The first trial in this case ended in December 2024 in Avignon. The main evidence were recordings documenting rapes made by the victim's husband. Thanks to them, it was possible to identify most perpetrators. All the accused were found guilty, and Dominique Pelicot received a maximum sentence – 20 years in prison. Husamettin Dogan, a 44-year-old husband and father, was then sentenced to nine years in prison for rape with particular cruelty. Currently, he refers to both the conviction and the length of the penalty. The appeal will be in practice a re -process – once again the recordings of rape on Gisele will be shown in court. The proceedings will start on Monday and will take four days.
During the Dogan trial, he denied that he was a rapist. The outrageous words were also spoken from his lawyer
During the December trial, Husametin Dogan, like many other accused, based his defense on the claim that he was not guilty of rape because he was not aware that Gisele was unconscious. “I don't accept the rapist's label,” Dogan said in court. Earlier, however, he admitted that he told Dominique to Pelicot that his wife “looked dead.”
On the other hand, his lawyer, Sylvie Menvielle, suggested during the hearing that the rape recordings showed “a sexual game for three people” and Gisele was to be her participant. These comments then caused the victim's outrage and made her leave the courtroom.
A jury will assess the appeal. May increase the judgment
Unlike the first trial in which the judges decided, Dogan's appeal will assess the jury. Due to the huge media resonance of the case, the judgment may change to the detriment of the accused. – This is a real risk and I think that is why so many men withdrew their appeals – explains the French judge Magali Lafourcade in an interview with BBC. Initially, 17 convicts appealed against the judgment.
Gisele Pelicot will be present in court. Dominique Pelicot is a witness
Gisele Pelicot will take part in the trial, although French law does not require this. “He feels that he must be there and is obliged to stay until the end of the proceedings,” says BBC her lawyer, Stephane Babonneau.
Also Dominique Pelicot, who was described during the trial as a “devil of Avignon”, will stand in court again, this time only as a witness.
