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An individual was declared guilty on retrial of raping Gisele Pelicot after she was drugged unconscious by her then-husband – and has had his jail term extended to ten years.

Appeal Trial

Husamettin Dogan, forty-four, an out-of-work construction worker, who had challenged his initial guilty verdict last year, underwent a new trial this week at the higher court in Nîmes.

A panel of four women and five men, joined by three judges, convicted Dogan on Thursday of sexually assaulting Pelicot in her residence in Provence in the morning of 29 June 2019.

The testimony revealed that Dogan, a family man, connected with the victim's spouse, Dominique Pelicot, in an digital platform titled “without her consent”, where the husband was looking for men to come to his home to assault his wife once he had sedated her into a unconscious state.

“We hope the court will say loud and clear that in this country, human rights are also women’s rights – that consent is personal, not given by another,” said Gisèle Pelicot’s attorney, Antoine Camus. “Consent is received directly and not through someone else 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 incapacitating his wife at the time and bringing in dozens of men to rape her in her home in the community of the village of Mazan over a duration of many years of their marriage.

Dozens of additional defendants were found culpable in a notable trial last year, and Dogan was the single defendant to contest his conviction. He was initially handed a term to nine years in prison, a penalty raised on Thursday to a decade.

The chief prosecutor, the prosecutor, had contended he should serve 12 years, because he “absolutely refuses to take any accountability”.

Evidence Presented

The defendant had first sent the husband inappropriate pictures and then traveled an hour from his residence in Provence to assault Gisèle Pelicot, after informing his wife he was leaving, the testimony revealed.

The ex-husband, who was brought from isolation in prison to briefly give evidence at the hearing, stated to the court that the accused had known his wife had been “drugged” and he said to men by phone: “I seek someone to violate my wife after I’ve put her to sleep without her consent.”

The courtroom became a key topic for a broader debate on rape culture in society as Dogan continued to say he was not guilty and had not committed rape, contending that because Gisèle Pelicot’s husband had allowed him into the residence, his actions had been justifiable.

The jury in the Nîmes appeals court was displayed visual proof of the victim's unresponsive form, unconscious and breathing heavily in a deep sleep, while a smiling the perpetrator engaged in violation multiple times over a timeframe of what authorities reported was 3.5 hours. The presiding judge said she had been at danger of fatal outcome by asphyxiation. The state prosecution said there was no doubt that she had been incapacitated and had not given permission.

Defendant's Statements

Dogan told the court the videos were simply “intimate moments” and disputed it was assault. He said what he did was “a consensual activity”, not assault. He declared the court: “I am innocent of assault.” He said Gisèle Pelicot’s husband had allowed him to the house, and therefore it was acceptable. He said he was manipulated by Dominique Pelicot. “I tried to halt,” the accused informed the court. “I continued because he persuaded me.”

Questioned if he wanted to make a final statement to the court, Dogan said: “I never wanted to hurt that woman.”

Pelicot's Words

The victim, who was cheered upon exiting the courtroom each day by onlookers assembled to support her, said to the defendant in court: “You fail to comprehend. When will you acknowledge you assaulted me? It is illegal to rape an unaware woman. When did I ever give you consent? Not once.”

Gisèle Pelicot, 72, became an symbol of resistance after she relinquished her right to confidentiality in the trial last year when she said: “The shame should shift.”

State's Argument

The prosecutor, speaking to Gisèle Pelicot in court, said Dogan’s unwillingness to take blame showed that: “Shame has not yet changed sides. Society is maybe in the midst of that, perhaps motivated by the societal understanding spurred by the revelation of your case.”

Sie said Dogan’s claims of blamelessness showed how normalized violence was still widespread in society as part of “outdated” forms of “male domination”. He said: “Now we must change the culture of violence to a society based on agreement.”

The prosecutor addressed the defendant: “For as much as you reject it, it’s not just a individual, it’s an whole disturbing cultural framework that you are upholding.”

Biographical Details

The accused was born in Turkey and at the age of 5 relocated to France, where his parent 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 stopped by authorities for dealing drugs and his father forced him to leave the family house. He spent time in prison for trafficking in his young adulthood and had worked as a construction worker but had undergone periods of homelessness.

He was married and had a son with a genetic condition, who he was the main caregiver for, as his wife worked in a educational cafeteria. The evidence showed his spouse did not know he had repeated extramarital activities beyond their union. His legal team said this was his way of coping with his challenging existence. The defendant had told a court psychologist that each year he engaged in transactional encounters on his birthday. His lawyers told the court he had a medical condition caused by the pressure of the initial proceedings.