Drug-facilitated assault: drugged at a party in France, what now?

One drink, then a blackout. You wake up with no memories and feeling unwell, sometimes at someone else's place. You think you may have suffered a drug-facilitated assault. It is not your fault: a victim is never responsible for being attacked. A lawyer can listen to you in confidence on Avocat20min.fr.

This article starts with what cannot wait: your safety and the samples. Your rights and the complaint come next.

Warning signs

Chemical submission, as French law calls it, means giving someone a substance without their knowledge that impairs their judgement or control over their actions. The aim may be a sexual assault, a theft or another act of violence.

Several signs come up often:

• Being far drunker than what you drank would explain.
• Memory gaps, whole hours wiped out.
• Sudden drowsiness, dizziness, nausea.
• Waking up somewhere unfamiliar, clothes out of place, unexplained pain.

None of these signs alone proves a drug-facilitated assault. Together, they justify testing quickly.

Right now: safety and samples

If you are in danger, call 17 or 112. If you cannot speak, text 114. Ask someone you trust to come and join you.

Then time matters. Some substances leave the blood and urine within hours. Go to an emergency department or a doctor as fast as you can and say clearly: "I think I was drugged."

Sample	What it shows	When
Blood	A substance still present	As early as possible
Urine	A substance for a little longer	As early as possible
Hair	A past intake	A few weeks after the events, on medical advice

A negative result does not mean nothing happened: the substance may have gone before the sample was taken. Hair keeps a longer trace, which is why a hair sample later can help.

If a sexual assault may have taken place, also ask for preventive HIV treatment and emergency contraception. These work better when started early. Avoid washing and keep your clothes in a paper bag.

Tests for drug-facilitated assault covered without a complaint

Since 1 January 2026, a pilot scheme lets you have substances tested without filing a complaint, with the cost covered by the national health insurance (Assurance maladie). It rests on article 68 of the 2025 Social Security Financing Act and on Decree No. 2025-1208 of 11 December 2025.

In practice, according to the Île-de-France regional health agency:

1. Regions covered: Île-de-France, Hauts-de-France and Pays de la Loire, for three years.
2. The prescription: a doctor practising in one of these regions writes it after an examination and an interview.
3. The samples: blood, urine and hair, analysed by specialist laboratories.
4. No prior complaint: you can file one later if the results are positive.
5. The results: the doctor contacts you again to explain them, whatever they show.

The doctor gives you an information sheet and a consent form, which covers storage of the samples and sending the results to the reference centre. According to the Hauts-de-France regional health agency, samples are kept for three years.

Outside these regions, go to an emergency department. If you file a complaint, the police order the tests themselves, often at a forensic medical unit (unité médico-judiciaire).

CRAFS, a specialist centre

The reference centre on substance-facilitated assaults (Centre de référence sur les agressions facilitées par les substances, CRAFS) advises victims and professionals. It answers on 01 40 05 42 70, Monday to Friday, 9 am to 1 pm and 2 pm to 6 pm. It is not an emergency service.

To talk to someone at any hour, 3919 listens to women facing violence, free of charge, 24/7. 116 006 helps all victims, 7 days a week.

What French law says about drug-facilitated assault

The Criminal Code punishes drug-facilitated assault in several ways:

Offence	Article	Maximum sentence
Drugging someone without their knowledge in order to sexually assault them	222-30-1	5 years and €75,000
The same against a child under 15 or a vulnerable person	222-30-1	7 years and €100,000
Sexual assault with a substance given without the victim's knowledge	222-28, 11°	7 years and €100,000
Rape with a substance given without the victim's knowledge	222-24, 15°	20 years
Administering harmful substances	222-15	Depends on the harm caused

The first offence exists even if no assault took place: giving the substance with that aim is enough. If the offender had another aim, theft for example, administering harmful substances may apply.

On consent, the law is clear. Since the law of 6 November 2025, article 222-22 of the Criminal Code defines it as free and informed, specific, prior and revocable. A drugged or unconscious person cannot consent, and a lack of reaction never amounts to agreement.

Filing a complaint, even without memories

You can file a complaint at any police station or gendarmerie: they must take it (article 15-3 of the Code of Criminal Procedure). You can also write to the public prosecutor. If you do not know who drugged you, the complaint is against persons unknown.

Not remembering does not stop an investigation. Other evidence often pieces the night together:

• Witnesses: friends, bar staff, the driver.
• Footage: cameras at the venue, in the street, on public transport. Tell the police quickly, as these recordings are not kept for long.
• Your phone: messages sent, calls, locations, photos from the night.
• Payments: card statements, receipts, ride-hailing bookings.
• Test results and the medical certificate.

You can come with a person of your choice and a lawyer (article 10-2 of the Code of Criminal Procedure). For an adult victim, a rape complaint remains possible for 20 years, but evidence of a drug-facilitated assault vanishes fast.

After the complaint, suspects may be held in police custody. If the case is dropped, you can still appeal to the principal public prosecutor.

The lawyer's role

A lawyer helps you gather evidence before it disappears. They can ask the police to seize footage or interview witnesses. They represent you as civil party (partie civile), prepare the hearing with you and assess your losses.

For rape, a serious crime, the victim gets legal aid (aide juridictionnelle) without a means test, according to service-public. The victims' compensation board (CIVI) can also cover the harm, even if the offender is never identified.

A criminal lawyer tells you which steps are useful in your case. They cannot promise a conviction, but they move the case forward alongside you.

If a friend thinks she was drugged

Stay with her and do not let her leave alone. Give her no alcohol and no medication. If she passes out, struggles to breathe or stops responding, call 15 or 112 at once.

Then take her to an emergency department and mention a possible drug-facilitated assault on arrival. Write down what you saw: when she had the drink, who was around, how she was. Your account may matter. As for the complaint, let her decide, without pushing or judging.

Other situations

If the night involved several attackers, our guide on gang rape covers the first steps and the procedure. If the events happened long ago, read our article on the limitation period for rape.

The official scheme is described on the Île-de-France regional health agency page on chemical submission tests (in French).