🔗 Share this article

An individual was declared guilty on retrial of sexually assaulting Gisele Pelicot after she was sedated by her then-husband – and received his prison sentence extended to a decade.

Appeal Trial

Husamettin Dogan, forty-four, an out-of-work construction worker, who had appealed his first conviction last year, faced a new trial this week at the Nîmes court of appeal.

A jury of nine jurors, joined by three judges, convicted Dogan on Thursday of sexually assaulting the victim in her bedroom in Provence in the morning of 29 June 2019.

The court heard that the accused, a family man, made contact with the victim's then husband, Dominique Pelicot, in an internet forum called “without her knowledge”, where Pelicot was looking for men to come to his home to assault his wife once he had sedated her into a comatose state.

We expect the court will declare that in this nation, fundamental rights are also women’s rights – that consent is individual, not delegated,” said Gisèle Pelicot’s lawyer, Antoine Camus. “Consent is received personally and not through someone else from a husband.”

Background

The ex-husband, one of the worst sexual predators in modern French history, was sentenced to 20 years in prison last year for sedating his then wife and bringing in multiple perpetrators to sexually assault her in her home in the Provence village of Mazan over a duration of almost a decade of their marriage.

Numerous other individuals were found convicted in a notable trial last year, and the appellant was the sole individual to contest his conviction. He was originally given a sentence to nine years in prison, a sentence enhanced on Thursday to a decade.

The chief prosecutor, Dominique Sie, had contended he should serve twelve years, because he “absolutely refuses to take any accountability”.

Courtroom Details

Dogan had initially sent Dominique Pelicot graphic images and then driven an hour from his town in Provence to assault the victim, after telling his wife he was leaving, the court heard.

Pelicot, who was transported from solitary confinement in prison to temporarily give evidence at the hearing, stated to the court that Dogan had understood his wife had been “incapacitated” and he said to men by phone: “I’m looking for someone to violate my wife after I’ve put her to sleep without her knowledge.”

The courtroom became a central issue for a larger conversation on rape culture in society as the defendant continued to assert he was blameless and had not engaged in violation, contending that because Gisèle Pelicot’s husband had allowed him into the bedroom, his behavior had been acceptable.

The panel in the higher court was displayed video evidence of Gisèle Pelicot’s limp body, comatose and breathing heavily in a comatose state, while a grinning Dogan engaged in violation multiple times over a period of what authorities reported was 3.5 hours. The court official said she had been at danger of death by asphyxiation. The prosecution said there was no doubt that she had been unconscious and had not given permission.

Accused's Testimony

Dogan informed the court the videos were simply “sex scenes” and rejected it was rape. He said what he did was “a consensual activity”, not assault. He stated the court: “I am innocent of assault.” He said the victim's husband had invited him to the house, and therefore it was permissible. He said he was deceived by Dominique Pelicot. “I tried to halt,” Dogan stated to the court. “I proceeded because he convinced me.”

Asked if he wanted to make a final statement to the court, the defendant said: “I had no desire to injure that woman.”

Pelicot's Words

The victim, who was cheered upon departing the trial each day by onlookers present to support her, said to Dogan in court: “You fail to comprehend. When will you acknowledge you violated me? It’s a crime to assault an incapacitated woman. When did I ever give you permission? Not once.”

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

Prosecutor's Remarks

Sie, turning to the victim in court, said the defendant's failure to take blame showed that: “Guilt has not shifted. The public is possibly in the midst of that, possibly motivated by the societal understanding resulting from the exposure of your ordeal.”

Sie said the defendant's claims of blamelessness showed how societal tolerance was still prevalent in society as part of “outdated” forms of “gender-based power”. He said: “Now we must change the culture of violence to a society based on agreement.”

Sie said to the defendant: “For as much as you refuse to admit it, it’s not just a person, it’s an complete unpleasant social system that you are supporting.”

Defendant's Background

Dogan was originated from the country of Turkey and at the age of 5 moved to the nation of France, where his father worked as a concierge. The evidence indicated that his parent was violent and that the defendant began using drugs aged 10. When he was seventeen he was stopped by authorities for drug trafficking and his parent kicked him out of home. He was incarcerated in prison for narcotics offenses in his twenties and had worked as a builder but had experienced periods of being unhoused.

He was wed and had a child with Down’s syndrome, who he was the main caregiver for, as his spouse worked in a educational cafeteria. The court heard his wife did not know he had frequent intimate relations beyond their marriage. His defence said this was his strategy for managing with his stressful life. Dogan had informed a mental health expert that once a year he looked for transactional encounters on his special day. His legal representatives told the court he had joint inflammation triggered by the stress of the initial proceedings.