🔗 Share this article French Higher Court Uphighers Prison Term for Gisèle Pelicot Assailant A man was declared guilty on retrial of sexually assaulting Gisele Pelicot following she was rendered comatose by her then-husband – and received his incarceration period increased to ten years. Higher Court Case The defendant, 44, an unemployed builder, who had challenged his first conviction last year, faced a retrial this week at the appeals court in Nîmes. A jury of four women and five men, joined by three judges, found Dogan guilty on Thursday of raping Pelicot in her bedroom in southern France in the early hours of 29 June 2019. The evidence showed that the accused, a family man, reached out to Gisèle Pelicot’s then husband, the husband, in an digital platform titled “without her knowledge”, where Pelicot was seeking men to come to his home to rape his wife once he had sedated her into a comatose state. We trust the panel will affirm that in this nation, human rights are also rights of women – that agreement is personal, not given by another,” said Gisèle Pelicot’s attorney, her legal representative. “Permission is secured directly and not through someone else from a spouse.” Case History The husband, one of the worst sex offenders in France's contemporary records, was given a prison term to 20 years in prison last year for sedating his then wife and inviting multiple perpetrators to sexually assault her in her home in the community of the village of Mazan over a span of almost a decade of their marriage. Numerous other individuals were found guilty in a notable trial last year, and the appellant was the sole individual to challenge his verdict. He was originally sentenced to nine years in prison, a sentence raised on Thursday to a decade. The chief prosecutor, Dominique Sie, had argued he should serve 12 years, because he “absolutely refuses to take any responsibility”. Courtroom Details The defendant had first sent the husband graphic images and then traveled an hour from his residence in the region to assault Gisèle Pelicot, after informing his wife he was leaving, the court heard. Pelicot, who was transported from isolation in prison to briefly provide testimony at the appeal trial, stated to the court that the accused had known his wife had been “incapacitated” and he said to men by phone: “I want someone to abuse my wife after I’ve sedated her without her consent.” The trial became a central issue for a wider discussion on rape culture in society as the defendant continued to claim he was blameless and had not perpetrated assault, arguing that because Gisèle Pelicot’s husband had invited him into the residence, his behavior had been permissible. The jury in the Nîmes appeals court was presented with video evidence of the victim's unconscious figure, unconscious and snoring in a comatose state, while a smiling the perpetrator engaged in violation on several occasions over a timeframe of what investigators stated was 3.5 hours. The judge said she had been at peril of death by choking. The state's case said there was absolute certainty that she had been incapacitated and had not agreed. Accused's Testimony The defendant stated to the court the recordings were simply “sexual encounters” and rejected it was rape. He said what he did was “a sexual act”, not rape. He declared the court: “I never raped.” He said Gisèle Pelicot’s husband had invited him to the house, and therefore it was permissible. He said he was influenced by Dominique Pelicot. “I tried to halt,” Dogan informed the court. “I proceeded because he convinced me.” Inquired if he wanted to make a last words to the court, the defendant said: “I never wanted to injure that lady.” Survivor's Statement Gisèle Pelicot, who was supported upon exiting the courtroom each day by crowds present to stand with her, addressed the defendant in court: “You do not grasp. When will you acknowledge you raped me? It is unlawful to assault an unaware woman. When did I ever give you permission? At no time.” Gisèle Pelicot, 72, became an symbol of resistance after she waived her right to anonymity in the trial last year when she said: “Guilt ought to transfer.” Prosecutor's Remarks The prosecutor, addressing Gisèle Pelicot in court, said Dogan’s failure to take responsibility showed that: “Shame has not yet changed sides. Society is maybe in the course of that, perhaps driven by the collective awareness 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 “archaic” forms of “patriarchal control”. He said: “We need to change rape culture to a society based on agreement.” Sie addressed the defendant: “As long as you refuse to admit it, it’s not just a individual, it’s an entire disturbing social system that you are upholding.” Defendant's Background The accused was born in Turkey and at the age of 5 came to France, where his father worked as a concierge. The evidence indicated that his parent was violent and that Dogan began using drugs at the age of 10. When he was 17 he was stopped by police for dealing drugs and his parent 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 son with a genetic condition, who he was the primary guardian for, as his spouse worked in a school canteen. The evidence showed his wife did not know he had regular extramarital activities beyond their union. His defence said this was his way of coping with his difficult circumstances. Dogan had stated to a court psychologist that annually he sought paid sex on his special day. His attorneys told the court he had joint inflammation resulting from the pressure of the first trial.