U.S. Senator Al Franken (D-Minnesota) has issued an apology to a woman who accused him of sexually assaulting her.

Leeann Tweeden, a news anchor for KABC in Los Angeles, says the abuse occurred during a USO Tour in 2006.

Tweeden says Franken, a former writer for Saturday Night Live, wrote a sketch for the tour in which his character kissed her on stage. Tweeden claims Franken repeatedly insisted the two needed to "practice" the kiss on stage, and at one point forcibly kissed her.

Following the tour, Tweeden found a photo of Franken groping her breasts over her clothes while she was sleeping.

"I certainly don’t remember the rehearsal for the skit in the same way, but I send my sincerest apologies to Leeann. As to the photo, it was clearly intended to be funny but wasn't. I shouldn't have done it," Franken said, according to Politico.

At the time of the tour, Franken was not a US Senator. He was elected in 2008 and took office in 2009.