An individual has been found guilty on higher court review of sexually assaulting Gisele Pelicot following she was drugged unconscious by her spouse – and received his jail term raised to 10 years.
Retrial Proceedings
Husamettin Dogan, 44, an out-of-work construction worker, who had appealed his first conviction last year, experienced a appeal hearing this week at the Nîmes court of appeal.
A panel of five men and four women, sitting with three judges, convicted Dogan on Thursday of raping Pelicot in her bedroom in southern France in the early hours of June 29, 2019.
The evidence showed that the accused, a family man, reached out to Gisèle Pelicot’s then husband, Dominique Pelicot, in an internet forum named “without her knowledge”, where the husband was recruiting men to come to his home to rape his wife after he had sedated her into a unconscious state.
“We hope the court will say loud and clear that in this country, fundamental rights are also rights of women – that agreement is individual, not delegated,” declared Gisèle Pelicot’s lawyer, Antoine Camus. “Agreement is secured personally and not by proxy from a spouse.”
Context
Dominique Pelicot, one of the worst sexual predators in France's contemporary records, was given a prison term to two decades in prison last year for sedating his then wife and inviting multiple perpetrators to rape her in her home in the town of the village of Mazan over a span 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 only man to appeal against his sentence. He was initially given a sentence to nine years in prison, a penalty raised on Thursday to 10 years.
The lead state prosecutor, the prosecutor, had stated he should serve 12 years, because he “absolutely refuses to take any responsibility”.
Evidence Presented
The defendant had initially sent the husband graphic images and then driven an hour from his residence in the region to rape Gisèle Pelicot, after informing his wife he was leaving, the court heard.
The ex-husband, who was brought from segregation in prison to temporarily provide testimony at the hearing, told the court that Dogan had been aware his wife had been “incapacitated” and he told to men by phone: “I want someone to assault my wife after I’ve sedated her without her consent.”
The proceedings became a central issue for a wider discussion on societal attitudes in society as the defendant continued to assert he was innocent and had not engaged in violation, contending that because the victim's husband had allowed him into the residence, his conduct had been justifiable.
The panel in the Nîmes appeals court was displayed video evidence of the victim's limp body, unconscious and breathing heavily in a comatose state, while a smiling Dogan performed assault repeatedly over a period of what authorities reported was several hours. The presiding judge said she had been at peril of fatal outcome by choking. The state prosecution said there was no doubt that she had been unconscious and had not consented.
Defendant's Statements
Dogan stated to the court the videos were simply “intimate moments” and rejected it was rape. He said what he did was “a consensual activity”, not rape. He stated the court: “I am innocent of assault.” He said the victim's husband had brought him to the house, and therefore it was OK. He said he was deceived by the husband. “I wanted to stop,” the accused 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 had no desire to harm that individual.”
Survivor's Statement
The victim, who was supported upon leaving court each day by supporters present to support her, addressed the defendant in court: “You do not grasp. When are you going to recognise you raped me? It’s a crime to assault an incapacitated woman. When did I ever give you consent? At no time.”
The victim, 72, became an symbol of resistance after she relinquished her right to anonymity in the trial last year when she said: “Guilt ought to transfer.”
State's Argument
Sie, turning to Gisèle Pelicot in court, said the defendant's unwillingness to take blame showed that: “Shame has not yet changed sides. The public is maybe in the midst of that, maybe driven by the collective awareness spurred by the publication of your ordeal.”
Sie said the defendant's claims of blamelessness showed how rape culture was still widespread in society as part of “archaic” forms of “male domination”. He said: “It is imperative to change rape culture to a ethos of permission.”
The prosecutor said to Dogan: “For as much as you deny it, it’s not just a woman, it’s an whole unpleasant cultural framework that you are endorsing.”
Defendant's Background
The accused was originated from Turkey and at the age of five moved to the nation of France, where his parent worked as a concierge. The testimony revealed that his parent was violent and that Dogan began using drugs aged ten. When Dogan was 17 he was apprehended by police for dealing drugs and his parent evicted him the family house. He was incarcerated in prison for drug dealing in his twenties and had worked as a construction worker but had undergone periods of living on the streets.
He was wed and had a son with Down’s syndrome, who he was the primary guardian for, as his wife worked in a educational cafeteria. The court heard his spouse did not know he had repeated extramarital activities outside their marriage. His legal team said this was his method of dealing with his challenging existence. Dogan had stated to a court psychologist that annually he looked for transactional encounters on his birthday. His legal representatives told the court he had a medical condition resulting from the stress of the original case.
