🔗 Share this article French Appeal Court Uphighers Jail Time for Gisele Pelicot Rapist A defendant was convicted on retrial of sexually assaulting Gisèle Pelicot after she was drugged unconscious by her then-husband – and has had his prison sentence extended to 10 years. Retrial Proceedings The defendant, forty-four, an out-of-work construction worker, who had appealed his first conviction last year, faced a appeal hearing this week at the higher court in Nîmes. A panel of four women and five men, sitting with three judges, ruled against Dogan on Thursday of raping Pelicot in her residence in southern France in the morning of 29 June 2019. The court heard that the accused, a family man, made contact with Gisèle Pelicot’s husband at the time, Dominique Pelicot, in an digital platform titled “without her knowledge”, where Pelicot was seeking men to enter his residence to assault his wife after he had rendered her unconscious into a unconscious state. We trust the panel will declare that in this society, fundamental rights are also rights of women – that agreement is individual, not transferred,” stated the victim's attorney, her legal representative. “Agreement is secured directly and not via a representative from a husband.” Context Dominique Pelicot, one of the worst sex offenders in modern French history, was given a prison term to two decades in prison last year for sedating his wife at the time and bringing in numerous individuals to sexually assault her in her home in the community of the village of Mazan over a span of many years of their union. Dozens of additional defendants were found culpable in a notable trial last year, and Dogan was the single defendant to challenge his sentence. He was initially handed a term to 9 years in prison, a penalty increased on Thursday to a decade. The state's attorney, Dominique Sie, had argued he should serve 12 years, because he “stubbornly rejects to take any accountability”. Courtroom Details The defendant had first sent Dominique Pelicot graphic images and then driven an hour from his village in Provence to rape Gisèle Pelicot, after notifying his wife he was stepping out, the court heard. Pelicot, who was brought from segregation in prison to briefly give evidence at the appeal trial, stated to the court that the accused had understood his wife had been “drugged” and he told to men by phone: “I’m looking for someone to violate my wife after I’ve sedated her without her knowledge.” The proceedings became a key topic for a broader debate on societal attitudes in society as the defendant continued to claim he was innocent and had not committed rape, arguing that because Gisèle Pelicot’s husband had invited him into the residence, his conduct had been acceptable. The panel in the Nîmes appeals court was presented with visual proof of the victim's unresponsive form, sedated and breathing heavily in a unconscious condition, while a grinning the perpetrator engaged in violation repeatedly over a duration of what investigators stated was three and a half hours. The judge said she had been at danger of fatal outcome by asphyxiation. The prosecution said there was absolute certainty that she had been unconscious and had not consented. Defendant's Statements Dogan told the court the footage were simply “sex scenes” and rejected it was rape. He said what he did was “a consensual activity”, not assault. He stated the court: “I did not commit rape.” He said the victim's husband had brought him to the home, and therefore it was acceptable. He said he was manipulated by Dominique Pelicot. “I tried to halt,” Dogan stated to the court. “I continued because he reassured me.” Questioned if he wanted to make a final statement to the court, Dogan said: “I did not intend to injure that lady.” Survivor's Statement The victim, who was applauded upon departing the trial each day by supporters present to back her, told the defendant in court: “You haven’t understood. When will you admit you assaulted me? It’s a crime to rape an unaware woman. How could I have give you agreement? Never.” Gisèle Pelicot, 72, became an global icon after she waived her right to anonymity in the trial last year when she said: “The shame should shift.” Prosecutor's Remarks The prosecutor, turning to Gisèle Pelicot in court, said the defendant's refusal to take responsibility showed that: “Shame has not yet changed sides. The community is perhaps in the process of that, maybe propelled by the collective awareness resulting from the exposure of your case.” The prosecutor said the defendant's claims of innocence showed how normalized violence was still common in society as part of “old-fashioned” forms of “male domination”. He said: “We need to change rape culture to a culture of consent.” The prosecutor told the defendant: “As long as you refuse to admit it, it’s not just a individual, it’s an complete sordid social system that you are upholding.” Personal History The accused was born in the country of Turkey and at the age of five moved to the nation of France, where his parent worked as a caretaker. The court heard that his father was abusive and that the defendant began consuming marijuana at the age of 10. When he was seventeen he was caught by authorities for selling narcotics and his father forced him to leave of home. He spent time in prison for narcotics offenses in his early 20s and had worked as a laborer but had experienced periods of being unhoused. He was married and had a son with Down’s syndrome, who he was the main caregiver for, as his spouse worked in a institution's dining hall. The court heard his spouse did not know he had repeated extramarital activities beyond their marriage. His legal team said this was his way of coping with his difficult circumstances. Dogan had informed a mental health expert that each year he engaged in commercial sex on his birthday. His attorneys informed the court he had joint inflammation resulting from the stress of the original case.