Seven Healthcare Professionals to Stand Trial for Negligence in Diego Maradona’s Death
After four years since the passing of Argentine football legend Diego Maradona, seven healthcare professionals are set to stand trial next week, facing accusations of negligence during his final days.
The trial, scheduled to begin on Tuesday in San Isidro, a suburb of Buenos Aires, will span over four months with more than 100 witnesses, including Maradona’s family members and doctors who had been caring for him, expected to testify.
If found guilty, the seven individuals could face sentences ranging from eight to 25 years. Maradona, who passed away on November 25, 2020, at the age of 60, was recuperating from brain surgery to address a blood clot after years of battling cocaine and alcohol addiction.
He was found deceased in bed at a rented residence in an upscale area of Buenos Aires, where he had been relocated post-surgery. The cause of death was determined to be a heart attack.
According to a night nurse, there were “warning signs” noticed, but he was instructed not to wake Maradona.
Maradona’s death, occurring during the Covid-19 pandemic, resulted in widespread mourning across Argentina.
Neurosurgeon Leopoldo Luque, psychiatrist Agustina Cosachov, psychologist Carlos Diaz, medical coordinator Nancy Forlini, nursing coordinator Mariano Perroni, doctor Pedro Pablo Di Spagna, and nurse Ricardo Almiro are all set to go on trial next week.
Another nurse, Gisela Dahiana Madrid, has requested a separate trial by jury, scheduled for July. Prosecutors allege that the medical professionals provided “reckless” and “deficient” home care to Maradona, leaving him to suffer for an “extended, agonizing period” before his death.
In 2021, a panel of 20 medical experts appointed by Argentina’s public prosecutor concluded that Maradona “would have had a better chance of survival” with adequate care in a suitable medical facility.
The investigating judge in the case stated that each accused individual played a role in the chain of events leading to Maradona’s death.
All accused parties maintain their innocence regarding any wrongdoing in Maradona’s passing.
