Eight medical personnel are to stand trial for the death of football star Diego Maradona. They are accused of criminal negligence in the death of the legendary Argentinian footballer. A judge has ordered a culpable homicide trial after a medical panel found Maradona’s treatment was rife with “deficiencies and irregularities.”
Eight Medical Personnel to Stand Trial for Diego Maradona’s Death
Diego Maradona died in November 2020 of a heart attack in Buenos Aires, aged 60. He had been recovering at home from surgery on a brain blood clot earlier that month.
A few days after his death Argentine prosecutors launched an investigation into the doctors and nurses involved in his care. Last year, the panel of 20 experts appointed to examine his death. The experts discovered his medical team acted in an “inappropriate, deficient and reckless manner”. They said the footballer would have survived if he was taken good care of.
Among those facing charges are Leopoldo Luque Maradona’s neurosurgeon and personal doctor. Also in the list are a psychiatrist and psychologist, two doctors, two nurses and their boss. They have all denied responsibility for his death. All eight of them will be tried on a legal definition of homicide based on negligence.
The crime can hold a sentence of eight to 25 years in prison, according to Argentina’s penal code. A date for the trial is yet to be set. One of Maradona’s sons’ lawyer Mario Baudry said it was a situation of helplessness after “his death. He “also said: “As soon as I saw the cause, I said it was homicide. I fought for a long time and here we are, with this stage completed.”
