A man was convicted on retrial of sexually assaulting Gisèle Pelicot following she was drugged unconscious by her then-husband – and was given his incarceration period raised to 10 years.
Retrial Proceedings
Husamettin Dogan, forty-four, an unemployed builder, who had challenged his initial guilty verdict last year, faced a retrial this week at the higher court in Nîmes.
A jury of nine jurors, sitting with three judges, ruled against Dogan on Thursday of raping the victim in her bedroom in Provence in the early hours of 29 June 2019.
The testimony revealed that Dogan, a family man, reached out to the victim's husband at the time, Dominique Pelicot, in an digital platform named “without her consent”, where the husband was looking for men to enter his residence to assault his wife once he had rendered her unconscious into a unconscious state.
We expect the jury will say loud and clear that in this nation, fundamental rights are also women’s rights – that permission is personal, not given by another,” stated the victim's attorney, Antoine Camus. “Agreement is obtained personally and not by proxy from a spouse.”
Context
Dominique Pelicot, one of the worst sex offenders in recent French history, was sentenced to twenty years in prison last year for drugging his wife at the time and inviting multiple perpetrators to rape her in her home in the town of the village of Mazan over a duration of many years of their marriage.
Dozens of additional defendants were found culpable in a widely publicized trial last year, and Dogan was the sole individual to appeal against his conviction. He was initially handed a term to nine years in prison, a punishment enhanced on Thursday to ten years.
The lead state prosecutor, the prosecutor, had argued he should serve 12 years, because he “stubbornly rejects to take any blame”.
Testimony and Proof
Dogan had initially sent Dominique Pelicot sexually explicit photos and then traveled an hour from his residence in Provence to rape Gisèle Pelicot, after telling his wife he was going out, the testimony revealed.
The ex-husband, who was brought from solitary confinement in prison to briefly give evidence at the retrial, told the court that the accused had understood 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 consent.”
The courtroom became a key topic for a broader debate on societal attitudes in society as the defendant continued to say he was blameless and had not engaged in violation, arguing that because Gisèle Pelicot’s husband had welcomed him into the room, his conduct had been acceptable.
The jury in the higher court was displayed recorded footage of Gisèle Pelicot’s unconscious figure, unconscious and breathing heavily in a deep sleep, while a grinning Dogan engaged in violation multiple times over a period of what police said was 3.5 hours. The court official said she had been at risk of fatal outcome by asphyxiation. The prosecution said there was no question that she had been incapacitated and had not agreed.
Defendant's Statements
The defendant told the court the footage were simply “intimate moments” and rejected it was rape. He said what he did was “a sexual act”, not rape. He declared the court: “I am innocent of assault.” He said the victim's husband had allowed him to the residence, and therefore it was acceptable. He said he was manipulated by the husband. “I wanted to stop,” the accused stated to the court. “I continued because he convinced me.”
Inquired if he wanted to make a final statement to the court, Dogan said: “I never wanted to injure that lady.”
Pelicot's Words
The victim, who was applauded upon exiting the courtroom each day by supporters assembled to support her, said to Dogan in court: “You haven’t understood. When are you going to recognise you violated me? It’s a crime to rape an incapacitated woman. How could I have give you agreement? At no time.”
The victim, 72, became an international feminist hero after she relinquished her right to privacy in the trial last year when she said: “Shame must change sides.”
Legal Commentary
The prosecutor, addressing the victim in court, said Dogan’s refusal to take blame showed that: “Shame has not yet changed sides. The public is maybe in the midst of that, maybe driven by the societal understanding resulting from the exposure of your case.”
The prosecutor said Dogan’s claims of blamelessness showed how societal tolerance was still common in society as part of “old-fashioned” forms of “male domination”. He said: “It is imperative to change rape culture to a culture of consent.”
Sie addressed Dogan: “For as much as you refuse to admit it, it’s not just a woman, it’s an entire sordid social system that you are upholding.”
Defendant's Background
Dogan was originated from the country of Turkey and at the age of five moved to France, where his father worked as a building manager. The evidence indicated that his father was abusive and that Dogan began using drugs at the age of 10. When he was seventeen he was caught by authorities for dealing drugs and his father kicked him out the residence. He was incarcerated in prison for drug dealing in his young adulthood and had worked as a construction worker but had undergone periods of living on the streets.
He was wed and had a child with special needs, who he was the main caregiver for, as his wife worked in a institution's dining hall. The court heard his spouse did not know he had repeated extramarital activities outside their marriage. His defence said this was his strategy for managing with his challenging existence. Dogan had told a evaluator that annually he looked for transactional encounters on his birthday. His attorneys informed the court he had arthritis resulting from the pressure of the original case.
