Trial begins for doctor accused of poisoning ex-lover's coffee

HOUSTON (KTRK) -- Dressed in a simple gray business suit, Dr. Ana Gonzalez Angulo slipped into a 16th floor courtroom and took a seat on a front row bench as the trial against her prepares to start.

Angulo remains a respected breast oncologist and cancer researcher; however, she is on leave from Houston's M.D. Anderson Cancer Hospital, as something far removed from her professional career is decided.

Angulo is charged with aggravated assault. The case stems from the alleged poisoning last year of colleague and romantic partner, Dr. George Blumenschein. He fell ill after drinking coffee that Angulo is accused of serving him. Prosecutors say it was laced with a chemical found in anti-freeze. Blumenschein suffered kidney damage. His attorney says they may never completely recover.

Derek Hollingsworth, Angulo's attorney, says his client "has been accused of something she did not do. Our first priority is to make sure the jury has the evidence to see that."

The charges were read aloud in court against her... that she "did knowingly and intentionally commit a crime against Goerge Blumenschein, with whom she had a dating relationship, by causing him to ingest ethylene glycol." The petite defendant showed no emotion.

"This is a case of a woman being rejected. She had a fatal attraction," the prosecution told the jury.