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A man has been found guilty on appeal of raping Gisele Pelicot following she was sedated by her then-husband – and was given his prison sentence raised to ten years.

Appeal Trial

Husamettin Dogan, forty-four, an unemployed builder, who had appealed his initial guilty verdict last year, underwent a appeal hearing this week at the Nîmes court of appeal.

A jury of nine jurors, sitting with three judges, ruled against Dogan on Thursday of raping the victim in her residence in Provence in the early hours of June 29, 2019.

The testimony revealed that the accused, a married father, connected with the victim's spouse, Dominique Pelicot, in an internet forum called “without her consent”, where Pelicot 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 nation, human rights are also rights of women – that agreement is individual, not given by another,” declared Gisèle Pelicot’s attorney, Antoine Camus. “Agreement is obtained personally and not via a representative from a husband.”

Background

The husband, one of the worst sexual predators in recent French history, was handed a sentence to 20 years in prison last year for sedating his then wife and bringing in multiple perpetrators to rape her in her home in the Provence village of the village of Mazan over a period of nearly ten years of their marriage.

Fifty other men were found guilty in a notable trial last year, and the appellant was the single defendant to contest his conviction. He was initially given a sentence to 9 years in prison, a sentence enhanced on Thursday to ten years.

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

Testimony and Proof

Dogan had initially sent Dominique Pelicot graphic images and then traveled an hour from his residence in the region to rape Gisèle Pelicot, after telling his wife he was going out, the testimony revealed.

Pelicot, who was transported from segregation in prison to temporarily testify at the hearing, informed the court that the accused had understood 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 consent.”

The proceedings became a focus point for a broader debate on societal attitudes in society as Dogan continued to say he was not guilty and had not perpetrated assault, arguing that because Gisèle Pelicot’s husband had allowed him into the bedroom, his behavior had been justifiable.

The jury in the Nîmes appeals court was presented with video evidence of Gisèle Pelicot’s unconscious figure, unconscious and breathing heavily in a deep sleep, while a grinning Dogan performed assault repeatedly over a period of what police said was three and a half hours. The court official said she had been at peril of fatal outcome by choking. The prosecution said there was no doubt that she had been unaware and had not consented.

Accused's Testimony

Dogan informed the court the recordings were simply “intimate moments” and denied it was assault. He said what he did was “an intimate behavior”, not rape. He stated the court: “I am innocent of assault.” He said Gisèle Pelicot’s husband had invited him to the residence, and therefore it was permissible. He said he was deceived by the husband. “I wanted to stop,” the accused informed the court. “I proceeded because he convinced me.”

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

Survivor's Statement

Gisèle Pelicot, who was applauded upon departing the trial each day by onlookers assembled to support her, addressed Dogan in court: “You do not grasp. When are you going to recognise you raped me? It is illegal to rape an incapacitated woman. At what point did I give you consent? Never.”

Gisèle Pelicot, 72, became an international feminist hero after she gave up her right to anonymity in the trial last year when she said: “Guilt ought to transfer.”

Prosecutor's Remarks

Sie, speaking 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 midst of that, maybe motivated by the collective awareness resulting from the publication of your case.”

Sie said Dogan’s claims of innocence showed how societal tolerance was still widespread in society as part of “old-fashioned” forms of “patriarchal control”. He said: “It is imperative to change rape culture to a society based on agreement.”

The prosecutor addressed Dogan: “As long as you refuse to admit it, it’s not just a person, it’s an whole sordid social system that you are upholding.”

Personal History

The accused was born in the country of Turkey and at the age of 5 relocated to the nation of France, where his parent worked as a caretaker. The evidence indicated that his father was abusive and that the defendant began using drugs aged 10. When Dogan was seventeen he was caught by authorities for drug trafficking and his parent kicked him out the family house. He spent time in prison for drug dealing in his early 20s and had worked as a laborer but had experienced periods of homelessness.

He was wed and had a son with special needs, who he was the principal carer 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 union. His defence said this was his strategy for managing with his challenging existence. The defendant had informed a evaluator that annually he looked for commercial sex on his birthday. His legal representatives stated to the court he had arthritis triggered by the pressure of the first trial.