A defendant has been found guilty on appeal of raping Gisèle Pelicot following she was sedated by her spouse – and was given his incarceration period increased to 10 years.
Retrial Proceedings
The defendant, 44, an out-of-work construction worker, who had challenged his first conviction last year, underwent a retrial this week at the higher court in Nîmes.
A jury of four women and five men, joined by three judges, convicted Dogan on Thursday of raping Pelicot in her home in southern France in the morning of 29 June 2019.
The court heard that the accused, a married father, made contact with Gisèle Pelicot’s then husband, Dominique Pelicot, in an digital platform named “without her consent”, where Pelicot was seeking men to enter his residence to assault his wife once he had rendered her unconscious into a unconscious state.
We trust the court will say loud and clear that in this nation, fundamental rights are also women’s rights – that permission is personal, not delegated,” declared the victim's lawyer, her legal representative. “Agreement is secured personally and not by proxy from a husband.”
Context
The ex-husband, a notorious sexual predators in France's contemporary records, was handed a sentence to two decades in prison last year for sedating his spouse and bringing in dozens of men to sexually assault her in her home in the Provence village of the village of Mazan over a duration of almost a decade of their marriage.
Dozens of additional defendants were found guilty in a high-profile trial last year, and the appellant was the single defendant to appeal against his conviction. He was initially sentenced to nine years in prison, a punishment raised on Thursday to a decade.
The state's attorney, Dominique Sie, had contended he should serve 12 years, because he “stubbornly rejects to take any responsibility”.
Courtroom Details
Dogan had first sent the husband graphic images and then traveled an hour from his village in the region to assault Gisèle Pelicot, after telling his wife he was leaving, the testimony revealed.
Pelicot, who was transported from isolation in prison to briefly testify at the hearing, informed the court that Dogan had been aware his wife had been “incapacitated” and he told to men by phone: “I want someone to violate my wife after I’ve sedated her without her consent.”
The proceedings became a key topic for a wider discussion on sexual violence norms in society as the defendant continued to claim he was not guilty and had not perpetrated assault, contending that because the victim's husband had invited him into the bedroom, his actions had been permissible.
The jury in the Nîmes appeals court was displayed visual proof of Gisèle Pelicot’s unresponsive form, unconscious and breathing heavily in a unconscious condition, while a smiling Dogan performed assault repeatedly over a period of what investigators stated was 3.5 hours. The court official said she had been at risk of fatal outcome by suffocation. The prosecution said there was absolute certainty that she had been unconscious and had not agreed.
Defendant's Statements
Dogan informed the court the videos were simply “intimate moments” and disputed 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 Gisèle Pelicot’s husband had invited him to the home, and therefore it was OK. He said he was deceived by Dominique Pelicot. “I attempted to cease,” Dogan informed the court. “I carried on because he persuaded me.”
Asked if he wanted to make a closing remarks to the court, Dogan said: “I did not intend to hurt that lady.”
Victim's Response
Gisèle Pelicot, who was cheered upon departing the trial each day by supporters assembled to support her, addressed Dogan in court: “You haven’t understood. When will you admit you violated me? It’s a crime to rape an incapacitated woman. At what point did I give you permission? At no time.”
The victim, seventy-two, became an symbol of resistance after she relinquished her right to privacy in the trial last year when she said: “Guilt ought to transfer.”
State's Argument
Sie, addressing Gisèle Pelicot in court, said Dogan’s unwillingness to take responsibility showed that: “The shame remains. The community is possibly in the midst of that, perhaps propelled by the public consciousness brought by the revelation of your situation.”
The prosecutor said Dogan’s claims of innocence showed how rape culture was still prevalent in society as part of “old-fashioned” forms of “male domination”. He said: “It is imperative to change rape culture to a society based on agreement.”
The prosecutor told Dogan: “As long as you refuse to admit it, it’s not just a woman, it’s an whole sordid social system that you are upholding.”
Biographical Details
The accused was originated from the country of Turkey and at the age of 5 moved to the nation of France, where his father worked as a caretaker. The evidence indicated that his parent was abusive and that Dogan began using drugs at the age of 10. When Dogan was 17 he was apprehended by police for drug trafficking and his father evicted him the residence. He spent time in prison for drug dealing in his young adulthood and had worked as a construction worker but had experienced periods of homelessness.
He was wed and had a child with special needs, who he was the principal carer for, as his spouse worked in a educational cafeteria. The evidence showed his wife did not know he had regular intimate relations beyond their union. His defence said this was his way of coping with his difficult circumstances. The defendant had informed a court psychologist that annually he looked for transactional encounters on his special day. His lawyers informed the court he had joint inflammation resulting from the stress of the first trial.
