Paris
AP
—
A French former senator goes on trial Monday in Paris over accusations of drugging another lawmaker to sexually assault her in a case that echoes the landmark drugging-and-rape trial that riveted France and turned Gisèle Pelicot into a global icon of the fight against sexual violence.
Joël Guerriau, 68, is accused of putting the drug MDMA in a glass of champagne he served to parliament member Sandrine Josso, who left after she started feeling sick. He has admitted serving her a drink spiked with MDMA but says it was an accident.
Josso, 50, has since been outspoken about the case and helped lead a parliamentary investigation into drug-related crimes.