🔗 Share this article

A man was convicted on retrial of sexually assaulting Gisele Pelicot after she was rendered comatose by her spouse – and received his prison sentence raised to 10 years.

Appeal Trial

Husamettin Dogan, 44, an out-of-work construction worker, who had appealed his first conviction last year, underwent a retrial this week at the higher court in Nîmes.

A panel of nine jurors, joined by three judges, convicted Dogan on Thursday of raping the victim in her bedroom in Provence in the early hours of 29 June 2019.

The court heard that the accused, a married father, reached out to Gisèle Pelicot’s spouse, Dominique Pelicot, in an online chatroom named “without her consent”, where Pelicot was recruiting men to visit his house to rape his wife once he had rendered her unconscious into a comatose state.

We expect the court will affirm that in this society, human rights are also rights of women – that permission is individual, not transferred,” stated Gisèle Pelicot’s lawyer, Antoine Camus. “Consent is obtained personally and not via a representative from a spouse.”

Case History

The husband, one of the worst sex offenders in recent French history, was given a prison term to twenty years in prison last year for drugging his wife at the time and soliciting dozens of men to rape her in her home in the Provence village of Mazan over a duration of almost a decade of their marriage.

Numerous other individuals were found convicted in a widely publicized trial last year, and the appellant was the single defendant to challenge his conviction. He was initially given a sentence to nine years in prison, a sentence raised on Thursday to ten years.

The state's attorney, Dominique Sie, had stated he should serve 12 years, because he “stubbornly rejects to take any accountability”.

Testimony and Proof

Dogan had first sent the husband sexually explicit photos and then traveled an hour from his village in the region to rape the victim, after telling his wife he was stepping out, the evidence indicated.

The ex-husband, who was brought from isolation in prison to briefly testify at the hearing, informed the court that the accused had been aware his wife had been “sedated” and he told to men by phone: “I’m looking for someone to abuse my wife after I’ve rendered her unconscious without her knowledge.”

The courtroom became a central issue for a wider discussion on rape culture in society as Dogan continued to say he was innocent and had not committed rape, stating that because Gisèle Pelicot’s husband had invited him into the bedroom, his conduct had been acceptable.

The jury in the Nîmes appeals court was shown visual proof of Gisèle Pelicot’s unconscious figure, sedated and breathing heavily in a deep sleep, while a smiling Dogan performed assault on several occasions over a duration of what investigators stated was 3.5 hours. The judge said she had been at danger of fatal outcome by choking. The state's case said there was no doubt that she had been unaware and had not agreed.

Defendant's Statements

Dogan told the court the footage were simply “intimate moments” and rejected it was violation. He said what he did was “a sexual act”, not assault. He declared the court: “I am innocent of assault.” He said the victim's husband had brought him to the residence, and therefore it was OK. He said he was influenced by Dominique Pelicot. “I tried to halt,” Dogan told the court. “I proceeded because he convinced me.”

Asked if he wanted to make a last words to the court, Dogan said: “I never wanted to harm that lady.”

Survivor's Statement

The victim, who was supported upon leaving court each day by crowds assembled to back her, addressed Dogan in court: “You fail to comprehend. When will you admit you violated me? It is unlawful to rape an unaware woman. How could I have give you agreement? Never.”

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

Legal Commentary

The prosecutor, addressing Gisèle Pelicot in court, said Dogan’s refusal to take blame showed that: “The shame remains. The public is perhaps in the midst of that, possibly motivated by the collective awareness spurred by the publication of your situation.”

Sie said the defendant's claims of blamelessness showed how societal tolerance was still common in society as part of “old-fashioned” forms of “male domination”. He said: “We need to change rape culture to a society based on agreement.”

Sie told the defendant: “While you reject it, it’s not just a woman, it’s an complete disturbing societal structure that you are supporting.”

Defendant's Background

Dogan was originated from the country of Turkey and at the age of 5 relocated to France, where his father worked as a concierge. The court heard that his parent was violent and that Dogan began consuming marijuana at the age of ten. When Dogan was seventeen he was caught by authorities for drug trafficking and his father kicked him out of home. He served time in prison for trafficking in his young adulthood and had worked as a construction worker but had undergone periods of homelessness.

He was married and had a child with a genetic condition, who he was the principal carer for, as his wife worked in a educational cafeteria. The court heard his spouse did not know he had regular extramarital activities outside their union. His legal team said this was his way of coping with his difficult circumstances. Dogan had stated to a court psychologist that annually he sought paid sex on his special day. His attorneys stated to the court he had arthritis caused by the pressure of the first trial.