A defendant was declared guilty on higher court review of sexually assaulting Gisèle Pelicot after she was sedated by her spouse – and received his prison sentence increased to a decade.
Retrial Proceedings
Husamettin Dogan, forty-four, an out-of-work construction worker, who had appealed 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 early hours of June 29, 2019.
The evidence showed that Dogan, a married father, connected with the victim's husband at the time, Dominique Pelicot, in an internet forum titled “without her knowledge”, where the husband was looking for men to come to his home to assault his wife after he had drugged her into a deep sleep.
“We hope the panel will declare that in this nation, human rights are also rights of women – that permission is individual, not given by another,” stated the victim's lawyer, her legal representative. “Consent is secured personally and not through someone else from a husband.”
Case History
Dominique Pelicot, among the most severe sex offenders in recent French history, was sentenced to two decades in prison last year for sedating his then wife and bringing in numerous individuals to sexually assault her in her home in the community of Mazan over a duration of almost a decade of their marriage.
Dozens of additional defendants were found guilty in a notable trial last year, and Dogan was the only man to contest his sentence. He was initially handed a term to nine years in prison, a sentence raised on Thursday to 10 years.
The state's attorney, the prosecutor, had contended he should serve 12 years, because he “completely denies to take any responsibility”.
Testimony and Proof
The defendant had first sent Dominique Pelicot graphic images and then driven an hour from his town in the region to rape the victim, after informing his wife he was leaving, the testimony revealed.
Pelicot, who was brought from solitary confinement in prison to briefly provide testimony at the retrial, informed the court that the accused had understood his wife had been “sedated” and he communicated to men by phone: “I want someone to abuse my wife after I’ve sedated her without her consent.”
The proceedings became a key topic for a broader debate on sexual violence norms in society as Dogan continued to claim he was blameless and had not perpetrated assault, contending that because the victim's husband had invited him into the room, his behavior had been justifiable.
The panel in the Nîmes appeals court was presented with visual proof of Gisèle Pelicot’s unconscious figure, sedated and snoring in a comatose state, while a smiling the perpetrator performed assault repeatedly over a period of what investigators stated was several hours. The court official said she had been at peril of death by choking. The state prosecution said there was absolute certainty that she had been incapacitated and had not given permission.
Accused's Testimony
Dogan stated to the court the recordings were simply “intimate moments” and rejected it was assault. He said what he did was “an intimate behavior”, not assault. He told the court: “I never raped.” He said the victim's husband had brought him to the residence, and therefore it was acceptable. He said he was influenced by the husband. “I wanted to stop,” Dogan stated to the court. “I proceeded because he convinced me.”
Asked if he wanted to make a last words to the court, the defendant said: “I had no desire to harm that lady.”
Pelicot's Words
The survivor, who was applauded upon leaving court each day by supporters assembled to back her, told the defendant in court: “You haven’t understood. When are you going to recognise you assaulted me? It is unlawful to rape an incapacitated woman. At what point did I give you consent? Never.”
Gisèle Pelicot, seventy-two, 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 Gisèle Pelicot in court, said the defendant's failure to take responsibility showed that: “Shame has not yet changed sides. The public is possibly in the process of that, maybe propelled by the societal understanding resulting from the exposure of your case.”
The prosecutor said the defendant's claims of non-guilt showed how rape culture was still prevalent in society as part of “outdated” forms of “male domination”. He said: “We need to change the culture of violence to a culture of consent.”
The prosecutor told the defendant: “While you deny it, it’s not just a individual, it’s an entire unpleasant social system that you are upholding.”
Defendant's Background
The accused was born in Turkey and at the age of 5 came to the nation of France, where his parent worked as a caretaker. The court heard that his parent was aggressive and that the defendant began smoking cannabis aged 10. When he was seventeen he was stopped by police for dealing drugs and his father forced him to leave the residence. He served time in prison for narcotics offenses in his young adulthood and had worked as a laborer but had faced periods of living on the streets.
He was wed and had a child with special needs, who he was the main caregiver for, as his wife worked in a educational cafeteria. The court heard his wife did not know he had repeated intimate relations beyond their marriage. His defence said this was his strategy for managing with his stressful life. The defendant had told a mental health expert that annually he engaged in commercial sex on his special day. His lawyers stated to the court he had a medical condition resulting from the anxiety of the initial proceedings.
