Diabetes drug victims demand justice in French trial

Victims of a diabetes drug suspected in 2,000 deaths pleaded for justice yesterday as the trial of French drug maker Servier Laboratories began in Paris. Mediator, also marketed for weight loss, was taken by millions before sales were halted in 2009. "My life is just not the same," said Paquita Guardiola, who needed a heart transplant after taking the drug. She is one of more than 4,000 plaintiffs in a trial expected to last six months.

Servier is being tried on charges of manslaughter, unintentional harm, fraud, and deceit about the chemical makeup of Mediator and its risks. France's medicines agency is also accused of manslaughter by negligence and causing unintentional harm. A company lawyer said Servier was not aware of the drug’s risks.