RIO DE JANEIRO, BRAZIL – Eight carers for Argentine football legend Diego Maradona, including three personal doctors, two nurses and a psychiatrist, will face trial for “simple homicide” – taking life with intent, which carries a sentence of 8-25 years in prison – according to a ruling released Wednesday.
The team of carers stands accused of acting in an “inappropriate, deficient and reckless manner”. One lawyer for the defendants confirmed they would appeal, saying: “A guilty party is being sought at all costs and objectivity is being lost.”
The former soccer star, who was named as the FIFA Player of the Century in 2000, died in Buenos Aires in November 2020 after a heart attack.
Maradona had been recovering at his home after having surgery on a blood clot on his brain earlier that month.
Shortly after Maradona’s death, prosecutors launched an investigation into the care provided by his doctors and nurses.
In 2021, a panel of 20 experts found that Maradona’s medical team had acted in an “inappropriate, deficient and reckless manner”.
It is said that Maradona’s doctors “demanded” for him to be released from the hospital after his brain surgery because he wanted to return home.
But an inquest has ruled that Maradona “was not in full control of his mental faculties” and therefore “not in a condition to take decisions regarding his health and care.”
The court ruled this week that Maradona “would have had a better chance of survival” with adequate treatment in an appropriate medical facility.