An Argentine court on Thursday declared a mistrial in the case of seven health professionals accused of negligence in the death of soccer legend Diego Maradona, the latest dramatic twist in a trial that has captivated the nation and the soccer world for more than two months.
The judges ruled there would be a new trial, without specifying when.
The whiplash decision comes after one of the three judges overseeing the trial stepped down over criticism surrounding her participation in a forthcoming documentary about the case, “Divine Justice,” which spans the aftermath of Maradona’s death to the start of the trial.
A one-and-a-half-minute trailer intercuts archival footage of Maradona scoring goals with shots of the judge, Julieta Makintach, walking through the court. Presenting the teaser in court, the prosecutor asked judges to investigate Makintach’s alleged role in allowing the documentary to be filmed during the trial.
As the documentary snowballed into a national scandal, Makintach on Tuesday said that she had “no choice” but to resign from the case.
As a result, the judges decided on Thursday to restart the entire case, effectively turning the clock back on all proceedings since March 11, when the trial began amid intense media scrutiny and called dozens of distraught witnesses to testify over the course of the following weeks.
His ex-partner spoke to media after lawyers told reporters outside the court the case had been declared a mistrial: “I am saddened because this means five years of work have been thrown in the trash,” Veronica Ojeda said, amid tears. “They mocked us.”
Thursday’s decision threw into doubt the timeline of the trial, which was initially expected to last until July. The panel said that a higher court would select the three new judges by lottery.
“I trust we could have a sentence by the end of the year,” said Fernando Burlando, a lawyer for Dalma and Gianinna Maradona, the soccer star’s daughters.
The case accuses Maradona’s medical team of failing to provide adequate care for the soccer star in the weeks leading up to Nov. 25, 2020, when, at the age of 60, Maradona died from cardiac arrest while recovering from surgery for a blood clot in his brain.
The defendants in the case include Leopoldo Luque, Maradona’s primary physician at the time of his death, as well as his psychologist, psychiatrist, medical coordinator and nurses. They all deny the charges and say Maradona was a difficult patient who did not allow himself to be treated.
“This is all a great embarrassment,” defense attorney Miguel Angel Pierri told media outside the courthouse.
Maradona, who famously won the World Cup with Argentina in 1986, is regarded as one of the greatest soccer players of all time. At home, his fellow Argentines revere him as a national hero.
Information from The Associated Press and Reuters was used in this report.
