🔗 Share this article France's Higher Court Raises Jail Time for Gisele Pelicot Assailant An individual was declared guilty on retrial of sexually assaulting Gisele Pelicot after she was sedated by her spouse – and received his jail term raised to ten years. Appeal Trial Dogan, forty-four, an out-of-work construction worker, who had appealed his initial guilty verdict last year, underwent a appeal hearing this week at the Nîmes court of appeal. A jury of four women and five men, sitting with three judges, convicted Dogan on Thursday of raping Pelicot in her home in southern France in the morning of June 29, 2019. The evidence showed that the accused, a family man, made contact with the victim's spouse, the husband, in an internet forum titled “without her knowledge”, where Pelicot was seeking men to enter his residence to rape his wife once he had drugged her into a deep sleep. We trust the court will declare that in this nation, fundamental rights are also women’s rights – that permission is personal, not transferred,” said Gisèle Pelicot’s lawyer, Antoine Camus. “Agreement is secured directly and not through someone else from a husband.” Background Dominique Pelicot, one of the worst sexual predators in France's contemporary records, was given a prison term to twenty years in prison last year for drugging his wife at the time and soliciting multiple perpetrators to sexually assault her in her home in the town of the village of Mazan over a period of many years of their marriage. Fifty other men were found culpable in a high-profile trial last year, and Dogan was the only man to contest his conviction. He was first sentenced to nine years in prison, a sentence increased on Thursday to 10 years. The lead state prosecutor, Dominique Sie, had stated he should serve 12 years, because he “completely denies to take any responsibility”. Courtroom Details The defendant had first sent the husband graphic images and then traveled an hour from his residence in Provence to assault the victim, after telling his wife he was leaving, the testimony revealed. Pelicot, who was brought from solitary confinement in prison to briefly testify at the appeal trial, informed the court that Dogan had known his wife had been “drugged” and he communicated to men by phone: “I’m looking for someone to assault my wife after I’ve put her to sleep without her knowledge.” The proceedings became a central issue for a broader debate on sexual violence norms in society as Dogan continued to claim he was blameless and had not committed rape, contending that because the victim's husband had allowed him into the residence, his conduct had been acceptable. The jury in the Nîmes appeals court was presented with video evidence of the victim's unconscious figure, comatose and breathing heavily in a unconscious condition, while a smiling the perpetrator performed assault repeatedly over a period of what police said was several hours. The court official said she had been at danger of death by choking. The state prosecution said there was no question that she had been unaware and had not agreed. Dogan's Claims The defendant told the court the recordings were simply “sex scenes” and denied it was assault. He said what he did was “a consensual activity”, not assault. He told the court: “I never raped.” He said the victim's husband had allowed him to the residence, and therefore it was acceptable. He said he was deceived by Dominique Pelicot. “I tried to halt,” Dogan informed the court. “I carried on because he persuaded me.” Inquired if he wanted to make a closing remarks to the court, the defendant said: “I never wanted to injure that lady.” Pelicot's Words The victim, who was supported upon departing the trial each day by onlookers assembled to support her, told Dogan in court: “You haven’t understood. When will you admit you raped me? It’s a crime to rape an incapacitated woman. How could I have give you permission? Not once.” The victim, 72, became an global icon after she relinquished her right to confidentiality in the trial last year when she said: “Shame must change sides.” State's Argument Sie, speaking to the victim in court, said the defendant's failure to take responsibility showed that: “The shame remains. The community is maybe in the process of that, perhaps driven by the public consciousness brought by the revelation of your ordeal.” Sie 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: “We need to change rape culture to a culture of consent.” The prosecutor told Dogan: “While you deny it, it’s not just a woman, it’s an complete unpleasant societal structure that you are supporting.” Defendant's Background The accused was originated from the country of Turkey and at the age of 5 came to France, where his father worked as a concierge. The court heard that his father was aggressive and that the defendant began smoking cannabis aged ten. When he was seventeen he was stopped by police for dealing drugs and his parent evicted him of home. He served time in prison for narcotics offenses in his young adulthood and had worked as a laborer but had undergone periods of being unhoused. He was married and had a child with Down’s syndrome, who he was the principal carer for, as his wife worked in a school canteen. The testimony revealed his spouse did not know he had regular sexual encounters outside their union. His defence said this was his method of dealing with his challenging existence. Dogan had told a court psychologist that each year he looked for commercial sex on his special day. His legal representatives informed the court he had a medical condition triggered by the anxiety of the original case.