🔗 Share this article

A man has been found guilty on higher court review of sexually assaulting Gisele Pelicot after she was drugged unconscious by her then-husband – and has had his prison sentence increased to a decade.

Retrial Proceedings

Husamettin Dogan, 44, an out-of-work construction worker, who had challenged his first conviction last year, experienced a retrial this week at the higher court in Nîmes.

A jury of five men and four women, joined by three judges, convicted Dogan on Thursday of sexually assaulting Pelicot in her home in the south of France in the morning of 29 June 2019.

The evidence showed that Dogan, a family man, reached out to the victim's husband at the time, the husband, in an digital platform titled “without her knowledge”, where the husband was recruiting men to visit his house to rape his wife after he had sedated her into a unconscious state.

“We hope the jury will declare that in this society, human rights are also women’s rights – that permission is personal, not transferred,” said the victim's attorney, her legal representative. “Permission is secured directly and not by proxy from a husband.”

Background

Dominique Pelicot, among the most severe sexual predators in France's contemporary records, was given a prison term to twenty years in prison last year for drugging his then wife and soliciting dozens of men to sexually assault her in her home in the community of the village of Mazan over a span of almost a decade of their union.

Fifty other men were found convicted in a high-profile trial last year, and the appellant was the sole individual to appeal against his conviction. He was first handed a term to nine years in prison, a sentence enhanced on Thursday to a decade.

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

Courtroom Details

The defendant had first sent the husband inappropriate pictures and then driven an hour from his town in Provence to rape Gisèle Pelicot, after notifying his wife he was going out, the evidence indicated.

Pelicot, who was transported from isolation in prison to temporarily testify at the appeal trial, stated to the court that the accused had known his wife had been “sedated” and he communicated to men by phone: “I seek someone to assault my wife after I’ve put her to sleep unbeknownst to her.”

The courtroom became a central issue for a wider discussion on societal attitudes in society as Dogan continued to say he was not guilty and had not engaged in violation, contending that because Gisèle Pelicot’s husband had invited him into the bedroom, his behavior had been permissible.

The jury in the Nîmes appeals court was displayed video evidence of Gisèle Pelicot’s unconscious figure, sedated and breathing heavily in a comatose state, while a smiling the perpetrator committed rape repeatedly over a period of what police said was three and a half hours. The judge said she had been at risk of fatal outcome by choking. The state prosecution said there was no doubt that she had been unconscious and had not agreed.

Dogan's Claims

Dogan stated to the court the videos were simply “sex scenes” and denied it was assault. He said what he did was “a sexual act”, not rape. He declared the court: “I am innocent of assault.” He said the victim's husband had brought him to the home, and therefore it was acceptable. He said he was deceived by the husband. “I tried to halt,” Dogan informed the court. “I continued because he convinced me.”

Inquired if he wanted to make a last words to the court, the defendant said: “I had no desire to harm that lady.”

Survivor's Statement

Gisèle Pelicot, who was supported upon departing the trial each day by onlookers present to back her, said to the defendant in court: “You fail to comprehend. When will you acknowledge you violated me? It’s a crime to assault an unaware woman. At what point did I give you agreement? At no time.”

The victim, seventy-two, became an symbol of resistance after she relinquished her right to confidentiality in the trial last year when she said: “Guilt ought to transfer.”

Legal Commentary

Sie, speaking to Gisèle Pelicot in court, said Dogan’s unwillingness to take responsibility showed that: “Shame has not yet changed sides. The public is maybe in the process of that, maybe driven by the public consciousness resulting from the publication of your case.”

Sie said the defendant's claims of innocence showed how rape culture was still prevalent in society as part of “old-fashioned” forms of “patriarchal control”. He said: “Now we must change rape culture to a culture of consent.”

Sie said to Dogan: “While you refuse to admit it, it’s not just a person, it’s an entire disturbing cultural framework that you are supporting.”

Personal History

Dogan was originated from the country of Turkey and at the age of five relocated to the nation of France, where his parent worked as a caretaker. The evidence indicated that his father was aggressive and that Dogan began consuming marijuana aged ten. When he was seventeen he was stopped by authorities for drug trafficking and his father kicked him out of home. He served time in prison for narcotics offenses in his young adulthood and had worked as a construction worker but had experienced periods of living on the streets.

He was married and had a son with Down’s syndrome, who he was the primary guardian for, as his spouse worked in a institution's dining hall. The court heard his spouse did not know he had frequent sexual encounters outside their marriage. His legal team said this was his strategy for managing with his stressful life. The defendant had informed a court psychologist that each year he engaged in transactional encounters on his birthday. His attorneys stated to the court he had arthritis triggered by the pressure of the original case.