Mazan rape case: Dominique Pelicot does not appeal his 20-year prison sentence

Dominique Pelicot, sentenced on December 19 to 20 years in prison for drugging, raping, and forcing his ex-wife Gisèle Pelicot to be raped by dozens of strangers, has decided not to appeal. This decision was announced on Monday, December 30, by his lawyer, Béatrice Zavarro, on Franceinfo and to AFP.

“Dominique Pelicot has chosen not to appeal the verdict rendered by the Vaucluse criminal court,” the lawyer said. She explained that this decision aims to spare Gisèle Pelicot another judicial ordeal: “He does not want to subject her to new confrontations, which he considers unnecessary. For him, it is time to turn the judicial page.”

At the age of 72, Dominique Pelicot was found guilty of extremely serious crimes committed over a decade. The maximum sentence, with two-thirds security, was handed down by the Avignon criminal court after nearly four months of a trial emblematic of the fight against sexual violence against women.

Towards a new trial for other defendants

Although Dominique Pelicot will not contest his conviction, a new trial will take place. Among the 50 co-defendants tried in the first trial, 17 have already appealed. The defendants received sentences ranging from three years in prison, two of which suspended, to 20 years of imprisonment. The public prosecutor’s office has until midnight on Monday to decide whether to lodge a general appeal, which could include Dominique Pelicot in the new trial.

Nevertheless, Gisèle Pelicot, aged 72, remains determined. “She is perfectly calm at the idea of a second trial,” assured Stéphane Babonneau, one of her lawyers. “She knew the likelihood of an appeal was strong even before the first trial began. If a new trial takes place, she will face it, even if she would have preferred it to end here.”

A historic conviction

The Mazan rape trial, marked by Gisèle Pelicot’s decision to refuse a closed-door hearing, shed light on the sexual violence suffered by women. The Vaucluse criminal court convicted 51 men, aged 27 to 74, for aggravated rapes committed between 2011 and 2020.

The court emphasized in its judgment that, although Dominique Pelicot orchestrated the crimes, each defendant was aware of participating in rapes. The motivations specify that the co-defendants, faced with Gisèle Pelicot drugged and unconscious, “could apprehend the situation.”

For Dominique Pelicot, the focus is now on the execution of his sentence, as his lawyer indicated: “It is preferable to focus on his health, his age, and examine the possibilities of a sentence adjustment rather than take an unnecessary risk in an appeal.”

This trial will remain a symbol, not only for criminal justice but also for the courage of victims who, like Gisèle Pelicot, defend their dignity in the face of sexual violence.