France's Higher Court Increases Sentence for Gisèle Pelicot Rapist

A man has been found guilty on higher court review of raping Gisele Pelicot following she was rendered comatose by her spouse – and has had his incarceration period increased to ten years.

Appeal Trial

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

A panel of five men and four women, accompanied by three judges, convicted Dogan on Thursday of sexually assaulting the victim in her residence in Provence 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 recruiting men to visit his house to assault his wife after he had rendered her unconscious into a comatose state.

We trust the court will affirm that in this society, fundamental rights are also women’s rights – that agreement is individual, not given by another,” stated the victim's lawyer, her legal representative. “Agreement is secured personally and not via a representative from a spouse.”

Case History

The ex-husband, among the most severe sexual predators in recent French history, was sentenced to 20 years in prison last year for incapacitating his then wife and bringing in multiple perpetrators to rape her in her home in the Provence village of Mazan over a duration of nearly ten years of their union.

Numerous other individuals were found culpable in a high-profile trial last year, and the appellant was the only man to contest his conviction. He was originally handed a term to 9 years in prison, a penalty raised on Thursday to ten years.

The state's attorney, Dominique Sie, had argued he should serve 12 years, because he “completely denies to take any accountability”.

Courtroom Details

The defendant had first sent Dominique Pelicot graphic images and then driven an hour from his town in the region to rape Gisèle Pelicot, after notifying his wife he was going out, the evidence indicated.

The ex-husband, who was brought from isolation in prison to temporarily testify at the hearing, told the court that Dogan had understood his wife had been “drugged” and he communicated to men by phone: “I’m looking for someone to violate my wife after I’ve put her to sleep without her consent.”

The trial became a central issue for a broader debate on sexual violence norms in society as the defendant continued to say he was blameless and had not engaged in violation, stating that because the victim's husband had welcomed him into the room, his behavior had been permissible.

The jury in the higher court was presented with recorded footage of Gisèle Pelicot’s unconscious figure, comatose and breathing heavily in a deep sleep, while a smiling Dogan engaged in violation repeatedly over a timeframe of what police said was three and a half hours. The judge said she had been at peril of death by suffocation. The prosecution said there was no doubt that she had been unaware and had not agreed.

Defendant's Statements

Dogan told the court the videos were simply “intimate moments” and disputed it was assault. He said what he did was “an intimate behavior”, not assault. He declared the court: “I did not commit rape.” He said the victim's husband had brought him to the house, and therefore it was permissible. He said he was deceived by Dominique Pelicot. “I wanted to stop,” Dogan informed the court. “I proceeded because he persuaded me.”

Inquired if he wanted to make a final statement to the court, the defendant said: “I did not intend to hurt that lady.”

Survivor's Statement

The survivor, who was applauded upon departing the trial each day by crowds present to back her, told the defendant in court: “You haven’t understood. When are you going to recognise you assaulted me? It’s a crime to rape an unaware woman. At what point did I give you consent? Never.”

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

State's Argument

Sie, turning to Gisèle Pelicot in court, said Dogan’s failure to take accountability showed that: “The shame remains. The community is perhaps in the course of that, maybe driven by the collective awareness resulting from the exposure of your ordeal.”

Sie said Dogan’s claims of innocence showed how normalized violence was still widespread in society as part of “old-fashioned” forms of “gender-based power”. He said: “Now we must change rape culture to a ethos of permission.”

The prosecutor told Dogan: “While you refuse to admit it, it’s not just a person, it’s an whole sordid societal structure that you are endorsing.”

Personal History

The accused was originated from the country of Turkey and at the age of five moved to the nation of France, where his father worked as a caretaker. The testimony revealed that his father was abusive and that the defendant began consuming marijuana at the age of 10. When he was 17 he was caught by police for drug trafficking and his parent kicked him out the residence. He spent time in prison for trafficking in his young adulthood and had worked as a laborer but had undergone periods of being unhoused.

He was married and had a child with a genetic condition, who he was the principal carer for, as his wife worked in a institution's dining hall. The testimony revealed his spouse did not know he had repeated extramarital activities beyond their union. His legal team said this was his method of dealing with his challenging existence. Dogan had told a mental health expert that once a year he engaged in paid sex on his special day. His legal representatives stated to the court he had joint inflammation resulting from the stress of the initial proceedings.