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A man has been found guilty on higher court review of sexually assaulting Gisele Pelicot after she was drugged unconscious by her then-husband – and was given his prison sentence extended to 10 years.

Appeal Trial

Husamettin Dogan, forty-four, an out-of-work construction worker, who had challenged his initial guilty verdict last year, experienced a new trial this week at the Nîmes court of appeal.

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

The evidence showed that the accused, a family man, made contact with Gisèle Pelicot’s husband at the time, Dominique Pelicot, in an digital platform called “unbeknownst to her”, where the husband was looking for men to visit his house to rape his wife after he had sedated her into a unconscious state.

“We hope the jury will say loud and clear that in this society, fundamental rights are also women’s rights – that permission is personal, not delegated,” declared Gisèle Pelicot’s attorney, Antoine Camus. “Consent is received personally and not via a representative from a husband.”

Background

The ex-husband, one of the worst sexual predators in France's contemporary records, was sentenced to two decades in prison last year for incapacitating his then wife and inviting multiple perpetrators to sexually assault her in her home in the community of the village of Mazan over a duration of many years of their marriage.

Numerous other individuals were found guilty in a notable trial last year, and Dogan was the only man to appeal against his verdict. He was first given a sentence to 9 years in prison, a punishment increased on Thursday to ten years.

The chief prosecutor, Dominique Sie, had contended he should serve 12 years, because he “completely denies to take any responsibility”.

Testimony and Proof

The defendant had first sent Dominique Pelicot sexually explicit photos and then driven an hour from his village in Provence to rape the victim, after notifying his wife he was going out, the testimony revealed.

The ex-husband, who was brought from isolation in prison to temporarily give evidence at the hearing, told the court that the accused had known his wife had been “sedated” and he said to men by phone: “I’m looking for someone to violate my wife after I’ve put her to sleep without her knowledge.”

The courtroom became a key topic for a broader debate on rape culture in society as Dogan continued to claim he was innocent and had not engaged in violation, contending that because the victim's husband had invited him into the bedroom, his actions had been justifiable.

The jury in the Nîmes appeals court was shown visual proof of the victim's unconscious figure, sedated and snoring in a unconscious condition, while a grinning the perpetrator performed assault multiple times over a period of what police said was 3.5 hours. The presiding judge said she had been at risk of death by asphyxiation. The prosecution said there was absolute certainty that she had been incapacitated and had not agreed.

Defendant's Statements

Dogan told the court the footage were simply “intimate moments” and denied it was assault. He said what he did was “a consensual activity”, not rape. He declared the court: “I did not commit rape.” He said the victim's husband had invited him to the residence, and therefore it was acceptable. He said he was manipulated by the husband. “I attempted to cease,” Dogan stated to the court. “I continued because he persuaded me.”

Questioned if he wanted to make a closing remarks to the court, Dogan said: “I had no desire to harm that woman.”

Victim's Response

The survivor, who was supported upon leaving court each day by onlookers present to back her, told Dogan in court: “You haven’t understood. When are you going to recognise you raped me? It’s a crime to assault an unaware woman. At what point did I give you consent? Not once.”

Gisèle Pelicot, 72, became an global icon after she relinquished her right to anonymity in the trial last year when she said: “Shame must change sides.”

Prosecutor's Remarks

Sie, speaking to Gisèle Pelicot in court, said the defendant's failure to take blame showed that: “The shame remains. The community is maybe in the process of that, maybe propelled by the societal understanding resulting from the publication of your case.”

Sie said the defendant's claims of innocence showed how rape culture was still common in society as part of “old-fashioned” forms of “gender-based power”. He said: “It is imperative to change the culture of violence to a culture of consent.”

The prosecutor said to Dogan: “For as much as you deny it, it’s not just a woman, it’s an whole sordid societal structure that you are endorsing.”

Personal History

The accused was originated from the country of Turkey and at the age of 5 came to the nation of France, where his father worked as a concierge. The testimony revealed that his parent was abusive and that the defendant began smoking cannabis at the age of 10. When Dogan was seventeen he was caught by police for selling narcotics and his father evicted him of home. He served time in prison for narcotics offenses in his young adulthood 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 main caregiver for, as his wife worked in a educational cafeteria. The court heard his wife did not know he had repeated extramarital activities beyond their union. His legal team said this was his method of dealing with his stressful life. The defendant had stated to a evaluator that once a year he looked for commercial sex on his special day. His lawyers told the court he had a medical condition resulting from the pressure of the first trial.