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An individual has been found guilty on retrial of raping Gisèle Pelicot following she was sedated by her then-husband – and was given his prison sentence extended to 10 years.

Appeal Trial

Husamettin Dogan, 44, an unemployed builder, who had contested his first conviction last year, underwent a appeal hearing this week at the appeals court in Nîmes.

A jury of five men and four women, joined by three judges, found Dogan guilty on Thursday of raping the victim in her home in Provence in the morning of June 29, 2019.

The testimony revealed that Dogan, a family man, reached out to Gisèle Pelicot’s spouse, Dominique Pelicot, in an digital platform called “without her knowledge”, where Pelicot was recruiting men to come to his home to assault his wife once he had sedated her into a comatose state.

“We hope the jury will say loud and clear that in this society, human rights are also women’s rights – that agreement is individual, not delegated,” declared Gisèle Pelicot’s lawyer, Antoine Camus. “Permission is secured directly and not by proxy from a spouse.”

Context

The husband, a notorious sexual predators in recent French history, was given a prison term to 20 years in prison last year for incapacitating his wife at the time and bringing in numerous individuals to rape her in her home in the Provence village of Mazan over a period of nearly ten years of their union.

Dozens of additional defendants were found guilty in a high-profile trial last year, and the appellant was the only man to challenge his verdict. He was first sentenced to nine years in prison, a penalty enhanced 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 blame”.

Evidence Presented

Dogan had first sent Dominique Pelicot sexually explicit photos and then traveled an hour from his village in the region to rape the victim, after notifying his wife he was leaving, the court heard.

Pelicot, who was brought from solitary confinement in prison to temporarily testify at the retrial, informed the court that the accused had understood his wife had been “sedated” and he told to men by phone: “I want someone to violate my wife after I’ve put her to sleep unbeknownst to her.”

The proceedings became a key topic for a wider discussion on sexual violence norms in society as the defendant continued to assert he was not guilty and had not engaged in violation, arguing that because the victim's husband had allowed him into the residence, his behavior had been justifiable.

The panel in the higher court was displayed recorded footage of Gisèle Pelicot’s limp body, sedated and breathing heavily in a unconscious condition, while a grinning Dogan committed rape multiple times over a duration of what investigators stated was 3.5 hours. The judge said she had been at peril of fatal outcome by choking. The state's case said there was absolute certainty that she had been unaware and had not consented.

Dogan's Claims

The defendant told the court the footage were simply “sex scenes” and denied it was assault. He said what he did was “an intimate behavior”, not assault. He stated the court: “I never raped.” He said Gisèle Pelicot’s husband had brought him to the house, and therefore it was acceptable. He said he was deceived by the husband. “I attempted to cease,” Dogan informed the court. “I proceeded because he reassured me.”

Questioned if he wanted to make a last words to the court, the defendant said: “I never wanted to harm that lady.”

Victim's Response

Gisèle Pelicot, who was applauded upon leaving court each day by onlookers present to support her, said to Dogan in court: “You fail to comprehend. When will you admit you violated me? It’s a crime to rape an unaware woman. How could I have give you consent? Not once.”

The victim, seventy-two, became an global icon after she gave up her right to confidentiality in the trial last year when she said: “Guilt ought to transfer.”

Prosecutor's Remarks

The prosecutor, addressing Gisèle Pelicot in court, said Dogan’s refusal to take responsibility showed that: “Shame has not yet changed sides. The public is perhaps in the midst of that, maybe motivated by the public consciousness resulting from the exposure of your ordeal.”

Sie said Dogan’s claims of blamelessness showed how rape culture was still common in society as part of “old-fashioned” forms of “patriarchal control”. He said: “We need to change the culture of violence to a ethos of permission.”

The prosecutor addressed the defendant: “While you reject it, it’s not just a woman, it’s an whole disturbing social system that you are endorsing.”

Personal History

The accused was born in Turkey and at the age of 5 came to the nation of France, where his parent worked as a building manager. The court heard that his father was abusive and that the defendant began smoking cannabis at the age of 10. When Dogan was seventeen he was apprehended by authorities for dealing drugs and his parent forced him to leave of home. He was incarcerated in prison for trafficking in his early 20s and had worked as a construction worker but had faced periods of living on the streets.

He was married and had a child with a genetic condition, who he was the main caregiver for, as his spouse worked in a institution's dining hall. The testimony revealed his wife did not know he had frequent intimate relations beyond their marriage. His legal team said this was his way of coping with his stressful life. Dogan had stated to a mental health expert that annually he sought commercial sex on his special day. His attorneys stated to the court he had joint inflammation triggered by the pressure of the original case.