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A defendant was declared guilty on appeal of raping Gisele Pelicot following she was sedated by her spouse – and has had his prison sentence extended to 10 years.

Appeal Trial

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

A jury of five men and four women, sitting with three judges, ruled against Dogan on Thursday of sexually assaulting the victim in her home in the south of France in the morning of June 29, 2019.

The evidence showed that Dogan, a married father, connected with Gisèle Pelicot’s spouse, Dominique Pelicot, in an digital platform named “unbeknownst to her”, where Pelicot was recruiting men to come to his home to assault his wife once he had sedated her into a deep sleep.

We expect the jury will declare that in this country, human rights are also rights of women – that consent is individual, not transferred,” said Gisèle Pelicot’s attorney, Antoine Camus. “Agreement is received personally and not through someone else from a spouse.”

Case History

The ex-husband, among the most severe sexual predators in recent French history, was handed a sentence to 20 years in prison last year for drugging his spouse and soliciting numerous individuals to sexually assault her in her home in the Provence village of Mazan over a span of nearly ten years of their marriage.

Numerous other individuals were found guilty in a widely publicized trial last year, and the appellant was the only man to contest his conviction. He was originally given a sentence to 9 years in prison, a punishment raised on Thursday to 10 years.

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

Evidence Presented

The defendant had initially sent Dominique Pelicot graphic images and then traveled an hour from his residence in Provence to assault the victim, after informing his wife he was going out, the evidence indicated.

The ex-husband, who was transported from isolation in prison to briefly testify at the retrial, stated to the court that Dogan had been aware his wife had been “incapacitated” and he said to men by phone: “I’m looking for someone to abuse my wife after I’ve rendered her unconscious unbeknownst to her.”

The courtroom became a focus point for a larger conversation on sexual violence norms in society as the defendant continued to claim he was blameless and had not committed rape, arguing that because Gisèle Pelicot’s husband had allowed him into the room, his actions had been justifiable.

The panel in the higher court was displayed recorded footage of the victim's unconscious figure, unconscious and snoring in a unconscious condition, while a grinning the perpetrator performed assault repeatedly over a period of what authorities reported was 3.5 hours. The court official said she had been at peril of fatal outcome by asphyxiation. The prosecution said there was no question that she had been incapacitated and had not agreed.

Dogan's Claims

Dogan stated to the court the recordings were simply “sex scenes” and rejected it was assault. He said what he did was “a sexual act”, not assault. He declared the court: “I did not commit rape.” He said Gisèle Pelicot’s husband had brought him to the home, and therefore it was permissible. He said he was manipulated by the husband. “I wanted to stop,” Dogan stated to the court. “I continued because he reassured me.”

Asked if he wanted to make a final statement to the court, the defendant said: “I never wanted to harm that individual.”

Pelicot's Words

The victim, who was applauded upon leaving court each day by crowds gathered to support her, said to Dogan in court: “You do not grasp. When are you going to recognise you raped me? It is unlawful to assault an unconscious woman. When did I ever give you permission? At no time.”

Gisèle Pelicot, 72, became an international feminist hero after she waived her right to confidentiality in the trial last year when she said: “The shame should shift.”

Prosecutor's Remarks

The prosecutor, turning to the victim in court, said Dogan’s refusal to take responsibility showed that: “Shame has not yet changed sides. The public is perhaps in the course of that, perhaps driven by the public consciousness spurred by the revelation of your situation.”

Sie said Dogan’s claims of blamelessness showed how normalized violence was still widespread 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 ethos of permission.”

The prosecutor told Dogan: “For as much as you deny it, it’s not just a person, it’s an whole sordid social system that you are endorsing.”

Personal History

The accused was originated from Turkey and at the age of five moved to the nation of France, where his father worked as a caretaker. The court heard that his parent was abusive and that the defendant began consuming marijuana at the age of ten. When he was 17 he was apprehended by police for drug trafficking and his father forced him to leave the family house. He was incarcerated in prison for narcotics offenses in his young adulthood and had worked as a builder but had faced periods of being unhoused.

He was wed and had a child with a genetic condition, who he was the main caregiver for, as his spouse worked in a institution's dining hall. The evidence showed his wife did not know he had regular extramarital activities beyond their marriage. His legal team said this was his method of dealing with his difficult circumstances. The defendant had informed a court psychologist that annually he looked for transactional encounters on his special day. His attorneys informed the court he had joint inflammation caused by the stress of the initial proceedings.