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A man was declared guilty on higher court review of raping Gisele Pelicot following she was sedated by her spouse – and received his prison sentence increased to ten years.

Higher Court Case

Husamettin Dogan, 44, an out-of-work construction worker, who had challenged his initial guilty verdict last year, underwent a retrial 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 raping the victim in her residence in Provence in the early hours of June 29, 2019.

The evidence showed that Dogan, a family man, reached out to the victim's husband at the time, Dominique Pelicot, in an online chatroom named “without her consent”, where Pelicot was seeking men to enter his residence to assault his wife once he had sedated her into a unconscious state.

We expect the jury will say loud and clear that in this society, human rights are also women’s rights – that agreement is personal, not transferred,” said the victim's lawyer, Antoine Camus. “Consent is obtained directly and not through someone else from a husband.”

Case History

The ex-husband, one of the worst sex offenders in modern French history, was handed a sentence to 20 years in prison last year for drugging his then wife and inviting numerous individuals to rape her in her home in the Provence village of the village of Mazan over a span of many years of their union.

Dozens of additional defendants were found guilty in a notable trial last year, and Dogan was the single defendant to challenge his verdict. He was originally given a sentence to 9 years in prison, a sentence increased on Thursday to a decade.

The state's attorney, the prosecutor, had argued he should serve 12 years, because he “completely denies to take any responsibility”.

Courtroom Details

The defendant had initially sent Dominique Pelicot graphic images and then traveled an hour from his village in Provence to rape the victim, after notifying his wife he was going out, the court heard.

Pelicot, who was transported from segregation in prison to temporarily provide testimony at the retrial, stated to the court that the accused had known his wife had been “drugged” and he said to men by phone: “I want someone to assault 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 claim he was blameless and had not committed rape, contending that because Gisèle Pelicot’s husband had invited him into the bedroom, his behavior had been acceptable.

The jury in the higher court was shown recorded footage of Gisèle Pelicot’s limp body, comatose and breathing heavily in a deep sleep, while a grinning the perpetrator engaged in violation repeatedly over a duration of what police said was three and a half hours. The court official said she had been at danger of death by choking. The state's case said there was no doubt that she had been unaware and had not given permission.

Dogan's Claims

The defendant stated to the court the videos were simply “sex scenes” and rejected it was assault. He said what he did was “an intimate behavior”, not rape. He stated the court: “I am innocent of assault.” He said Gisèle Pelicot’s husband had invited him to the house, and therefore it was acceptable. He said he was influenced by the husband. “I attempted to cease,” the accused told the court. “I continued because he reassured me.”

Asked if he wanted to make a closing remarks to the court, the defendant said: “I did not intend to harm that individual.”

Survivor's Statement

Gisèle Pelicot, who was cheered upon departing the trial each day by onlookers assembled to stand with her, said to the defendant in court: “You do not grasp. When will you admit you assaulted me? It is unlawful to rape an unaware woman. At what point did I give you permission? At no time.”

Gisèle Pelicot, 72, became an international feminist hero after she waived her right to confidentiality in the trial last year when she said: “Guilt ought to transfer.”

Legal Commentary

The prosecutor, turning to the victim in court, said the defendant's unwillingness to take accountability showed that: “Shame has not yet changed sides. The public is perhaps in the course of that, maybe motivated by the collective awareness spurred by the publication of your case.”

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

Sie said to the defendant: “As long as you refuse to admit it, it’s not just a person, it’s an complete sordid societal structure that you are upholding.”

Biographical Details

The accused was originated from the country of Turkey and at the age of five moved to France, where his parent worked as a concierge. The testimony revealed that his father was violent and that the defendant began smoking cannabis at the age of 10. When he was 17 he was stopped by authorities for selling narcotics and his parent kicked him out the family house. He spent time in prison for trafficking in his twenties and had worked as a builder but had undergone periods of homelessness.

He was wed and had a son with a genetic condition, who he was the principal carer for, as his wife worked in a institution's dining hall. The evidence showed his wife did not know he had regular intimate relations beyond their marriage. His defence said this was his method of dealing with his stressful life. Dogan had stated to a court psychologist that each year he sought paid sex on his special day. His legal representatives told the court he had a medical condition resulting from the anxiety of the first trial.