France's Higher Court Increases Prison Term for Gisèle Pelicot Assailant

A defendant has been found guilty on higher court review of sexually assaulting Gisèle Pelicot following she was drugged unconscious by her husband – and was given his incarceration period raised to a decade.

Appeal Trial

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

A panel 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 evidence showed that the accused, a family man, connected with Gisèle Pelicot’s then husband, the husband, in an online chatroom titled “unbeknownst to her”, where the husband was recruiting men to enter his residence to rape his wife after he had sedated her into a unconscious state.

We trust the panel will declare that in this country, fundamental rights are also rights of women – that agreement is individual, not transferred,” stated Gisèle Pelicot’s lawyer, Antoine Camus. “Agreement is secured personally and not by proxy from a husband.”

Background

The ex-husband, one of the worst sexual predators in modern French history, was given a prison term to 20 years in prison last year for drugging his spouse and soliciting multiple perpetrators to sexually assault her in her home in the Provence village of Mazan over a duration of many years of their union.

Numerous other individuals were found guilty in a notable trial last year, and Dogan was the sole individual to contest his sentence. He was initially given a sentence to 9 years in prison, a sentence raised on Thursday to a decade.

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

Testimony and Proof

The defendant had initially sent Dominique Pelicot inappropriate pictures and then driven an hour from his residence in Provence to assault Gisèle Pelicot, after informing his wife he was stepping out, the evidence indicated.

The ex-husband, who was transported from segregation in prison to briefly give evidence at the hearing, told the court that the accused had understood his wife had been “sedated” and he communicated to men by phone: “I want someone to assault my wife after I’ve sedated her unbeknownst to her.”

The proceedings became a central issue for a wider discussion on sexual violence norms in society as the defendant continued to assert he was innocent and had not perpetrated assault, arguing that because the victim's husband had invited him into the room, his behavior had been justifiable.

The panel in the Nîmes appeals court was shown video evidence of the victim's unresponsive form, unconscious and breathing heavily in a deep sleep, while a grinning the perpetrator engaged in violation repeatedly over a period of what police said was three and a half hours. The court official said she had been at peril of death by suffocation. The state's case said there was no doubt that she had been incapacitated and had not given permission.

Accused's Testimony

The defendant informed the court the footage were simply “sex scenes” and rejected it was violation. He said what he did was “an intimate behavior”, not assault. He declared the court: “I never raped.” He said the victim's husband had brought him to the house, and therefore it was permissible. He said he was manipulated by Dominique Pelicot. “I wanted to stop,” Dogan stated to the court. “I carried on because he convinced me.”

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

Pelicot's Words

The victim, who was supported upon leaving court each day by supporters gathered to stand with her, told Dogan in court: “You do not grasp. When will you admit you raped me? It is unlawful to assault an incapacitated woman. How could I have give you permission? Never.”

The victim, seventy-two, became an international feminist hero after she gave up her right to confidentiality in the trial last year when she said: “Shame must change sides.”

Prosecutor's Remarks

The prosecutor, addressing the victim in court, said Dogan’s failure to take blame showed that: “Shame has not yet changed sides. The community is perhaps in the midst of that, possibly propelled by the public consciousness resulting from the exposure of your situation.”

The prosecutor said Dogan’s claims of blamelessness showed how normalized violence was still prevalent in society as part of “archaic” forms of “gender-based power”. 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 refuse to admit it, it’s not just a person, it’s an whole sordid societal structure that you are endorsing.”

Defendant's Background

The accused was originated from the country of Turkey and at the age of 5 moved to France, where his father worked as a caretaker. The court heard that his parent was abusive and that the defendant began consuming marijuana aged 10. When he was 17 he was caught by authorities for drug trafficking and his father forced him to leave the family house. He served time in prison for drug dealing in his early 20s and had worked as a builder but had experienced periods of living on the streets.

He was married and had a child with special needs, who he was the primary guardian for, as his wife worked in a institution's dining hall. The testimony revealed his wife did not know he had repeated extramarital activities beyond their union. His legal team said this was his method of dealing with his stressful life. The defendant had stated to a court psychologist that annually he engaged in transactional encounters on his special day. His attorneys told the court he had joint inflammation caused by the pressure of the initial proceedings.