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An individual was declared guilty on appeal of sexually assaulting Gisele Pelicot after she was drugged unconscious by her spouse – and has had his prison sentence extended to ten years.

Appeal Trial

Husamettin Dogan, forty-four, an unemployed builder, who had challenged his initial guilty verdict last year, experienced a retrial this week at the higher court in Nîmes.

A jury of four women and five men, joined by three judges, convicted Dogan on Thursday of raping the victim in her home in southern France in the morning of June 29, 2019.

The court heard that the accused, a family man, made contact with the victim's spouse, Dominique Pelicot, in an internet forum named “without her knowledge”, where Pelicot was seeking men to visit his house to rape his wife after he had rendered her unconscious into a unconscious state.

We expect the court will affirm that in this nation, human rights are also rights of women – that consent is personal, not given by another,” stated the victim's lawyer, her legal representative. “Permission is obtained personally and not by proxy from a spouse.”

Case History

The ex-husband, one of the worst sex offenders in recent French history, was given a prison term to twenty years in prison last year for sedating his then wife and bringing in dozens of men to rape her in her home in the community of the village of Mazan over a duration of almost a decade of their marriage.

Numerous other individuals were found culpable in a notable trial last year, and Dogan was the single defendant to challenge his sentence. He was originally handed a term to 9 years in prison, a punishment raised on Thursday to ten years.

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

Testimony and Proof

Dogan had initially sent the husband graphic images and then driven an hour from his village in the region to assault the victim, after informing his wife he was leaving, the testimony revealed.

Pelicot, who was transported from solitary confinement in prison to briefly give evidence at the hearing, told the court that the accused had been aware his wife had been “incapacitated” and he told to men by phone: “I’m looking for someone to violate my wife after I’ve rendered her unconscious without her consent.”

The courtroom became a central issue for a wider discussion on societal attitudes in society as the defendant continued to claim he was innocent and had not perpetrated assault, arguing that because Gisèle Pelicot’s husband had invited him into the residence, his conduct had been permissible.

The jury in the Nîmes appeals court was presented with visual proof of Gisèle Pelicot’s unresponsive form, unconscious and breathing heavily in a comatose state, while a smiling the perpetrator engaged in violation multiple times over a duration of what authorities reported was three and a half hours. The presiding judge said she had been at risk of fatal outcome by suffocation. The prosecution said there was no doubt that she had been incapacitated and had not given permission.

Accused's Testimony

The defendant stated to the court the videos were simply “sexual encounters” and denied it was rape. 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 allowed him to the home, and therefore it was OK. He said he was deceived by Dominique Pelicot. “I wanted to stop,” Dogan informed the court. “I continued because he persuaded me.”

Asked if he wanted to make a closing remarks to the court, the defendant said: “I never wanted to harm that lady.”

Survivor's Statement

The survivor, who was cheered upon leaving court each day by supporters assembled to back her, addressed the defendant in court: “You fail to comprehend. When will you admit you assaulted me? It’s a crime to assault an unconscious woman. When did I ever give you consent? At no time.”

Gisèle Pelicot, seventy-two, became an symbol of resistance after she gave up her right to privacy in the trial last year when she said: “The shame should shift.”

State's Argument

Sie, turning to the victim in court, said the defendant's failure to take blame showed that: “The shame remains. Society is perhaps in the course of that, maybe driven by the societal understanding brought by the revelation of your situation.”

Sie said Dogan’s claims of blamelessness showed how societal tolerance was still common in society as part of “outdated” forms of “male domination”. He said: “Now we must change rape culture to a ethos of permission.”

The prosecutor told Dogan: “For as much as you deny it, it’s not just a individual, it’s an entire unpleasant social system that you are supporting.”

Biographical Details

Dogan was born in Turkey and at the age of 5 came to France, where his parent worked as a caretaker. The evidence indicated that his parent was violent and that the defendant began consuming marijuana aged 10. When he was 17 he was caught by police for selling narcotics and his parent kicked him out the family house. He was incarcerated in prison for trafficking in his early 20s and had worked as a laborer but had faced periods of homelessness.

He was wed and had a child with Down’s syndrome, who he was the main caregiver for, as his wife worked in a school canteen. The evidence showed his spouse did not know he had repeated extramarital activities beyond their union. His defence said this was his way of coping with his challenging existence. Dogan had informed a court psychologist that each year he looked for transactional encounters on his special day. His lawyers informed the court he had arthritis caused by the anxiety of the original case.