51 Men Were Convicted of Raping Her. Only One Man Appealed
Gisele Pelicot leaves the appeals court after the hearing in the case of a man challenging his conviction, less than a year after the landmark verdict in a drugging and rape trial that shook France, Monday, Oct. 6, 2025 in Nimes, southern France. (AP Photo/Lewis Joly)
In a packed courtroom in Nîmes, France, on Wednesday, 72-year-old Gisèle Pelicot directly confronted the man appealing his conviction for raping her while she was drugged and unconscious. Addressing the defendant, Husamettin Dogan, Pelicot declared, “You haven’t understood. When are you going to recognize you raped me? It’s a crime to rape an unconscious woman. When did I ever give you consent? Never.” She added, according to The New York Times, “I would have thought in one year, you would have reflected on what happened and not still be in denial.”
The shocking crimes were part of a years-long ordeal orchestrated by Pelicot’s then-husband, Dominique, who admitted to drugging his wife and inviting men he met online to assault her while she was incapacitated. In December, Dominique and dozens of others were convicted, receiving sentences ranging from three to twenty years in prison. Dogan, sentenced to nine years, appealed his conviction, claiming he believed the sexual encounter was consensual.
Dogan alleged that online exchanges and assurances from Dominique led him to think Pelicot had willingly taken relaxants as part of a sexual “game.” But Dominique testified this week that he had clearly told Dogan his wife had been drugged.
The court reviewed disturbing video evidence showing Pelicot completely immobile and unresponsive as Dogan assaulted her multiple times. The Guardian reported that Dogan appeared smiling in the footage. During his testimony, Dogan insisted he had not committed rape, arguing that “rape is when someone is tied up and forced,” and even claimed he saw himself as a victim.
Pelicot firmly rejected that notion: “The only victim in the room here is me,” she said.
A verdict in Dogan’s appeal is expected Thursday. According to Courthouse News, his appeal carries significant risk — as the court could either reduce his sentence or increase it to as much as twenty years.
About Post Author
