French Appeal Tribunal Uphighers Prison Term for Gisele Pelicot Perpetrator

A defendant was convicted on appeal of raping Gisèle Pelicot following she was sedated by her husband – and has had his incarceration period increased to 10 years.

Retrial Proceedings

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

A panel of four women and five men, accompanied by three judges, convicted Dogan on Thursday of sexually assaulting the victim in her home in the south of France in the morning of June 29, 2019.

The evidence showed that the accused, a family man, reached out to Gisèle Pelicot’s husband at the time, the husband, in an internet forum named “unbeknownst to her”, where Pelicot was seeking men to come to his home to assault his wife once he had rendered her unconscious into a deep sleep.

We trust the court will declare that in this country, fundamental rights are also rights of women – that consent is personal, not transferred,” stated the victim's attorney, her legal representative. “Agreement is obtained personally and not by proxy from a husband.”

Case History

Dominique Pelicot, one of the worst sex offenders in recent French history, was given a prison term to 20 years in prison last year for drugging his wife at the time and inviting numerous individuals to rape her in her home in the town of Mazan over a span of nearly ten years of their marriage.

Numerous other individuals were found culpable in a notable trial last year, and Dogan was the single defendant to appeal against his conviction. He was originally sentenced to 9 years in prison, a penalty increased on Thursday to ten years.

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

Courtroom Details

Dogan had first sent the husband sexually explicit photos and then traveled an hour from his town in Provence to assault the victim, after informing his wife he was stepping out, the testimony revealed.

Pelicot, who was brought from solitary confinement in prison to briefly give evidence at the retrial, told the court that the accused had understood his wife had been “incapacitated” 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 societal attitudes in society as the defendant continued to claim he was not guilty and had not engaged in violation, contending that because Gisèle Pelicot’s husband had invited him into the bedroom, his behavior had been acceptable.

The panel in the Nîmes appeals court was shown visual proof of the victim's limp body, unconscious and breathing heavily in a unconscious condition, while a grinning the perpetrator committed rape multiple times over a period of what police said was three and a half hours. The presiding judge said she had been at risk of fatal outcome by asphyxiation. The prosecution said there was absolute certainty that she had been unconscious and had not given permission.

Defendant's Statements

The defendant told the court the footage were simply “intimate moments” and denied it was violation. He said what he did was “an intimate behavior”, not assault. He stated the court: “I am innocent of assault.” 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 wanted to stop,” the accused told the court. “I continued because he persuaded me.”

Questioned if he wanted to make a closing remarks to the court, Dogan said: “I did not intend to injure that woman.”

Pelicot's Words

Gisèle Pelicot, who was cheered upon exiting the courtroom each day by supporters assembled to support her, addressed Dogan in court: “You do not grasp. When will you admit you violated me? It is unlawful to assault an unconscious woman. How could I have give you permission? Never.”

The victim, seventy-two, became an global icon after she waived her right to privacy in the trial last year when she said: “The shame should shift.”

Prosecutor's Remarks

Sie, turning to Gisèle Pelicot in court, said Dogan’s failure to take blame showed that: “The shame remains. Society is possibly in the process of that, perhaps propelled by the public consciousness brought by the publication of your case.”

Sie said the defendant's claims of innocence showed how normalized violence was still widespread in society as part of “old-fashioned” forms of “male domination”. He said: “It is imperative to change the culture of violence to a culture of consent.”

Sie told Dogan: “While you reject it, it’s not just a person, it’s an entire sordid social system that you are supporting.”

Biographical Details

The accused was originated from Turkey and at the age of 5 relocated to the nation of France, where his parent worked as a caretaker. The evidence indicated that his parent was abusive and that Dogan began smoking cannabis aged ten. When he was seventeen he was stopped by police for selling narcotics and his parent forced him to leave of home. He served time in prison for narcotics offenses in his early 20s and had worked as a construction worker but had experienced 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 evidence showed his wife did not know he had repeated sexual encounters outside their union. His legal team said this was his way of coping with his stressful life. Dogan had stated to a court psychologist that each year he engaged in commercial sex on his special day. His attorneys stated to the court he had a medical condition triggered by the stress of the first trial.