French Appeal Tribunal Uphighers Sentence for Gisèle Pelicot Assailant

An individual was declared guilty on higher court review of sexually assaulting Gisele Pelicot after she was sedated by her spouse – and has had his jail term extended to ten years.

Higher Court Case

Dogan, forty-four, an unemployed builder, who had appealed his first conviction last year, faced a new trial this week at the Nîmes court of appeal.

A panel of nine jurors, accompanied by three judges, ruled against Dogan on Thursday of sexually assaulting Pelicot in her residence in southern France in the morning of June 29, 2019.

The testimony revealed that Dogan, a family man, made contact with Gisèle Pelicot’s then husband, Dominique Pelicot, in an internet forum called “unbeknownst to her”, where Pelicot was seeking men to visit his house to assault his wife once he had rendered her unconscious into a deep sleep.

“We hope the court will declare that in this country, fundamental rights are also women’s rights – that permission is individual, not given by another,” said the victim's lawyer, her legal representative. “Agreement is secured personally and not via a representative from a husband.”

Background

The husband, one of the worst sex offenders in recent French history, was sentenced to 20 years in prison last year for drugging his spouse and soliciting dozens of men to rape her in her home in the community of Mazan over a duration of nearly ten years of their union.

Fifty other men were found convicted in a notable trial last year, and the appellant was the only man to contest his sentence. He was first given a sentence to 9 years in prison, a sentence raised on Thursday to a decade.

The lead state prosecutor, the prosecutor, had contended he should serve 12 years, because he “completely denies to take any blame”.

Courtroom Details

The defendant had first sent Dominique Pelicot sexually explicit photos and then driven an hour from his residence in the region to assault the victim, after informing his wife he was going out, the court heard.

The ex-husband, who was transported from isolation in prison to temporarily testify at the retrial, told the court that the accused had understood his wife had been “drugged” and he said to men by phone: “I’m looking for someone to abuse my wife after I’ve sedated her without her consent.”

The trial became a key topic for a wider discussion on sexual violence norms in society as the defendant continued to say he was blameless and had not perpetrated assault, contending that because Gisèle Pelicot’s husband had invited him into the bedroom, his actions had been justifiable.

The jury in the higher court was shown visual proof of Gisèle Pelicot’s unconscious figure, comatose and breathing heavily in a comatose state, while a grinning the perpetrator performed assault repeatedly over a period of what investigators stated was 3.5 hours. The judge said she had been at peril of fatal outcome by asphyxiation. The state's case said there was absolute certainty that she had been incapacitated and had not given permission.

Accused's Testimony

Dogan told the court the videos were simply “intimate moments” and rejected it was violation. He said what he did was “a sexual act”, not rape. He declared the court: “I never raped.” He said Gisèle Pelicot’s husband had brought him to the home, and therefore it was acceptable. He said he was manipulated by Dominique Pelicot. “I tried to halt,” Dogan stated to the court. “I continued because he persuaded me.”

Inquired if he wanted to make a final statement to the court, the defendant said: “I never wanted to hurt that individual.”

Pelicot's Words

Gisèle Pelicot, who was supported upon exiting the courtroom each day by crowds assembled to stand with her, told the defendant in court: “You fail to comprehend. When are you going to recognise you raped me? It’s a crime to assault an incapacitated woman. How could I have give you agreement? Not once.”

Gisèle Pelicot, 72, became an symbol of resistance after she gave up her right to privacy in the trial last year when she said: “Guilt ought to transfer.”

Prosecutor's Remarks

Sie, turning to the victim in court, said Dogan’s refusal to take accountability showed that: “Guilt has not shifted. The community is possibly in the process of that, maybe motivated by the collective awareness brought by the revelation of your situation.”

Sie said the defendant's claims of non-guilt showed how rape culture was still common in society as part of “outdated” forms of “patriarchal control”. He said: “It is imperative to change the culture of violence to a ethos of permission.”

The prosecutor addressed Dogan: “As long as you reject it, it’s not just a woman, it’s an entire unpleasant societal structure that you are upholding.”

Personal History

Dogan was originated from Turkey and at the age of five came to the nation of France, where his parent worked as a caretaker. The evidence indicated that his father was aggressive and that the defendant began consuming marijuana aged 10. When Dogan was 17 he was caught by police for drug trafficking and his father evicted him the residence. He spent time in prison for drug dealing in his young adulthood and had worked as a construction worker but had faced periods of homelessness.

He was wed and had a child with special needs, who he was the primary guardian for, as his wife worked in a school canteen. The evidence showed his spouse did not know he had frequent sexual encounters outside their marriage. His legal team said this was his way of coping with his difficult circumstances. Dogan had stated to a evaluator that annually he sought commercial sex on his birthday. His attorneys told the court he had joint inflammation caused by the stress of the first trial.