A retrial into the death of the football legend Diego Maradona began on Tuesday, a year after the first case collapsed in a mistrial. Seven members of his medical team are charged with negligent homicide after he died from a heart attack, aged 60. They have denied the allegations. If convicted, they face between eight and 25 years in prison.
The first trial collapsed last May when one of its three judges resigned after allegedly allowing unauthorized filming in court for a documentary. Maradona died in 2020 at his home in Tigre, Buenos Aires province, while he was recuperating from surgery to remove a brain blood clot.
Investigators classified the case as culpable homicide—a crime akin to involuntary manslaughter—because they said the accused were aware of the seriousness of Maradona's health condition but did not take the necessary measures to save him. The heart failure caused him to suffer acute pulmonary edema, as confirmed by the preliminary autopsy.
A panel of medical experts, asked by prosecutors to investigate Maradona's medical team, described the treatment he received at his home as deficient and reckless and concluded that the footballer would have had a better chance of survival with adequate treatment in an appropriate medical facility.
The seven individuals on trial include his main medical adviser, Leopoldo Luque, and his psychiatrist Agustina Cosachov. His former nurse, Dahiana Gisela Madrid, will stand in a separate trial. Around 100 people are expected to testify in front of a new set of judges at a court in San Isidro, including Maradona's daughters. The trial is anticipated to continue until July.
Upon Maradona's death on November 25, 2020, the then-President of Argentina, Alberto Fernandez, declared three days of national mourning, expressing deep gratitude and sadness over the loss of the football legend. Maradona, who began his career with Argentinos Juniors and represented Argentina in four World Cups, is remembered for his incredible skill, as well as his struggles with addiction during and after his illustrious career.
The first trial collapsed last May when one of its three judges resigned after allegedly allowing unauthorized filming in court for a documentary. Maradona died in 2020 at his home in Tigre, Buenos Aires province, while he was recuperating from surgery to remove a brain blood clot.
Investigators classified the case as culpable homicide—a crime akin to involuntary manslaughter—because they said the accused were aware of the seriousness of Maradona's health condition but did not take the necessary measures to save him. The heart failure caused him to suffer acute pulmonary edema, as confirmed by the preliminary autopsy.
A panel of medical experts, asked by prosecutors to investigate Maradona's medical team, described the treatment he received at his home as deficient and reckless and concluded that the footballer would have had a better chance of survival with adequate treatment in an appropriate medical facility.
The seven individuals on trial include his main medical adviser, Leopoldo Luque, and his psychiatrist Agustina Cosachov. His former nurse, Dahiana Gisela Madrid, will stand in a separate trial. Around 100 people are expected to testify in front of a new set of judges at a court in San Isidro, including Maradona's daughters. The trial is anticipated to continue until July.
Upon Maradona's death on November 25, 2020, the then-President of Argentina, Alberto Fernandez, declared three days of national mourning, expressing deep gratitude and sadness over the loss of the football legend. Maradona, who began his career with Argentinos Juniors and represented Argentina in four World Cups, is remembered for his incredible skill, as well as his struggles with addiction during and after his illustrious career.
