🔗 Share this article

A defendant was declared guilty on higher court review of raping Gisèle Pelicot following she was drugged unconscious by her then-husband – and received his prison sentence increased to ten years.

Appeal Trial

The defendant, 44, an unemployed builder, who had contested his initial guilty verdict last year, underwent a appeal hearing this week at the higher court in Nîmes.

A panel of five men and four women, accompanied by three judges, ruled against Dogan on Thursday of sexually assaulting Pelicot in her residence in the south of France in the morning of June 29, 2019.

The evidence showed that the accused, a married father, connected with the victim's husband at the time, the husband, in an digital platform called “unbeknownst to her”, where Pelicot was seeking men to visit his house to rape his wife once he had rendered her unconscious into a unconscious state.

We expect the court will declare that in this society, fundamental rights are also rights of women – that permission is individual, not transferred,” stated the victim's lawyer, her legal representative. “Agreement is received personally and not via a representative from a husband.”

Case History

The husband, one of the worst sexual predators in recent French history, was handed a sentence to twenty years in prison last year for sedating his spouse and inviting multiple perpetrators to sexually assault her in her home in the town of the village of Mazan over a period of nearly ten years of their union.

Numerous other individuals were found guilty in a notable trial last year, and Dogan was the sole individual to contest his sentence. He was originally given a sentence to 9 years in prison, a punishment enhanced 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”.

Testimony and Proof

The defendant had first sent Dominique Pelicot graphic images and then traveled an hour from his residence in Provence to rape Gisèle Pelicot, after informing his wife he was stepping out, the court heard.

The ex-husband, who was brought from isolation in prison to briefly provide testimony at the appeal trial, informed the court that the accused had understood his wife had been “sedated” and he communicated to men by phone: “I want someone to assault my wife after I’ve rendered her unconscious without her knowledge.”

The trial became a central issue for a broader debate on rape culture in society as Dogan continued to claim he was not guilty and had not committed rape, contending that because the victim's husband had invited him into the bedroom, his conduct had been justifiable.

The panel in the Nîmes appeals court was presented with recorded footage of Gisèle Pelicot’s limp body, comatose and snoring in a comatose state, 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 death by choking. The state's case said there was no doubt that she had been unaware and had not given permission.

Dogan's Claims

The defendant stated to the court the videos were simply “sex scenes” and rejected it was violation. He said what he did was “an intimate behavior”, not rape. He told the court: “I did not commit rape.” He said the victim's husband had invited him to the home, and therefore it was permissible. He said he was deceived by Dominique Pelicot. “I wanted to stop,” the accused informed the court. “I carried on because he reassured me.”

Inquired if he wanted to make a last words to the court, Dogan said: “I never wanted to harm that woman.”

Survivor's Statement

Gisèle Pelicot, who was applauded upon leaving court each day by crowds present to stand with her, addressed Dogan in court: “You do not grasp. When will you admit you violated me? It is illegal to assault an unconscious woman. At what point did I give you agreement? At no time.”

The victim, seventy-two, became an global icon after she waived her right to privacy in the trial last year when she said: “Guilt ought to transfer.”

Prosecutor's Remarks

Sie, addressing the victim in court, said Dogan’s failure to take responsibility showed that: “Guilt has not shifted. The public is maybe in the process of that, perhaps motivated by the societal understanding brought by the exposure of your case.”

The prosecutor said the defendant's claims of innocence showed how normalized violence was still common in society as part of “archaic” forms of “patriarchal control”. He said: “We need to change the culture of violence to a society based on agreement.”

Sie said to the defendant: “While you reject it, it’s not just a individual, it’s an complete disturbing societal structure that you are supporting.”

Biographical Details

The accused was originated from the country of Turkey and at the age of five moved to France, where his parent worked as a building manager. The court heard that his father was abusive and that Dogan began consuming marijuana at the age of ten. When Dogan was seventeen he was caught by authorities for dealing drugs and his parent forced him to leave the family house. He spent time in prison for narcotics offenses in his early 20s and had worked as a builder but had undergone periods of homelessness.

He was married and had a child with a genetic condition, who he was the principal carer for, as his wife worked in a school canteen. The court heard his spouse did not know he had frequent sexual encounters beyond their union. His defence said this was his strategy for managing with his stressful life. Dogan had informed a court psychologist that once a year he sought paid sex on his special day. His attorneys stated to the court he had joint inflammation resulting from the stress of the original case.