residence, and therefore it was acceptable. He said he was manipulated by Dominique Pelicot. “I wanted to stop,” Dogan told the court. “I carried on because he convinced me.”

Inquired if he wanted to make a closing remarks to the court, Dogan said: “I never wanted to injure that woman.”

Survivor's Statement

Gisèle Pelicot, who was supported upon exiting the courtroom each day by crowds present to stand with her, said to Dogan in court: “You do not grasp. When will you acknowledge you assaulted me? It is illegal to assault an unaware woman. How could I have give you consent? At no time.”

Gisèle Pelicot, seventy-two, became an global icon after she waived her right to privacy in the trial last year when she said: “The shame should shift.”

State's Argument

Sie, turning to Gisèle Pelicot in court, said Dogan’s refusal to take responsibility showed that: “The shame remains. Society is maybe in the course of that, perhaps motivated by the public consciousness resulting from the exposure of your ordeal.”

Sie said the defendant's claims of non-guilt showed how rape culture was still prevalent in society as part of “archaic” forms of “male domination”. He said: “We need to change rape culture to a society based on agreement.”

Sie addressed the defendant: “While you deny it, it’s not just a person, it’s an complete sordid societal structure that you are endorsing.”

Personal History

The accused was originated from Turkey and at the age of 5 came to France, where his parent worked as a building manager. The court heard that his father was aggressive and that Dogan began smoking cannabis at the age of 10. When he was seventeen he was caught by authorities for drug trafficking and his parent evicted him of home. He served time in prison for narcotics offenses in his early 20s and had worked as a laborer but had experienced periods of homelessness.

He was wed and had a son with a genetic condition, who he was the primary guardian for, as his spouse worked in a school canteen. The evidence showed his spouse did not know he had repeated sexual encounters beyond their union. His defence said this was his way of coping with his stressful life. Dogan had informed a evaluator that once a year he looked for transactional encounters on his birthday. His legal representatives told the court he had joint inflammation triggered by the pressure of the first trial.