French Higher Court Increases Jail Time for Gisele Pelicot Assailant

An individual was declared guilty on higher court review of sexually assaulting Gisele Pelicot following she was sedated by her spouse – and has had his prison sentence extended to 10 years.

Higher Court Case

Husamettin Dogan, forty-four, an out-of-work construction worker, who had appealed his first conviction last year, experienced a new trial this week at the Nîmes court of appeal.

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

The court heard that Dogan, a family man, reached out to the victim's then husband, Dominique Pelicot, in an internet forum named “without her knowledge”, where the husband was recruiting men to come to his home to assault his wife once he had sedated her into a comatose state.

“We hope the jury will say loud and clear that in this country, fundamental rights are also rights of women – that permission is personal, not transferred,” declared Gisèle Pelicot’s lawyer, her legal representative. “Consent is obtained personally and not through someone else from a husband.”

Background

The ex-husband, a notorious sex offenders in France's contemporary records, was sentenced to two decades in prison last year for sedating his spouse and soliciting numerous individuals to sexually assault her in her home in the community of the village of Mazan over a span of nearly ten years of their marriage.

Numerous other individuals were found culpable in a widely publicized trial last year, and the appellant was the single defendant to appeal against his verdict. He was initially handed a term to nine years in prison, a penalty increased on Thursday to a decade.

The lead state prosecutor, the prosecutor, had argued he should serve twelve years, because he “stubbornly rejects to take any blame”.

Evidence Presented

Dogan had first sent the husband inappropriate pictures and then driven an hour from his residence in the region to assault Gisèle Pelicot, after telling his wife he was leaving, the evidence indicated.

Pelicot, who was brought from solitary confinement in prison to briefly provide testimony at the hearing, told the court that Dogan had understood his wife had been “incapacitated” and he told to men by phone: “I want someone to abuse my wife after I’ve rendered her unconscious without her consent.”

The proceedings became a key topic for a broader debate on societal attitudes in society as the defendant continued to assert he was blameless and had not engaged in violation, arguing that because Gisèle Pelicot’s husband had invited him into the bedroom, his actions had been acceptable.

The panel in the Nîmes appeals court was displayed video evidence of the victim's unresponsive form, sedated and breathing heavily in a comatose state, while a smiling the perpetrator committed rape repeatedly over a period of what authorities reported was several hours. The court official said she had been at peril of death by asphyxiation. The prosecution said there was no question that she had been unaware and had not given permission.

Accused's Testimony

Dogan stated to the court the videos were simply “intimate moments” and rejected it was violation. He said what he did was “a consensual activity”, not assault. He told the court: “I am innocent of assault.” He said Gisèle Pelicot’s husband had brought him to the residence, and therefore it was acceptable. He said he was manipulated by the husband. “I tried to halt,” the accused informed the court. “I carried on because he convinced me.”

Inquired if he wanted to make a final statement to the court, the defendant said: “I did not intend to hurt that individual.”

Survivor's Statement

The survivor, who was applauded upon leaving court each day by supporters gathered to stand with her, told Dogan in court: “You do not grasp. When will you admit you violated me? It is illegal to assault an incapacitated woman. When did I ever give you agreement? Not once.”

The victim, 72, became an symbol of resistance after she relinquished her right to privacy in the trial last year when she said: “Guilt ought to transfer.”

Legal Commentary

The prosecutor, addressing the victim in court, said Dogan’s refusal to take responsibility showed that: “Guilt has not shifted. Society is maybe in the process of that, maybe propelled by the societal understanding resulting from the revelation of your situation.”

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

Sie addressed the defendant: “For as much as you reject it, it’s not just a individual, it’s an entire unpleasant cultural framework that you are endorsing.”

Biographical Details

The accused was originated from Turkey and at the age of 5 relocated to France, where his parent worked as a concierge. The testimony revealed that his father was violent and that Dogan began using drugs at the age of ten. When Dogan was seventeen he was apprehended by authorities for dealing drugs and his father evicted him the family house. He was incarcerated in prison for trafficking in his young adulthood and had worked as a construction worker but had faced periods of being unhoused.

He was married and had a child with Down’s syndrome, who he was the primary guardian for, as his wife worked in a school canteen. The testimony revealed his wife did not know he had regular extramarital activities outside their union. His legal team said this was his way of coping with his challenging existence. The defendant had informed a court psychologist that annually he engaged in transactional encounters on his birthday. His legal representatives informed the court he had arthritis resulting from the stress of the first trial.