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A man was convicted on retrial of raping Gisèle Pelicot after she was drugged unconscious by her then-husband – and received his incarceration period increased to ten years.

Appeal Trial

Husamettin Dogan, 44, an out-of-work construction worker, who had contested his initial guilty verdict last year, faced a new trial this week at the Nîmes court of appeal.

A panel of five men and four women, sitting with three judges, convicted Dogan on Thursday of raping Pelicot in her residence in Provence in the morning of June 29, 2019.

The evidence showed that Dogan, a married father, 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 come to his home to rape his wife after he had rendered her unconscious into a comatose state.

We expect the court will declare that in this country, human rights are also women’s rights – that permission is individual, not transferred,” declared the victim's attorney, her legal representative. “Consent is secured personally and not via a representative from a husband.”

Case History

The husband, among the most severe sex offenders in France's contemporary records, was given a prison term to 20 years in prison last year for sedating his spouse and soliciting numerous individuals to sexually assault her in her home in the town of Mazan over a span of many years of their union.

Fifty other men were found guilty in a high-profile trial last year, and the appellant was the sole individual to challenge his verdict. He was originally handed a term to nine years in prison, a sentence enhanced on Thursday to a decade.

The chief prosecutor, Dominique Sie, had stated he should serve twelve years, because he “completely denies 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 Gisèle Pelicot, after telling his wife he was leaving, the court heard.

Pelicot, who was brought from segregation in prison to temporarily testify at the appeal trial, informed the court that Dogan had known his wife had been “drugged” and he communicated to men by phone: “I want someone to assault my wife after I’ve sedated her without her consent.”

The courtroom became a focus point for a broader debate on societal attitudes in society as the defendant continued to assert he was innocent and had not committed rape, contending that because Gisèle Pelicot’s husband had welcomed him into the bedroom, his actions had been justifiable.

The jury in the higher court was shown recorded footage of Gisèle Pelicot’s unresponsive form, unconscious and breathing heavily in a comatose state, while a smiling Dogan performed assault on several occasions over a timeframe of what police said was three and a half hours. The presiding judge said she had been at danger of fatal outcome by suffocation. The state's case said there was no doubt that she had been incapacitated and had not agreed.

Defendant's Statements

Dogan stated to the court the recordings were simply “intimate moments” and denied it was rape. He said what he did was “an intimate behavior”, not rape. He stated the court: “I never raped.” He said the victim's husband had invited him to the residence, and therefore it was acceptable. He said he was influenced by the husband. “I tried to halt,” Dogan stated to the court. “I carried on because he reassured me.”

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

Pelicot's Words

Gisèle Pelicot, who was supported upon departing the trial each day by onlookers gathered to back her, told Dogan in court: “You fail to comprehend. When are you going to recognise you violated me? It is unlawful to assault an unconscious woman. When did I ever give you permission? At no time.”

The victim, 72, became an international feminist hero after she gave up her right to anonymity in the trial last year when she said: “Shame must change sides.”

Legal Commentary

Sie, speaking to Gisèle Pelicot in court, said the defendant's unwillingness to take blame showed that: “Guilt has not shifted. The public is perhaps in the process of that, perhaps propelled by the public consciousness brought by the publication of your case.”

Sie said the defendant's claims of blamelessness showed how societal tolerance was still widespread in society as part of “archaic” forms of “male domination”. He said: “Now we must change the culture of violence to a culture of consent.”

The prosecutor said to the defendant: “While you deny it, it’s not just a woman, it’s an entire disturbing societal structure that you are upholding.”

Personal History

The accused was originated from Turkey and at the age of five moved to the nation of France, where his father worked as a caretaker. The evidence indicated that his parent was abusive and that Dogan began smoking cannabis aged 10. When he was seventeen he was apprehended by authorities for selling narcotics and his parent evicted him of home. He was incarcerated in prison for narcotics offenses in his early 20s and had worked as a builder but had experienced periods of living on the streets.

He was wed and had a son with special needs, who he was the primary guardian for, as his wife worked in a educational cafeteria. The testimony revealed his spouse did not know he had regular intimate relations beyond their union. His legal team said this was his method of dealing with his difficult circumstances. The defendant had informed a evaluator that annually he looked for transactional encounters on his birthday. His attorneys stated to the court he had joint inflammation resulting from the stress of the original case.