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A defendant was convicted on appeal of sexually assaulting Gisele Pelicot following she was drugged unconscious by her spouse – and was given his incarceration period extended to ten years.

Retrial Proceedings

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

A jury of nine jurors, accompanied by three judges, found Dogan guilty on Thursday of sexually assaulting Pelicot in her bedroom in Provence in the morning of June 29, 2019.

The evidence showed that the accused, a family man, reached out to Gisèle Pelicot’s spouse, Dominique Pelicot, in an online chatroom named “unbeknownst to her”, where Pelicot was recruiting men to come to his home to rape his wife after he had drugged her into a comatose state.

We expect the court will say loud and clear that in this society, human rights are also women’s rights – that agreement is individual, not given by another,” said Gisèle Pelicot’s lawyer, her legal representative. “Agreement is obtained directly and not through someone else from a spouse.”

Context

The ex-husband, one of the worst sexual predators in recent French history, was given a prison term to 20 years in prison last year for sedating his then wife and inviting multiple perpetrators to rape her in her home in the town of the village of Mazan over a span of nearly ten years of their union.

Fifty other men were found guilty in a notable trial last year, and the appellant was the sole individual to contest his conviction. He was originally given a sentence to 9 years in prison, a sentence increased on Thursday to 10 years.

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

Testimony and Proof

The defendant had initially sent Dominique Pelicot inappropriate pictures and then driven an hour from his residence in the region to rape Gisèle Pelicot, after telling his wife he was going out, the evidence indicated.

The ex-husband, who was transported from segregation in prison to temporarily give evidence at the appeal trial, stated to the court that the accused had been aware his wife had been “incapacitated” and he said to men by phone: “I seek someone to abuse my wife after I’ve put her to sleep without her consent.”

The trial became a central issue for a larger conversation on rape culture in society as the defendant continued to say he was not guilty and had not perpetrated assault, stating that because Gisèle Pelicot’s husband had invited him into the residence, his behavior had been permissible.

The jury in the Nîmes appeals court was shown video evidence of the victim's unconscious figure, unconscious and snoring in a unconscious condition, while a grinning the perpetrator engaged in violation multiple times over a duration of what investigators stated was three and a half hours. The judge said she had been at peril of fatal outcome by choking. The state prosecution said there was absolute certainty that she had been incapacitated and had not given permission.

Defendant's Statements

Dogan told the court the footage were simply “sexual encounters” and rejected it was assault. He said what he did was “a sexual act”, not rape. He declared the court: “I never raped.” He said Gisèle Pelicot’s husband had brought him to the residence, and therefore it was acceptable. He said he was deceived by Dominique Pelicot. “I tried to halt,” the accused told the court. “I continued because he reassured me.”

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

Victim's Response

The victim, who was cheered upon leaving court each day by supporters present to support her, addressed Dogan in court: “You do not grasp. When are you going to recognise you assaulted me? It is unlawful to rape an incapacitated woman. At what point did I give you consent? Not once.”

The victim, 72, became an global icon after she relinquished her right to anonymity in the trial last year when she said: “The shame should shift.”

Prosecutor's Remarks

Sie, addressing the victim in court, said Dogan’s failure to take accountability showed that: “The shame remains. The community is perhaps in the midst of that, possibly motivated by the public consciousness brought by the revelation of your situation.”

The prosecutor said the defendant's claims of blamelessness showed how rape culture was still common in society as part of “outdated” forms of “gender-based power”. He said: “It is imperative to change the culture of violence to a culture of consent.”

The prosecutor addressed Dogan: “As long as you reject it, it’s not just a person, it’s an whole disturbing social system that you are endorsing.”

Biographical Details

The accused was born in Turkey and at the age of five came to France, where his father worked as a caretaker. The evidence indicated that his parent was abusive and that the defendant began consuming marijuana aged 10. When Dogan was seventeen he was apprehended by police for drug trafficking and his father forced him to leave the residence. He served time in prison for drug dealing in his twenties and had worked as a builder but had experienced periods of homelessness.

He was wed and had a son with Down’s syndrome, who he was the main caregiver for, as his wife worked in a institution's dining hall. The testimony revealed his spouse did not know he had regular intimate relations beyond their marriage. His defence said this was his way of coping with his stressful life. Dogan had stated to a court psychologist that each year he engaged in paid sex on his special day. His legal representatives informed the court he had arthritis caused by the stress of the initial proceedings.