🔗 Share this article

A man has been found guilty on retrial of raping Gisèle Pelicot following she was drugged unconscious by her then-husband – and was given his incarceration period increased to a decade.

Retrial Proceedings

Husamettin Dogan, 44, an unemployed builder, who had challenged his first conviction last year, underwent a appeal hearing this week at the Nîmes court of appeal.

A jury of nine jurors, sitting with three judges, convicted Dogan on Thursday of raping Pelicot in her home in the south of France in the morning of 29 June 2019.

The testimony revealed that the accused, a married father, connected with the victim's spouse, Dominique Pelicot, in an online chatroom called “unbeknownst to her”, where the husband was recruiting men to come to his home to assault his wife once he had rendered her unconscious into a unconscious state.

We expect the jury will affirm that in this society, human rights are also women’s rights – that agreement is personal, not transferred,” declared the victim's lawyer, Antoine Camus. “Permission is secured personally and not through someone else from a spouse.”

Context

The husband, among the most severe sex offenders in modern French history, was sentenced to 20 years in prison last year for incapacitating his then wife and bringing in numerous individuals to rape her in her home in the town of the village of Mazan over a period of many years of their union.

Numerous other individuals were found culpable in a notable trial last year, and Dogan was the sole individual to contest his conviction. He was first handed a term to nine years in prison, a sentence enhanced on Thursday to a decade.

The chief prosecutor, the prosecutor, had argued he should serve 12 years, because he “completely denies to take any responsibility”.

Courtroom Details

Dogan had initially sent the husband sexually explicit photos and then driven an hour from his village in Provence to assault the victim, after informing his wife he was going out, the testimony revealed.

Pelicot, who was brought from isolation in prison to temporarily give evidence at the hearing, stated to the court that Dogan had understood his wife had been “drugged” and he told to men by phone: “I’m looking for someone to abuse my wife after I’ve put her to sleep unbeknownst to her.”

The trial became a key topic for a larger conversation on societal attitudes in society as Dogan continued to assert he was innocent and had not committed rape, contending that because Gisèle Pelicot’s husband had allowed him into the bedroom, his behavior had been justifiable.

The jury in the higher court was presented with visual proof of the victim's limp body, unconscious and snoring in a deep sleep, while a smiling the perpetrator committed rape multiple times over a period of what police said was three and a half hours. The court official said she had been at risk of fatal outcome by asphyxiation. The state prosecution said there was no question that she had been incapacitated and had not given permission.

Accused's Testimony

The defendant informed the court the footage were simply “sex scenes” and rejected it was assault. He said what he did was “a sexual act”, not rape. He told the court: “I never raped.” He said the victim's husband had invited him to the residence, and therefore it was permissible. He said he was deceived by the husband. “I tried to halt,” the accused stated to the court. “I carried on because he reassured me.”

Asked if he wanted to make a last words to the court, Dogan said: “I had no desire to injure that individual.”

Survivor's Statement

Gisèle Pelicot, who was supported upon leaving court each day by crowds assembled to back her, addressed the defendant in court: “You haven’t understood. When are you going to recognise you raped me? It’s a crime to assault an unaware woman. At what point did I give you agreement? At no time.”

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

Prosecutor's Remarks

The prosecutor, turning to the victim in court, said the defendant's failure to take blame showed that: “The shame remains. The public is perhaps in the midst of that, maybe driven by the public consciousness spurred by the revelation of your case.”

The prosecutor said Dogan’s claims of non-guilt showed how rape culture was still common in society as part of “outdated” forms of “male domination”. He said: “It is imperative to change the culture of violence to a society based on agreement.”

The prosecutor addressed the defendant: “For as much as you refuse to admit it, it’s not just a individual, it’s an entire disturbing cultural framework that you are supporting.”

Defendant's Background

Dogan was originated from Turkey and at the age of 5 moved to the nation of France, where his father worked as a caretaker. The court heard that his father was abusive and that Dogan began smoking cannabis at the age of ten. When he was seventeen he was stopped by authorities for selling narcotics and his father evicted him the family house. He spent time in prison for trafficking in his early 20s and had worked as a laborer but had faced periods of being unhoused.

He was married and had a child with Down’s syndrome, who he was the principal carer for, as his wife worked in a institution's dining hall. The court heard his wife did not know he had repeated extramarital activities outside their union. His defence said this was his method of dealing with his challenging existence. The defendant had stated to a evaluator that each year he engaged in paid sex on his birthday. His legal representatives stated to the court he had joint inflammation resulting from the pressure of the initial proceedings.