French Appeal Court Uphighers Sentence for Gisele Pelicot Assailant

An individual was convicted on retrial of raping Gisele Pelicot following she was sedated by her spouse – and was given his jail term extended to ten years.

Higher Court Case

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

A panel of four women and five men, sitting with three judges, ruled against Dogan on Thursday of raping Pelicot in her home in the south of France in the early hours of June 29, 2019.

The court heard that the accused, a family man, connected with Gisèle Pelicot’s husband at the time, Dominique Pelicot, in an digital platform titled “unbeknownst to her”, where Pelicot was seeking men to enter his residence to rape his wife after he had rendered her unconscious into a unconscious state.

We expect the court will declare that in this society, fundamental rights are also women’s rights – that agreement is individual, not delegated,” stated Gisèle Pelicot’s lawyer, her legal representative. “Agreement is secured personally and not through someone else from a spouse.”

Case History

The ex-husband, a notorious sexual predators in France's contemporary records, was handed a sentence to 20 years in prison last year for incapacitating his then wife and inviting dozens of men to rape her in her home in the Provence village of Mazan over a duration of almost a decade of their union.

Fifty other men were found convicted in a high-profile trial last year, and Dogan was the single defendant to challenge his conviction. He was originally given a sentence to 9 years in prison, a punishment enhanced on Thursday to a decade.

The lead state prosecutor, the prosecutor, had stated he should serve twelve years, because he “completely denies to take any responsibility”.

Evidence Presented

Dogan had first sent the husband inappropriate pictures and then traveled an hour from his residence in the region to assault the victim, after informing his wife he was stepping out, the testimony revealed.

The ex-husband, who was brought from isolation in prison to temporarily provide testimony at the appeal trial, told the court that Dogan had known his wife had been “drugged” and he communicated to men by phone: “I seek someone to abuse my wife after I’ve rendered her unconscious without her consent.”

The trial became a central issue for a broader debate on sexual violence norms in society as the defendant continued to claim he was innocent and had not perpetrated assault, stating that because Gisèle Pelicot’s husband had welcomed him into the bedroom, his conduct had been justifiable.

The panel in the higher court was displayed recorded footage of Gisèle Pelicot’s unresponsive form, unconscious and breathing heavily in a deep sleep, while a grinning Dogan committed rape repeatedly over a period of what investigators stated was several hours. The presiding judge said she had been at risk of fatal outcome by suffocation. The state's case said there was no doubt that she had been unaware and had not agreed.

Dogan's Claims

Dogan told the court the recordings were simply “sexual encounters” and disputed it was rape. He said what he did was “a consensual activity”, not rape. He stated the court: “I am innocent of assault.” He said Gisèle Pelicot’s husband had brought him to the house, and therefore it was OK. He said he was deceived by Dominique Pelicot. “I attempted to cease,” Dogan informed the court. “I proceeded because he convinced me.”

Asked if he wanted to make a closing remarks to the court, Dogan said: “I did not intend to injure that woman.”

Pelicot's Words

The survivor, who was supported upon departing the trial each day by crowds present to support her, addressed the defendant in court: “You haven’t understood. When will you acknowledge you violated me? It is illegal to rape an incapacitated woman. At what point did I give you consent? At no time.”

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

Prosecutor's Remarks

The prosecutor, speaking to Gisèle Pelicot in court, said Dogan’s failure to take blame showed that: “The shame remains. The public is maybe in the midst of that, maybe propelled by the public consciousness resulting from the exposure of your ordeal.”

The prosecutor said Dogan’s claims of innocence showed how rape culture was still common in society as part of “outdated” forms of “patriarchal control”. He said: “We need to change rape culture to a society based on agreement.”

Sie told the defendant: “While you reject it, it’s not just a woman, it’s an entire sordid cultural framework that you are upholding.”

Defendant's Background

The accused was originated from the country of Turkey and at the age of 5 came to France, where his parent worked as a caretaker. The testimony revealed that his father was violent and that Dogan began using drugs at the age of 10. When he was seventeen he was stopped by authorities for dealing drugs and his parent kicked him out the residence. He was incarcerated in prison for drug dealing in his young adulthood and had worked as a laborer but had undergone periods of being unhoused.

He was married and had a son with a genetic condition, who he was the primary guardian 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 stated to a mental health expert that once a year he engaged in commercial sex on his birthday. His legal representatives informed the court he had joint inflammation caused by the pressure of the first trial.