French Higher Tribunal Uphighers Prison Term for Gisèle Pelicot Rapist

A man was declared guilty on higher court review of raping Gisele Pelicot after she was sedated by her then-husband – and received his jail term increased to 10 years.

Retrial Proceedings

Husamettin Dogan, forty-four, an out-of-work construction worker, who had challenged his initial guilty verdict last year, faced a retrial this week at the appeals court in Nîmes.

A jury of nine jurors, accompanied by three judges, found Dogan guilty on Thursday of raping Pelicot in her home in the south of France in the early hours of 29 June 2019.

The evidence showed that Dogan, a family man, connected with the victim's then husband, the husband, in an digital platform called “without her consent”, where Pelicot was recruiting men to enter his residence to rape his wife once he had rendered her unconscious into a unconscious state.

“We hope the jury will say loud and clear that in this country, fundamental rights are also women’s rights – that agreement is individual, not given by another,” said Gisèle Pelicot’s attorney, her legal representative. “Consent is obtained personally and not through someone else from a spouse.”

Background

Dominique Pelicot, one of the worst sex offenders in modern French history, was given a prison term to 20 years 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 period of many years of their union.

Numerous other individuals were found convicted in a widely publicized trial last year, and Dogan was the single defendant to challenge his verdict. He was originally handed a term to nine years in prison, a sentence enhanced on Thursday to ten years.

The state's attorney, Dominique Sie, had stated he should serve twelve years, because he “stubbornly rejects to take any responsibility”.

Evidence Presented

Dogan had first sent the husband graphic images and then driven an hour from his residence in Provence to assault Gisèle Pelicot, after informing his wife he was going out, the testimony revealed.

Pelicot, who was brought from isolation in prison to briefly give evidence at the retrial, stated to the court that Dogan had been aware his wife had been “sedated” and he said to men by phone: “I want someone to violate my wife after I’ve rendered her unconscious without her consent.”

The trial became a central issue for a wider discussion on rape culture in society as Dogan continued to say he was blameless and had not perpetrated assault, contending that because Gisèle Pelicot’s husband had allowed him into the residence, his conduct had been acceptable.

The jury in the higher court was displayed video evidence of Gisèle Pelicot’s limp body, unconscious and breathing heavily in a deep sleep, while a grinning the perpetrator performed assault on several occasions over a duration of what investigators stated was several hours. The court official said she had been at danger of fatal outcome by suffocation. The state prosecution said there was no question that she had been incapacitated and had not agreed.

Defendant's Statements

The defendant informed the court the footage were simply “sexual encounters” and denied it was rape. He said what he did was “a sexual act”, not assault. He declared the court: “I am innocent of assault.” He said the victim's husband had brought him to the residence, and therefore it was permissible. He said he was influenced by the husband. “I attempted to cease,” the accused stated to the court. “I proceeded because he convinced me.”

Questioned if he wanted to make a last words to the court, the defendant said: “I did not intend to harm that woman.”

Pelicot's Words

The survivor, who was applauded upon leaving court each day by supporters present to support her, addressed the defendant in court: “You haven’t understood. When will you admit you violated me? It is illegal to assault an unconscious woman. How could I have give you consent? Never.”

Gisèle Pelicot, seventy-two, became an symbol of resistance after she waived her right to anonymity in the trial last year when she said: “Shame must change sides.”

Prosecutor's Remarks

Sie, addressing the victim in court, said Dogan’s failure to take responsibility showed that: “Shame has not yet changed sides. The public is maybe in the process of that, possibly motivated by the societal understanding resulting from the exposure of your ordeal.”

Sie said Dogan’s claims of blamelessness showed how normalized violence was still prevalent in society as part of “old-fashioned” forms of “male domination”. He said: “We need to change the culture of violence to a ethos of permission.”

The prosecutor told the defendant: “For as much as you refuse to admit it, it’s not just a woman, it’s an whole sordid cultural framework that you are upholding.”

Defendant's Background

The accused was originated from the country of Turkey and at the age of five relocated to the nation of France, where his parent worked as a concierge. The evidence indicated that his parent was aggressive and that the defendant began using drugs aged 10. When he was 17 he was stopped by authorities for dealing drugs and his parent kicked him out the family house. He spent time in prison for narcotics offenses in his twenties and had worked as a construction worker but had faced periods of living on the streets.

He was married and had a son with special needs, who he was the principal carer for, as his spouse worked in a educational cafeteria. The evidence showed his spouse did not know he had regular sexual encounters outside their union. His legal team said this was his way of coping with his difficult circumstances. Dogan had stated to a court psychologist that once a year he engaged in commercial sex on his birthday. His attorneys informed the court he had joint inflammation caused by the anxiety of the initial proceedings.