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An individual was declared guilty on retrial of raping Gisele Pelicot following she was rendered comatose by her husband – and received his prison sentence extended to 10 years.

Higher Court Case

Husamettin Dogan, 44, an unemployed builder, who had contested his initial guilty verdict last year, faced a retrial this week at the appeals court in Nîmes.

A panel of four women and five men, accompanied by three judges, ruled against Dogan on Thursday of raping Pelicot in her home in Provence in the early hours of June 29, 2019.

The evidence showed that the accused, a family man, connected with Gisèle Pelicot’s then husband, Dominique Pelicot, in an online chatroom named “unbeknownst to her”, where Pelicot was looking for men to come to his home to assault his wife after he had rendered her unconscious into a comatose state.

We trust the panel will affirm that in this country, human rights are also rights of women – that consent is individual, not transferred,” declared Gisèle Pelicot’s attorney, her legal representative. “Permission is received directly and not by proxy from a spouse.”

Background

The ex-husband, one of the worst sexual predators in recent French history, was sentenced to two decades in prison last year for incapacitating his wife at the time and soliciting dozens of men to rape her in her home in the town of the village of Mazan over a span of many 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 verdict. He was originally given a sentence to nine years in prison, a punishment enhanced on Thursday to 10 years.

The lead state prosecutor, Dominique Sie, had stated he should serve 12 years, because he “completely denies to take any accountability”.

Evidence Presented

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

Pelicot, who was transported from segregation in prison to temporarily provide testimony at the hearing, informed the court that Dogan had been aware his wife had been “drugged” and he communicated to men by phone: “I’m looking for someone to abuse my wife after I’ve rendered her unconscious unbeknownst to her.”

The proceedings became a key topic for a wider discussion on sexual violence norms in society as Dogan continued to assert he was blameless and had not perpetrated assault, stating that because the victim's husband had welcomed him into the residence, his behavior had been justifiable.

The panel in the higher court was shown visual proof of Gisèle Pelicot’s limp body, sedated and breathing heavily in a comatose state, while a grinning Dogan engaged in violation on several occasions over a period of what authorities reported was several hours. The presiding judge said she had been at risk of death by asphyxiation. The state's case said there was no question that she had been incapacitated and had not agreed.

Accused's Testimony

The defendant told the court the recordings were simply “sexual encounters” and rejected it was violation. He said what he did was “an intimate behavior”, not rape. He declared the court: “I did not commit rape.” He said Gisèle Pelicot’s husband had brought him to the house, and therefore it was permissible. He said he was deceived by Dominique Pelicot. “I tried to halt,” Dogan told the court. “I carried on because he convinced me.”

Asked if he wanted to make a final statement to the court, Dogan said: “I did not intend to harm that woman.”

Victim's Response

The survivor, who was cheered upon leaving court each day by onlookers present to stand with her, addressed the defendant in court: “You do not grasp. When will you acknowledge you raped me? It is unlawful to assault an unaware woman. At what point did I give you agreement? At no time.”

Gisèle Pelicot, 72, became an global icon after she gave up her right to privacy in the trial last year when she said: “Shame must change sides.”

Legal Commentary

The prosecutor, speaking to Gisèle Pelicot in court, said the defendant's failure to take responsibility showed that: “Guilt has not shifted. The community is perhaps in the midst of that, perhaps driven by the collective awareness resulting from the revelation of your ordeal.”

Sie said the defendant's claims of innocence showed how rape culture was still widespread in society as part of “old-fashioned” forms of “patriarchal control”. He said: “We need to change the culture of violence to a culture of consent.”

The prosecutor addressed Dogan: “As long as you reject it, it’s not just a woman, it’s an complete disturbing cultural framework that you are supporting.”

Personal History

The accused was originated from the country of Turkey and at the age of 5 moved to France, where his father worked as a building manager. The evidence indicated that his father was aggressive and that the defendant began consuming marijuana at the age of 10. When he was 17 he was apprehended by authorities for dealing drugs and his parent forced him to leave the family house. He was incarcerated in prison for narcotics offenses in his twenties and had worked as a construction worker but had undergone periods of being unhoused.

He was wed and had a son with Down’s syndrome, who he was the primary guardian for, as his spouse worked in a educational cafeteria. The testimony revealed his spouse did not know he had repeated extramarital activities outside their marriage. His legal team said this was his way of coping with his stressful life. The defendant had told a court psychologist that once a year he engaged in transactional encounters on his birthday. His lawyers stated to the court he had a medical condition resulting from the anxiety of the original case.