Justice for the Woman Whose Husband Invited 50 Men to Rape Her
Gisèle Pelicot refused to remain anonymous while her ex-husband Dominique—and 50 others—stood trial.
Illustration by Eric Faison/The Daily Beast/Getty
A French man who drugged and raped his wife for nearly a decade—and invited dozens of other men to do the same while he filmed them—has been sentenced to 20 years in prison after being found guilty of aggravated rape.
Gisèle Pelicot’s family looked on and whispered among themselves Thursday as the verdict was read against her ex-husband Dominique, according to the BBC. The court also convicted the other 50 defendants in the case: in total, 47 of the men were found guilty of rape, two were guilty of attempted rape, and two were guilty of sexual assault.
Gisèle Pelicot, 71, refused to remain anonymous throughout the trial, saying her ex-husband is the one who should be ashamed for subjecting her to years of abuse.
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The drugging left her with recurring blackouts that made her think she was suffering from Alzheimer’s disease, she testified in September.
On Thursday, dozens of Dominique Pelicot’s co-defendants also received lengthy prison sentences of five to 13 years. Journalists in the courtroom said Dominique appeared to be hunched over in his chair, crying as the sentences were read out.
He had stunned courtroom observers in September by admitting to the heinous crimes and implicating his co-defendants in the abuse.
“It is difficult for me to listen to this,” Gisèle Pelicot said at the time. “For 50 years, I lived with a man who I would’ve never imagined could be capable of this. I trusted him completely.”
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