France's Appeal Court Increases Jail Time for Gisele Pelicot Perpetrator

A defendant was declared guilty on retrial of raping Gisèle Pelicot following she was sedated by her husband – and received his prison sentence raised to 10 years.

Higher Court Case

The defendant, 44, an out-of-work construction worker, who had contested his initial guilty verdict last year, underwent a new trial this week at the higher court in Nîmes.

A panel of nine jurors, accompanied by three judges, found Dogan guilty on Thursday of sexually assaulting Pelicot in her home in southern France in the early hours of 29 June 2019.

The evidence showed that the accused, a family man, made contact with Gisèle Pelicot’s husband at the time, the husband, in an online chatroom named “without her consent”, where Pelicot was looking for men to visit his house to assault his wife after he had sedated her into a deep sleep.

We trust the panel will say loud and clear that in this nation, fundamental rights are also women’s rights – that consent is personal, not given by another,” declared the victim's lawyer, her legal representative. “Agreement is received directly and not by proxy from a husband.”

Context

The ex-husband, one of the worst sexual predators in modern French history, was handed a sentence to 20 years in prison last year for incapacitating his spouse and soliciting multiple perpetrators to sexually assault her in her home in the community of the village of Mazan over a period of almost a decade of their marriage.

Fifty other men were found culpable in a notable trial last year, and Dogan was the only man to contest his conviction. He was initially given a sentence to nine years in prison, a punishment raised on Thursday to a decade.

The lead state prosecutor, the prosecutor, had contended he should serve 12 years, because he “stubbornly rejects to take any accountability”.

Testimony and Proof

The defendant had initially sent the husband inappropriate pictures and then driven an hour from his village in Provence to rape the victim, after notifying his wife he was stepping out, the evidence indicated.

The ex-husband, who was transported from solitary confinement in prison to briefly give evidence at the retrial, stated to the court that the accused had known his wife had been “drugged” and he told to men by phone: “I’m looking for someone to violate my wife after I’ve put her to sleep without her knowledge.”

The proceedings became a focus point for a larger conversation on sexual violence norms in society as the defendant continued to say he was not guilty and had not committed rape, stating that because the victim's husband had allowed him into the residence, his conduct had been acceptable.

The jury in the Nîmes appeals court was displayed visual proof of the victim's limp body, unconscious and breathing heavily in a comatose state, while a smiling the perpetrator committed rape multiple times over a timeframe of what police said was 3.5 hours. The court official said she had been at peril of death by choking. The state's case said there was no doubt that she had been incapacitated and had not consented.

Defendant's Statements

The defendant stated to the court the recordings were simply “intimate moments” and disputed it was violation. He said what he did was “a consensual activity”, not rape. He stated the court: “I am innocent of assault.” He said the victim's husband had invited him to the residence, and therefore it was permissible. He said he was manipulated by the husband. “I tried to halt,” Dogan stated to the court. “I proceeded because he convinced me.”

Questioned if he wanted to make a closing remarks to the court, the defendant said: “I never wanted to hurt that woman.”

Victim's Response

Gisèle Pelicot, who was supported upon exiting the courtroom each day by onlookers present to support her, addressed Dogan in court: “You do not grasp. When are you going to recognise you violated me? It is unlawful to assault an incapacitated woman. At what point did I give you consent? Never.”

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

Prosecutor's Remarks

The prosecutor, turning to the victim in court, said Dogan’s refusal to take accountability showed that: “Guilt has not shifted. Society is perhaps in the midst of that, maybe propelled by the public consciousness brought by the publication of your case.”

Sie said Dogan’s claims of non-guilt showed how societal tolerance was still common in society as part of “outdated” forms of “patriarchal control”. He said: “We need to change the culture of violence to a culture of consent.”

The prosecutor told the defendant: “For as much as you deny it, it’s not just a woman, it’s an complete unpleasant social system that you are supporting.”

Personal History

Dogan was originated from Turkey and at the age of five came to France, where his father worked as a building manager. The testimony revealed that his father was aggressive and that the defendant began using drugs aged ten. When he was 17 he was apprehended by authorities for drug trafficking and his parent evicted him the residence. He served time in prison for narcotics offenses in his twenties and had worked as a builder but had faced periods of living on the streets.

He was wed and had a child with special needs, who he was the primary guardian for, as his spouse worked in a educational cafeteria. The testimony revealed his spouse did not know he had repeated extramarital activities outside their marriage. His defence said this was his method of dealing with his challenging existence. The defendant had informed a mental health expert that annually he sought transactional encounters on his birthday. His legal representatives told the court he had arthritis resulting from the stress of the initial proceedings.