Former senator from France was found guilty of spiking a female MP’s drink during an attempted sexual assault case

Joël Guerriau, a former French senator, was convicted of sexually assaulting an MP by poisoning her drink.

In a case that has rekindled discussion about drug-facilitated sexual assault in France, former French senator Joël Guerriau was convicted guilty of adding ecstasy to a fellow lawmaker’s drink.

The 68-year-old Guerriau was given a four-year prison sentence, of which 18 months will be spent behind bars. Additionally, the court mandated that he compensate Sandrine Josso, the victim, for mental anguish in the amount of €5,000 (£4,350). He will appeal the decision, his attorneys have stated.

The incident occurred in November of 2023. Josso claimed that three years ago, while celebrating Guerrieau’s reelection at his house, she drank from a glass of champagne and became ill.She testified on Monday, saying, “I had gone to visit a friend and I discovered an aggressor.”

She clarified that she was afraid to display vulnerability for fear that it would expose her to more danger. After Josso was able to escape the flat, a coworker took him to the hospital. Her blood contained three times the recreational amount of MDMA, according to toxicology tests.

Guerriau acknowledged giving Josso a drug-containing drink, but he insisted it was an accident. He admitted to the court that he had been depressed and had planned to take MDMA the night before but didn’t. The next night, he claimed, he unintentionally offered Josso the tainted beverage.

“I’m sorry about Sandrine. Guerriau stated in court, “I am disgusted with myself, with my recklessness and my stupidity,” adding that he wished to increase public awareness of the risks associated with drugs. He denied having any plans to abuse her sexually.

Guerriau was also questioned by prosecutors over searches for GHB and ecstasy on the internet. He described them as fleeting ideas while traveling and claimed he had no memory of them.

After the accusations were made public, Guerriau, a center-right senator from the Horizons party, resigned from the Senate in October of last year and was suspended.

Josso, who continues to represent the center-right MoDem party in parliament, called the decision a “huge relief.” Since then, she has become an outspoken advocate against drug-facilitated sexual assault, or “chemical submission.”

Ahead of the trial, she declared, “What I went through is still very painful.” “Being trapped in time is how psychological trauma feels.”

She has joined an organization that opposes chemical submission, which was started by Caroline Darian, whose mother suffered from long-term drug-facilitated abuse in another well-known French case. The Guerriau trial, which Darian and her brother attended, highlighted the public’s increasing attention to these crimes and the need for accountability at the highest echelons of society.