Maradona death trial enters final hearing with verdict expected in December

The trial over the death of Diego Armando Maradona has entered its decisive phase. This Thursday marked the start of the final hearing before the judges of Oral Criminal Court No. 7 in San Isidro retire to deliberate. If the current schedule holds, a verdict will be announced no earlier than December.

• Head nurse Mariano Perroni's defense opened the session and requested a full acquittal.
• Seven health professionals face charges over the Argentine legend's death in November 2020.
• The court heard 75 witnesses and reviewed about 100 messages exchanged by the defendants across 51 hearings.
• This is the second trial in the case: the first was annulled in 2025 due to a judge's misconduct.

Mariano Perroni's defense pushes for acquittal after charge downgrade

The hearing began with the closing argument of Miguel Ángel Pierri, lawyer for Mariano Perroni. The head nurse had initially faced a charge of simple homicide with eventual intent, but the lack of solid evidence led prosecutors to downgrade the accusation to negligent homicide. For that offense, the prosecution requested four years in prison and an eight-year professional ban.

Pierri did not hold back. He argued that his client has already been condemned in the public eye long before any judicial ruling. He noted that over the six years the case has dragged on, Perroni has been called a murderer, lost his mother during the proceedings, and saw his wife walk away. The lawyer closed with a blunt statement: even if the judges choose to ban Perroni from nursing, he has already been barred from working for five years because society has stigmatized him so thoroughly that no one will hire him.

Remaining defendants and their closing arguments

After Perroni's defense concluded, the floor went to the lawyer representing nurse Ricardo Almirón, whose legal situation mirrors that of Perroni: his charge was also downgraded to negligent homicide and the requested sentence is identical. The session also reserved a brief argument for the defense of clinician Pedro Di Spagna, for whom both the prosecution and all plaintiffs have simply asked for acquittal.

Earlier this week, closing arguments were delivered by the legal teams of neurosurgeon Leopoldo Luque, psychiatrist Agustina Cosachov, psychologist Carlos Díaz, and Nancy Forlini, the home care coordinator for Swiss Medical. The prosecution maintains that all of them provided Maradona with treatment marked by absolute disorganization, through a series of actions and omissions that led to the former footballer's death on November 25, 2020. Nurse Dahiana Gisela Madrid is also charged in the case, but she will face a separate trial.

A second trial after 2025 annulment and 51 hearings

This is not the first time Argentine courts have tried to adjudicate the death of the 1986 World Cup champion. The initial trial opened in 2025 and lasted barely three months before being annulled due to the misconduct of one of the presiding judges, Julieta Makintach, who secretly authorized a documentary about the proceedings and took part in it herself.

With a new panel in place, the current trial began on April 14. Over 51 hearings, the court heard 75 witness statements and examined around 100 messages exchanged among the defendants. The judges have already cautioned that the case is exceptionally complex, loaded with evidentiary material and dense medical terminology, meaning deliberations will take considerable time.

What remains before a verdict is reached

Thursday's hearing includes space for rebuttals, allowing the parties to respond to any new arguments raised during closing statements. There will also be room for surrebuttals if the court deems them relevant. The proceedings will wrap up with final statements from the defendants, should they choose to exercise that right.

From there, the judges will withdraw to deliberate. Nobody expects a quick resolution. The court itself has emphasized the complexity of the case and the need to carefully review all accumulated material. The timeline points to a ruling on the death of Maradona — the news that shook world football — arriving no sooner than December.

Frequently asked questions about the Maradona death trial