Judge fired after her participation in a documentary led to the annulment of the trial against soccer legend Diego Maradona

An Argentine judge was relieved of her duties on Tuesday after causing a mistrial in the negligence case against the medical team of the late soccer legend Diego Maradona due to his participation in a documentary about it.

A special panel of judges, lawyers and provincial legislators removed Julieta Makintach, 48, from office and disqualified her from holding any other judicial office in the future.

Makintach was one of three judges in the now-overturned trial that followed Maradona’s death in 2020 while recovering from brain surgery for a blood clot after decades battling addictions to cocaine and alcohol.

She recused herself after it emerged that she had been interviewed for a miniseries about the case, potentially breaking a number of ethics rules.

Maradona died on November 25, 202060 years old, with heart failure and acute lung edema two weeks after undergoing surgery. A nurse found him dead in his bed.

Maradona’s medical team is being judged by the conditions of his convalescence in a private home.

Prosecutors have described the care of the football icon in his final days as extremely negligent.

Defendants risk prison terms of between 8 and 25 years if convicted of “murder with possible intent,” meaning following a course of action despite knowing it could lead to death.

According to BBC News, the medical team being tested included a neurosurgeon, a doctor and a night nurse. They claim the retired football icon refused further treatment and should have stayed home longer after his operation, the BBC reported.

Until now, the case has centered on the decision by Maradona’s doctors to allow him to recover at home with minimal supervision and medical equipment, rather than at a medical facility.

Judge Makintach had denied participating in or authorizing the filming of a documentary about the case, but images shared in Argentine media allegedly showed her being interviewed by a film crew on the eve of the start of the trial.

Earlier this year, prosecutor Patricio Ferrari accused Makintach of behaving “like an actress and not like a judge” for participating in the documentary, BBC News reported.

As a trailer for the documentary series was shown in court, defense attorney Rodolfo Baque shouted “garbage!” in Makintach, BBC News reported at the time. Maradona’s daughter and his ex-partner cried after seeing the images, according to the BBC.