Designer Galliano claims drink, drug addiction

Fallen fashion idol John Galliano on Wednesday told a Paris court where he faces charges of anti-Semitism that he is addicted to alcohol, sleeping tablets and valium. "I have an addiction. I am a recovering alcoholic, a recovering addict," he said at the start of his trial on allegations that he subjected customers in a trendy Paris bar to a drunken anti-Semitic and racist rant. Fashion house Christian Dior sacked him after the incident. The 50-year-old couturier -- considered one of the finest fashion designers of his generation -- could face a sentence of six months in jail and a fine of 22,500 euros ($32,000) if convicted. The British designer was arrested on February 24 after a couple in La Perle cafe in Paris's fashionable Marais district alleged he had subjected them to a stream of anti-Semitic abuse. Galliano has issued an apology for his behaviour, but insisted it was not anti-Semitic. He has lodged a legal counter-suit against the couple in the first incident, alleging defamation. Dior sacked their star designer, saying his alleged behaviour and language was "particularly odious," sending shockwaves through the tightly-knit Paris fashion world. Five people are expected to testify in the trial, including two women who were sat next to him during the February 24 incident. Galliano's lawyer has said varying testimonies show that there is some doubt about what was actually said. Galliano himself "does not remember because he was in an altered state," said lawyer Aurelien Hamelle. What he knows is that his alleged insults "do not reflect what he thinks. He's not anti-Semitic or racist," he said. The flamboyant designer has "been doing nothing" since his spectacular fall from grace, Hamelle added. "He's treating his addiction to alcohol and medication. He will think about his professional future" after the trial, he said.