An individual was convicted on retrial of raping Gisèle Pelicot following she was drugged unconscious by her spouse – and was given his prison sentence increased to a decade.
Husamettin Dogan, forty-four, an unemployed builder, who had appealed his first conviction last year, experienced a appeal hearing this week at the higher court in Nîmes.
A panel of four women and five men, sitting with three judges, convicted Dogan on Thursday of raping the victim in her bedroom in Provence in the early hours of 29 June 2019.
The court heard that the accused, a married father, reached out to the victim's then husband, Dominique Pelicot, in an digital platform titled “without her knowledge”, where Pelicot was recruiting men to enter his residence to rape his wife once he had rendered her unconscious into a unconscious state.
We expect the jury will affirm that in this society, human rights are also rights of women – that consent is individual, not delegated,” stated the victim's attorney, Antoine Camus. “Permission is obtained personally and not through someone else from a spouse.”
The husband, a notorious sexual predators in recent French history, was given a prison term to two decades in prison last year for incapacitating his then wife and inviting dozens of men to sexually assault her in her home in the town of the village of Mazan over a period of almost a decade of their union.
Numerous other individuals were found guilty in a high-profile trial last year, and the appellant was the sole individual to challenge his sentence. He was originally sentenced to nine years in prison, a sentence raised on Thursday to ten years.
The chief prosecutor, the prosecutor, had contended he should serve twelve years, because he “absolutely refuses to take any responsibility”.
Dogan had initially sent the husband sexually explicit photos and then driven an hour from his town in the region to rape the victim, after informing his wife he was stepping out, the court heard.
Pelicot, who was brought from segregation in prison to briefly testify at the hearing, informed the court that the accused had been aware his wife had been “drugged” and he communicated to men by phone: “I’m looking for someone to abuse my wife after I’ve rendered her unconscious without her knowledge.”
The proceedings became a focus point for a larger conversation on societal attitudes in society as the defendant continued to say he was innocent and had not perpetrated assault, arguing that because Gisèle Pelicot’s husband had invited him into the room, his actions had been acceptable.
The jury in the higher court was presented with video evidence of the victim's limp body, sedated and snoring in a unconscious condition, while a grinning Dogan committed rape on several occasions over a duration of what investigators stated was several hours. The presiding judge said she had been at risk of fatal outcome by choking. The state's case said there was absolute certainty that she had been unaware and had not agreed.
The defendant stated to the court the recordings were simply “sexual encounters” and denied it was rape. 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 invited him to the home, and therefore it was acceptable. He said he was influenced by the husband. “I tried to halt,” the accused told the court. “I proceeded because he persuaded me.”
Questioned if he wanted to make a final statement to the court, Dogan said: “I had no desire to hurt that lady.”
Gisèle Pelicot, who was cheered upon leaving court each day by supporters gathered to stand with her, addressed Dogan in court: “You fail to comprehend. When are you going to recognise you violated me? It’s a crime to assault an incapacitated woman. When did I ever give you permission? At no time.”
The victim, 72, became an global icon after she gave up her right to anonymity in the trial last year when she said: “Guilt ought to transfer.”
Sie, turning to Gisèle Pelicot in court, said the defendant's refusal to take accountability showed that: “Guilt has not shifted. The community is possibly in the process of that, maybe propelled by the public consciousness brought by the publication of your case.”
Sie said Dogan’s claims of innocence showed how normalized violence was still prevalent in society as part of “archaic” forms of “male domination”. He said: “Now we must change rape culture to a culture of consent.”
Sie addressed Dogan: “While you deny it, it’s not just a person, it’s an entire unpleasant societal structure that you are supporting.”
The accused was born in Turkey and at the age of 5 moved to the nation of France, where his parent worked as a caretaker. The testimony revealed that his parent was abusive and that Dogan began using drugs aged 10. When Dogan was seventeen he was caught by authorities for drug trafficking and his parent evicted him the family house. He spent time in prison for narcotics offenses in his early 20s and had worked as a builder but had faced periods of living on the streets.
He was wed and had a child with Down’s syndrome, who he was the principal carer for, as his wife worked in a school canteen. The testimony revealed his wife did not know he had repeated extramarital activities beyond their marriage. His legal team said this was his method of dealing with his challenging existence. Dogan had informed a court psychologist that once a year he engaged in commercial sex on his birthday. His attorneys informed the court he had a medical condition caused by the stress of the initial proceedings.
Elara Vance is a seasoned sports analyst with over a decade of experience in betting strategies and statistical analysis.
