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A defendant has been found guilty on retrial of raping Gisele Pelicot following she was rendered comatose by her then-husband – and was given his jail term raised to a decade.

Higher Court Case

Husamettin Dogan, 44, an out-of-work construction worker, who had challenged his first conviction last year, faced a new trial this week at the appeals court in Nîmes.

A panel of nine jurors, 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 court heard that the accused, a married father, made contact with the victim's then husband, the husband, in an internet forum called “without her consent”, where the husband was recruiting men to come to his home to assault his wife once he had sedated her into a unconscious state.

“We hope the jury will affirm that in this society, human rights are also women’s rights – that permission is personal, not transferred,” said the victim's attorney, Antoine Camus. “Permission is received directly and not by proxy from a spouse.”

Context

The husband, one of the worst sexual predators in recent French history, was given a prison term to two decades in prison last year for incapacitating his spouse and bringing in dozens of men to rape her in her home in the town of the village of Mazan over a span of almost a decade of their union.

Fifty other men were found guilty in a high-profile trial last year, and Dogan was the only man to challenge his conviction. He was initially sentenced to 9 years in prison, a punishment increased on Thursday to 10 years.

The state's attorney, the prosecutor, had contended he should serve twelve years, because he “completely denies to take any accountability”.

Evidence Presented

The defendant had first sent the husband sexually explicit photos and then traveled an hour from his residence in the region to assault Gisèle Pelicot, after telling his wife he was stepping out, the court heard.

The ex-husband, who was transported from isolation in prison to briefly give evidence at the retrial, told the court that Dogan had understood his wife had been “incapacitated” and he told to men by phone: “I seek someone to assault my wife after I’ve sedated her unbeknownst to her.”

The trial became a central issue for a larger conversation on sexual violence norms in society as Dogan continued to say he was innocent and had not perpetrated assault, arguing that because Gisèle Pelicot’s husband had welcomed him into the bedroom, his conduct had been permissible.

The jury in the higher court was shown visual proof of the victim's unconscious figure, unconscious and breathing heavily in a comatose state, while a smiling the perpetrator committed rape repeatedly over a duration of what authorities reported was 3.5 hours. The court official said she had been at risk of fatal outcome by choking. The state's case said there was no question that she had been incapacitated and had not consented.

Defendant's Statements

The defendant informed the court the footage were simply “intimate moments” and rejected it was violation. He said what he did was “a consensual activity”, not rape. He told the court: “I am innocent of assault.” He said Gisèle Pelicot’s husband had invited him to the home, and therefore it was permissible. He said he was manipulated by the husband. “I attempted to cease,” the accused stated to the court. “I continued because he persuaded me.”

Questioned if he wanted to make a final statement to the court, Dogan said: “I did not intend to injure that individual.”

Victim's Response

The survivor, who was cheered upon exiting the courtroom each day by crowds present to back her, addressed Dogan in court: “You fail to comprehend. When are you going to recognise you raped me? It’s a crime to assault an unaware woman. When did I ever give you agreement? Not once.”

The victim, 72, became an global icon after she gave up her right to privacy in the trial last year when she said: “Guilt ought to transfer.”

Prosecutor's Remarks

Sie, speaking to Gisèle Pelicot in court, said Dogan’s failure to take blame showed that: “The shame remains. The community is maybe in the midst of that, maybe driven by the societal understanding spurred by the revelation of your situation.”

Sie said Dogan’s claims of non-guilt showed how societal tolerance 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 said to Dogan: “As long as you refuse to admit it, it’s not just a individual, it’s an whole disturbing societal structure that you are upholding.”

Personal History

Dogan was born in the country of Turkey and at the age of five relocated to the nation of France, where his father worked as a concierge. The testimony revealed that his father was aggressive and that Dogan began consuming marijuana aged ten. When he was 17 he was caught by authorities for selling narcotics and his parent evicted him the family house. He spent time in prison for trafficking in his early 20s and had worked as a builder but had undergone periods of homelessness.

He was married and had a child with a genetic condition, who he was the main caregiver for, as his spouse worked in a educational cafeteria. The evidence showed his spouse did not know he had repeated extramarital activities outside their marriage. His defence said this was his way of coping with his stressful life. Dogan had informed a evaluator that once a year he sought commercial sex on his special day. His lawyers informed the court he had arthritis triggered by the stress of the initial proceedings.