In the Diego Maradona homicide case, a mistrial was declared after the judge resigned due to an ethical violation

The trial of Maradona’s medical team was thrown out because an official judge broke ethical rules.

Lawyers revealed Thursday that the high-profile murder trial of Diego Maradona’s medical team has been thrown out because one of the judges who was overseeing the case suddenly quit due to claims of misconduct.

A lot of people across the country and around the world were interested in the case because it was about the death of football star Diego Maradona in 2020. He died of heart failure while recovering from brain surgery. Seven people on his medical team were charged with negligent murder because they were said to have contributed to his death by not managing his care properly.

The doctors and nurses who were charged denied the charges of “simple homicide with eventual intent.” This is a legal term in Argentina that means they should have known what might happen if they did what they did. If found guilty, they could have spent anywhere from eight to twenty-five years in jail.

The trial was put on hold when Judge Julieta Makintach quit on Tuesday. She was one of three judges handling the case. A video of her appearing in a documentary film crew’s footage inside the courthouse, including scenes from her office, caused her to make her choice. This was clearly against the rules of the law.

The video caused a backlash and real concerns about the fairness of the courts. It was seen as unethical for her to be involved in the filming, so she pulled out, essentially throwing out the trial.
“All of this is a huge embarrassment,” defense lawyer Miguel Angel Pierri told reporters outside of the building in Buenos Aires.

Thursday, no new trial date had been set, and no one had been chosen to replace the judges. Because of the delay, the future of the case is unclear. The case has already caused controversy, legal scrutiny, and public anger in a country where Maradona is still very revered.

The famous Diego Maradona led Argentina to win in the 1986 World Cup. He died in November 2020, at the age of 60. People in the football world were shocked when he died suddenly. There was a lot of grief, and then lawsuits were filed to see if his death could have been avoided.