🔗 Share this article France's Higher Court Increases Sentence for Gisele Pelicot Rapist A man has been found guilty on appeal of raping Gisèle Pelicot following she was drugged unconscious by her husband – and has had his prison sentence raised to 10 years. Retrial Proceedings The defendant, forty-four, an out-of-work construction worker, who had appealed his initial guilty verdict last year, experienced a new trial this week at the appeals court in Nîmes. A jury of five men and four women, joined by three judges, ruled against Dogan on Thursday of raping Pelicot in her residence in southern France in the early hours of June 29, 2019. The court heard that Dogan, a married father, reached out to Gisèle Pelicot’s then husband, the husband, in an digital platform called “unbeknownst to her”, where the husband was recruiting men to come to his home to rape his wife after he had rendered her unconscious into a deep sleep. We expect the court will affirm that in this society, fundamental rights are also rights of women – that agreement is personal, not transferred,” said the victim's attorney, Antoine Camus. “Agreement is secured personally and not through someone else from a spouse.” Background The ex-husband, among the most severe sexual predators in modern French history, was handed a sentence to 20 years in prison last year for drugging his then wife and inviting numerous individuals to rape her in her home in the community of the village of Mazan over a span of nearly ten years of their marriage. Numerous other individuals were found culpable in a high-profile trial last year, and the appellant was the single defendant to challenge his sentence. He was first handed a term to nine years in prison, a penalty raised on Thursday to a decade. The lead state prosecutor, the prosecutor, had contended he should serve 12 years, because he “completely denies to take any responsibility”. Testimony and Proof The defendant had initially sent the husband sexually explicit photos and then driven an hour from his village in the region to rape the victim, after informing his wife he was stepping out, the testimony revealed. Pelicot, who was brought from segregation in prison to briefly give evidence at the retrial, stated to the court that the accused had been aware his wife had been “incapacitated” and he said to men by phone: “I’m looking for someone to violate my wife after I’ve rendered her unconscious without her consent.” The courtroom became a central issue for a broader debate on rape culture in society as the defendant continued to claim he was not guilty and had not committed rape, arguing that because the victim's husband had welcomed him into the residence, his behavior had been acceptable. The jury in the higher court was presented with recorded footage of Gisèle Pelicot’s limp body, comatose and snoring in a deep sleep, while a smiling Dogan committed rape multiple times over a duration of what police said was 3.5 hours. The judge said she had been at danger of death by asphyxiation. The state prosecution said there was absolute certainty that she had been incapacitated and had not given permission. Dogan's Claims The defendant informed the court the videos were simply “intimate moments” and denied it was rape. He said what he did was “a sexual act”, not rape. He stated the court: “I never raped.” He said the victim's husband had brought him to the home, and therefore it was OK. He said he was manipulated by the husband. “I attempted to cease,” Dogan stated to the court. “I proceeded because he reassured me.” Inquired if he wanted to make a final statement to the court, Dogan said: “I never wanted to hurt that individual.” Pelicot's Words The survivor, who was cheered upon exiting the courtroom each day by supporters assembled to back her, said to Dogan in court: “You do not grasp. When are you going to recognise you raped me? It is unlawful to rape an unaware woman. At what point did I give you permission? Not once.” The victim, 72, became an global icon after she gave up her right to confidentiality in the trial last year when she said: “Shame must change sides.” State's Argument The prosecutor, speaking to the victim in court, said the defendant's refusal to take responsibility showed that: “Guilt has not shifted. The community is possibly in the process of that, maybe propelled by the societal understanding brought by the revelation of your situation.” The prosecutor said the defendant'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 the culture of violence to a ethos of permission.” The prosecutor addressed the defendant: “For as much as you deny it, it’s not just a woman, it’s an whole unpleasant social system that you are endorsing.” Biographical Details The accused was born in Turkey and at the age of five relocated to France, where his parent worked as a caretaker. The evidence indicated that his father was abusive and that the defendant began using drugs at the age of ten. When Dogan was seventeen he was apprehended by authorities for dealing drugs and his parent kicked him out the family house. He served time in prison for trafficking in his young adulthood and had worked as a construction worker but had faced 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 school canteen. The evidence showed his wife did not know he had frequent extramarital activities outside their marriage. His legal team said this was his strategy for managing with his difficult circumstances. The defendant had told a court psychologist that each year he engaged in transactional encounters on his special day. His legal representatives informed the court he had joint inflammation triggered by the stress of the original case.