Colleagues support GP who assaulted police after being spiked with 'date rape' drug

There is a petition calling for her conviction to be overturned

Dr Eireann Kerr had her drink spiked by a stranger during a Christmas party in Londonderry in December (BBC)

Former colleagues of a GP who had her drink spiked with a “date rape” drug which caused her to assault a police officer have backed a petition calling for her conviction to be overturned as it could end her career.

Dr Eireann Kerr, from Belfast, had her drink spiked by a stranger during a Christmas party in Londonderry in December. She lost consciousness and police were called to the scene, but she was arrested for being disorderly and was taken to Strand Road police station in Derry where she assaulted a police officer.

“I must have thought I was being attacked. I didn’t understand where I was,” she said. “I was in an acute confusional state.” Toxicology reports seen by the court confirmed that Dr Kerr had been drugged with a substance that makes victims disorientated and aggressive.

On Wednesday she was convicted of assaulting a police officer, disorderly behaviour and resisting arrest. The judge at Londonderry Magistrates’ Court said he believed she had been drugged against her will and knowledge, but said that under the law he had no choice but to sentence her. She now faces the possibility of being struck off as a doctor.

Dr John Doherty, a consultant anaesthetist who has previously worked with Dr Kerr, has launched a petition calling for the conviction to be quashed.