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A man has been found guilty on retrial of sexually assaulting Gisèle Pelicot after she was rendered comatose by her spouse – and has had his jail term increased to 10 years.

Higher Court Case

Husamettin Dogan, 44, an unemployed builder, who had contested his first conviction last year, underwent 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 sexually assaulting the victim in her home in the south of France in the early hours of 29 June 2019.

The testimony revealed that the accused, a family man, made contact with Gisèle Pelicot’s husband at the time, the husband, in an digital platform titled “unbeknownst to her”, where the husband was recruiting men to visit his house to assault his wife once he had sedated her into a deep sleep.

We trust the panel will affirm that in this nation, human rights are also rights of women – that agreement is personal, not delegated,” stated Gisèle Pelicot’s attorney, Antoine Camus. “Consent is secured directly and not via a representative from a husband.”

Context

The ex-husband, among the most severe sexual predators in modern French history, was handed a sentence to 20 years in prison last year for sedating his then wife and inviting dozens of men to sexually assault her in her home in the Provence village of the village of Mazan over a span of many years of their union.

Numerous other individuals were found guilty in a notable trial last year, and Dogan was the sole individual to challenge his conviction. He was first given a sentence to 9 years in prison, a penalty enhanced on Thursday to a decade.

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

Testimony and Proof

The defendant had initially sent Dominique Pelicot sexually explicit photos and then traveled an hour from his residence in Provence to assault Gisèle Pelicot, after informing his wife he was stepping out, the testimony revealed.

Pelicot, who was transported from solitary confinement in prison to briefly provide testimony at the retrial, informed the court that Dogan had been aware his wife had been “incapacitated” and he told to men by phone: “I seek someone to assault my wife after I’ve put her to sleep without her knowledge.”

The trial became a central issue for a broader debate on sexual violence norms in society as Dogan continued to assert he was not guilty and had not perpetrated assault, stating that because the victim's husband had invited him into the bedroom, his actions had been permissible.

The panel in the higher court was shown visual proof of the victim's unconscious figure, sedated and snoring in a comatose state, while a smiling Dogan performed assault multiple times over a period of what police said was several hours. The judge said she had been at danger of death by choking. The state's case said there was absolute certainty that she had been unaware and had not consented.

Accused's Testimony

Dogan stated to the court the recordings were simply “sex scenes” and disputed it was violation. He said what he did was “an intimate behavior”, not assault. He declared the court: “I am innocent of assault.” He said the victim's husband had allowed him to the house, and therefore it was acceptable. He said he was deceived by Dominique Pelicot. “I wanted to stop,” Dogan stated to the court. “I carried on because he convinced me.”

Questioned if he wanted to make a closing remarks to the court, the defendant said: “I did not intend to hurt that individual.”

Survivor's Statement

The victim, who was applauded upon leaving court each day by crowds present to stand with her, said to Dogan in court: “You haven’t understood. When will you admit you assaulted me? It’s a crime to rape an unconscious woman. How could I have give you consent? Never.”

Gisèle Pelicot, 72, became an global icon after she gave up her right to privacy in the trial last year when she said: “The shame should shift.”

Prosecutor's Remarks

The prosecutor, speaking to Gisèle Pelicot in court, said the defendant's failure to take responsibility showed that: “The shame remains. The public is possibly in the course of that, possibly propelled by the public consciousness resulting from the publication of your ordeal.”

The prosecutor said Dogan’s claims of innocence showed how rape culture was still common in society as part of “outdated” forms of “male domination”. He said: “We need to change rape culture to a society based on agreement.”

The prosecutor told the defendant: “For as much as you refuse to admit it, it’s not just a woman, it’s an complete sordid social system that you are supporting.”

Personal History

Dogan was born in the country of Turkey and at the age of 5 relocated to France, where his father worked as a concierge. The testimony revealed that his parent was aggressive and that the defendant began smoking cannabis aged ten. When he was seventeen he was caught by authorities for drug trafficking and his father evicted him the family house. He served time in prison for narcotics offenses in his young adulthood and had worked as a laborer but had undergone periods of living on the streets.

He was married and had a child with a genetic condition, who he was the primary guardian for, as his wife worked in a educational cafeteria. The court heard his wife did not know he had regular sexual encounters outside their marriage. His defence said this was his way of coping with his difficult circumstances. Dogan had stated to a evaluator that each year he sought transactional encounters on his birthday. His lawyers informed the court he had joint inflammation caused by the stress of the original case.