Gisèle Pelicot Mass Rape Trial: A French court Thursday sentenced Dominique Pelicot, former husband of Gisèle Pelicot (72), to 20 years in prison, convicting him for aggravated rape. Gisèle Pelicot had been drugged and raped for almost a decade, with Dominique admitting to inviting dozens of men to rape her while she would be unconscious under the influence of drug, media reports said.
A total of 51 men, currently aged 27 to 74, were standing trial in the Avignon court, and Judge Roger Arata and his four colleagues found 47 of them trial guilty of rape, two of attempted rape, and the rest two of sexual assault, the reports said. Dominique hired these men online, after connecting with them on a now-banned website. The court also found Dominique guilty of clicking indecent images of his daughter and daughters-in-law, the reports said.
Gisèle Pelicot emerged a feminist icon after she chose to waive anonymity, throwing the trial open to the media and public, as she famously said shame should "change sides" from the victims to the rapists.
ALSO READ ON ABP LIVE | On Rare Visit To Remote Spanish Town, Google Street View Car Captures ‘Man Moving Corpse’, Helps Crack Murder Case
What Is The Gisèle Pelicot Case, And Why Was The Trial Unusual?
What makes this case unique is that the trial took place in full public view, unlike other cases of this nature.
Dominique Pelicot was accused of giving tranquilising drugs and sleeping pills to Gisèle without her knowledge. According to the reports cited above, he would crush the pills into powder and add them to her food and drinks. This continued from 2011 to 2020.
In her testimonies, Gisèle is reported to have mentioned how 10 years of her life were lost, and that she suffered memory loss and would have blackouts due to the drugs.
She reportedly never suspected any wrongdoing on the part of Dominique who would be vising a now-banned website to invite men to come to their house in Mazan village and have sex with his unconscious wife.
"I thought we were a close couple," a BBC report quoted her as saying in the court once. "I was sacrificed on the altar of vice."
Dominique was finally caught in 2020 after a supermarket reported him to police as he was found taking photographs under women's skirts.
The trial has been on since the beginning of September 2024, and the five-judge court heard there had been 50 men who visited the house where the Pelicots lived.
Besides Dominique's confession, the big reason the trial easily ended in a conviction was a key evidence against all the accused — video recording of the sex act over the years. Dominique Pelicot had recorded the evidence against all 50 men he invited home to have sex with his comatose wife, according to reports. The recording was played out in the open court, leaving no room for any of the accused to challenge the charges against them.
"Don't talk to me about sex scenes. These are rape scenes," Gisèle was quoted as saying.
The media reports said public prosecutor Laure Chabaud told the court no one would be able to say now that "since she didn't say anything, she gave her consent".
Gisèle attended the trial in person almost every day. The people of France rallied in her support, with women standing outside the court every day and chanting: "Shame is changing sides."