A man was declared guilty on retrial of raping Gisèle Pelicot after she was rendered comatose by her husband – and was given his prison sentence increased to 10 years.
Retrial Proceedings
The defendant, 44, an out-of-work construction worker, who had challenged his initial guilty verdict last year, faced a new trial this week at the appeals court in Nîmes.
A jury of four women and five men, joined by three judges, convicted Dogan on Thursday of sexually assaulting the victim in her residence in the south of France in the early hours of June 29, 2019.
The testimony revealed that Dogan, a family man, made contact with Gisèle Pelicot’s spouse, the husband, in an internet forum titled “without her consent”, where the husband was seeking men to enter his residence to assault his wife after he had drugged her into a deep sleep.
We trust the panel will affirm that in this country, fundamental rights are also women’s rights – that permission is personal, not given by another,” said the victim's attorney, her legal representative. “Consent is obtained directly and not via a representative from a spouse.”
Background
Dominique Pelicot, one of the worst sexual predators in France's contemporary records, was handed a sentence to two decades in prison last year for incapacitating his spouse and bringing in multiple perpetrators to sexually assault her in her home in the community of Mazan over a span of almost a decade of their union.
Dozens of additional defendants were found convicted in a widely publicized trial last year, and the appellant was the single defendant to challenge his conviction. He was first given a sentence to 9 years in prison, a punishment increased on Thursday to 10 years.
The chief prosecutor, the prosecutor, had stated he should serve twelve years, because he “completely denies to take any blame”.
Courtroom Details
The defendant had initially sent the husband inappropriate pictures and then traveled an hour from his town in the region to assault the victim, after informing his wife he was going out, the court heard.
Pelicot, who was brought from solitary confinement in prison to briefly give evidence at the retrial, stated to the court that Dogan had known his wife had been “incapacitated” and he communicated to men by phone: “I seek someone to assault my wife after I’ve rendered her unconscious unbeknownst to her.”
The courtroom became a central issue for a larger conversation on sexual violence norms in society as Dogan continued to assert he was not guilty and had not committed rape, arguing that because the victim's husband had invited him into the bedroom, his conduct had been permissible.
The panel in the Nîmes appeals court was shown visual proof of Gisèle Pelicot’s limp body, unconscious and snoring in a unconscious condition, while a grinning Dogan committed rape on several occasions over a period of what investigators stated was 3.5 hours. The judge said she had been at risk of death by suffocation. The state prosecution said there was no question that she had been unconscious and had not given permission.
Defendant's Statements
The defendant told the court the videos were simply “intimate moments” and disputed it was rape. He said what he did was “a consensual activity”, not rape. He told the court: “I did not commit rape.” He said Gisèle Pelicot’s husband had allowed him to the house, and therefore it was OK. He said he was deceived by Dominique Pelicot. “I wanted to stop,” Dogan informed the court. “I carried on because he convinced me.”
Inquired if he wanted to make a closing remarks to the court, the defendant said: “I did not intend to injure that lady.”
Victim's Response
The survivor, who was cheered upon exiting the courtroom each day by onlookers assembled to stand with her, said to the defendant in court: “You fail to comprehend. When will you admit you violated me? It’s a crime to assault an incapacitated woman. How could I have give you agreement? Never.”
Gisèle Pelicot, seventy-two, became an international feminist hero after she relinquished her right to privacy in the trial last year when she said: “Guilt ought to transfer.”
Legal Commentary
The prosecutor, turning to the victim in court, said Dogan’s refusal to take blame showed that: “Shame has not yet changed sides. Society is possibly in the process of that, perhaps motivated by the public consciousness resulting from the exposure of your ordeal.”
Sie said the defendant's claims of blamelessness showed how normalized violence was still prevalent in society as part of “old-fashioned” forms of “patriarchal control”. He said: “Now we must change the culture of violence to a ethos of permission.”
Sie said to Dogan: “While you deny it, it’s not just a individual, it’s an complete disturbing societal structure that you are supporting.”
Defendant's Background
The accused was originated from Turkey and at the age of 5 relocated to France, where his father worked as a caretaker. The evidence indicated that his father was aggressive and that Dogan began consuming marijuana aged ten. When he was 17 he was stopped by authorities for drug trafficking and his father forced him to leave the residence. He spent time in prison for drug dealing in his young adulthood and had worked as a laborer but had undergone periods of living on the streets.
He was married and had a child with Down’s syndrome, who he was the primary guardian for, as his wife worked in a institution's dining hall. The evidence showed his spouse did not know he had regular intimate relations beyond their union. His defence said this was his method of dealing with his challenging existence. Dogan had informed a mental health expert that annually he sought paid sex on his birthday. His attorneys told the court he had arthritis resulting from the stress of the initial proceedings.
