🔗 Share this article France's Higher Court Increases Sentence for Gisele Pelicot Assailant An individual was declared guilty on higher court review of raping Gisèle Pelicot after she was rendered comatose by her then-husband – and received his incarceration period extended to 10 years. Higher Court Case Husamettin Dogan, 44, an unemployed builder, who had contested his initial guilty verdict last year, underwent a appeal hearing this week at the appeals court in Nîmes. A panel of nine jurors, sitting with three judges, found Dogan guilty on Thursday of sexually assaulting Pelicot in her bedroom in Provence in the morning of June 29, 2019. The testimony revealed that Dogan, a family man, connected with Gisèle Pelicot’s husband at the time, the husband, in an online chatroom named “without her knowledge”, where Pelicot was seeking men to come to his home to rape his wife once he had rendered her unconscious into a deep sleep. “We hope the jury will declare that in this nation, human rights are also rights of women – that agreement is personal, not delegated,” declared Gisèle Pelicot’s attorney, her legal representative. “Consent is obtained directly and not via a representative from a spouse.” Background The husband, among the most severe sexual predators in modern French history, was given a prison term to two decades in prison last year for drugging his spouse and inviting numerous individuals to rape her in her home in the Provence village of the village of Mazan over a span of almost a decade of their marriage. Fifty other men were found guilty in a notable trial last year, and the appellant was the single defendant to appeal against his verdict. He was first sentenced to 9 years in prison, a sentence increased on Thursday to a decade. The lead state prosecutor, the prosecutor, had argued he should serve 12 years, because he “absolutely refuses to take any responsibility”. Testimony and Proof Dogan had first sent the husband inappropriate pictures and then driven an hour from his town in Provence to assault Gisèle Pelicot, after informing his wife he was leaving, the court heard. Pelicot, who was transported from segregation in prison to temporarily give evidence at the retrial, told the court that Dogan had been aware his wife had been “sedated” and he told to men by phone: “I seek someone to violate my wife after I’ve put her to sleep without her consent.” The courtroom became a central issue for a larger conversation on sexual violence norms in society as the defendant continued to claim he was innocent and had not committed rape, contending that because Gisèle Pelicot’s husband had invited him into the residence, his actions had been justifiable. The jury in the higher court was shown recorded footage of Gisèle Pelicot’s unresponsive form, comatose and breathing heavily in a deep sleep, while a smiling Dogan committed rape on several occasions over a duration of what authorities reported was three and a half hours. The presiding judge said she had been at danger of death by choking. The state's case said there was absolute certainty that she had been unaware and had not consented. Dogan's Claims Dogan informed the court the videos were simply “sex scenes” and denied it was rape. He said what he did was “an intimate behavior”, not rape. He stated the court: “I am innocent of assault.” He said Gisèle Pelicot’s husband had invited him to the residence, and therefore it was permissible. He said he was deceived by Dominique Pelicot. “I wanted to stop,” the accused informed the court. “I continued because he reassured me.” Inquired if he wanted to make a closing remarks to the court, Dogan said: “I had no desire to injure that woman.” Survivor's Statement Gisèle Pelicot, who was applauded upon leaving court each day by crowds gathered to stand with her, told Dogan in court: “You do not grasp. When are you going to recognise you raped me? It is unlawful to assault an incapacitated woman. How could I have give you agreement? Never.” The victim, seventy-two, became an global icon after she waived her right to anonymity in the trial last year when she said: “Shame must change sides.” Legal Commentary The prosecutor, speaking to Gisèle Pelicot in court, said the defendant's failure to take responsibility showed that: “Guilt has not shifted. The community is maybe in the process of that, maybe propelled by the public consciousness resulting from the exposure of your case.” The prosecutor said Dogan’s claims of blamelessness showed how rape culture was still widespread in society as part of “old-fashioned” forms of “male domination”. He said: “We need to change the culture of violence to a ethos of permission.” The prosecutor addressed the defendant: “As long as you deny it, it’s not just a woman, it’s an complete unpleasant cultural framework that you are endorsing.” Personal History Dogan was born in the country of Turkey and at the age of five came to the nation of France, where his father worked as a building manager. The evidence indicated that his parent was abusive and that Dogan began consuming marijuana aged 10. When he was seventeen he was caught by police for dealing drugs and his father kicked him out of home. He served time in prison for narcotics offenses in his young adulthood and had worked as a laborer but had experienced 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 school canteen. The evidence showed his wife did not know he had frequent intimate relations beyond their marriage. His defence said this was his way of coping with his challenging existence. The defendant had told a mental health expert that each year he sought paid sex on his birthday. His attorneys informed the court he had joint inflammation resulting from the anxiety of the initial proceedings.