France's Higher Tribunal Uphighers Prison Term for Gisèle Pelicot Rapist

An individual was declared guilty on higher court review of sexually assaulting Gisele Pelicot after she was rendered comatose by her spouse – and has had his incarceration period extended to 10 years.

Appeal Trial

The defendant, forty-four, an out-of-work construction worker, who had appealed his initial guilty verdict last year, faced a new trial this week at the higher court in Nîmes.

A jury of nine jurors, accompanied by three judges, ruled against Dogan on Thursday of sexually assaulting the victim in her bedroom in southern France in the early hours of 29 June 2019.

The court heard that the accused, a family man, reached out to Gisèle Pelicot’s husband at the time, Dominique Pelicot, in an internet forum called “without her knowledge”, where the husband was recruiting men to enter his residence to assault his wife after he had rendered her unconscious into a comatose state.

“We hope the court will say loud and clear that in this country, human rights are also rights of women – that agreement is individual, not transferred,” stated Gisèle Pelicot’s lawyer, Antoine Camus. “Permission is received personally and not by proxy from a spouse.”

Background

Dominique Pelicot, a notorious sexual predators in modern French history, was sentenced to twenty years in prison last year for incapacitating his then wife and inviting dozens of men to rape her in her home in the town of the village of Mazan over a span of almost a decade of their union.

Fifty other men were found guilty in a high-profile trial last year, and Dogan was the single defendant to challenge his sentence. He was originally given a sentence to 9 years in prison, a sentence raised on Thursday to a decade.

The state's attorney, the prosecutor, had contended he should serve twelve years, because he “stubbornly rejects to take any responsibility”.

Testimony and Proof

The defendant had initially sent the husband inappropriate pictures and then traveled an hour from his village in the region to rape Gisèle Pelicot, after informing his wife he was leaving, the court heard.

Pelicot, who was brought from segregation in prison to briefly testify at the retrial, stated to the court that the accused had understood his wife had been “sedated” and he said to men by phone: “I want someone to violate my wife after I’ve put her to sleep without her consent.”

The trial became a key topic for a larger conversation on sexual violence norms in society as the defendant continued to say he was innocent and had not perpetrated assault, stating that because Gisèle Pelicot’s husband had welcomed him into the residence, his behavior had been acceptable.

The jury in the Nîmes appeals court was displayed visual proof of Gisèle Pelicot’s unresponsive form, unconscious and breathing heavily in a deep sleep, while a smiling Dogan engaged in violation repeatedly over a period of what investigators stated was 3.5 hours. The judge said she had been at danger of death by asphyxiation. The prosecution said there was absolute certainty that she had been unconscious and had not consented.

Accused's Testimony

Dogan stated to the court the recordings were simply “sex scenes” and denied it was rape. He said what he did was “a consensual activity”, not assault. He declared the court: “I did not commit rape.” He said the victim's husband had allowed him to the home, and therefore it was permissible. He said he was deceived by the husband. “I tried to halt,” Dogan stated to the court. “I carried on because he reassured me.”

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

Survivor's Statement

Gisèle Pelicot, who was applauded upon leaving court each day by onlookers assembled to support her, told the defendant in court: “You do not grasp. When will you acknowledge you violated me? It’s a crime to assault an unaware woman. How could I have give you permission? Not once.”

Gisèle Pelicot, 72, became an symbol of resistance after she waived her right to confidentiality in the trial last year when she said: “Shame must change sides.”

State's Argument

The prosecutor, speaking to Gisèle Pelicot in court, said the defendant's unwillingness to take blame showed that: “The shame remains. The public is possibly in the midst of that, maybe propelled by the collective awareness spurred by the revelation of your ordeal.”

The prosecutor said Dogan’s claims of blamelessness showed how normalized violence was still common in society as part of “old-fashioned” forms of “gender-based power”. He said: “Now we must change rape culture to a culture of consent.”

The prosecutor addressed Dogan: “As long as you refuse to admit it, it’s not just a woman, it’s an complete sordid cultural framework that you are upholding.”

Personal History

Dogan was originated from the country of Turkey and at the age of 5 relocated to France, where his father worked as a caretaker. The court heard that his father was violent and that the defendant began using drugs at the age of ten. When he was 17 he was apprehended by police for drug trafficking and his parent kicked him out the family house. He was incarcerated in prison for drug dealing in his young adulthood and had worked as a laborer but had undergone periods of living on the streets.

He was wed and had a son with Down’s syndrome, who he was the primary guardian for, as his wife worked in a institution's dining hall. The testimony revealed his wife did not know he had frequent extramarital activities outside their marriage. His legal team said this was his strategy for managing with his stressful life. The defendant had told a court psychologist that each year he engaged in transactional encounters on his special day. His legal representatives informed the court he had joint inflammation caused by the pressure of the first trial.