Elizabeth wants to have her prison sentence delayed
When did the Theranos trial end? Calling Defendant Holmes to a new trial in San Jose, Calif., on January 26, 2022
The trial of the founder of the failed start-up Theranos ended in a fraud conviction in January, ending a years-long saga.
Ms.Holmes tried to reverse her fortunes after that incident. On Monday, the 38-year-old, her parents and partner, lawyers, and a scrum of media gathered in a federal courtroom in San Jose, Calif., for a hearing that could open the door to her getting a new trial. The visit by the key witness, Ms. Holmes’s lawyers argued, raised questions about his credibility and the fairness of the trial.
Holmes’ criminal trial was initially delayed from March 2021 to August 2021 because she was pregnant with her first child. She is married to Billy Evans.
Her lawyers say that she isn’t a flight risk and that she will not be a danger to the community, which led them to delay the prison sentence. It also said she has “two young children,” but didn’t reveal when her second child was born or their gender.
“The government became aware on January 23, 2022, that Defendant Holmes booked an international flight to Mexico departing on January 26, 2022, without a scheduled return trip,” the court filing states. “Only after the government raised this unauthorized flight with defense counsel was the trip canceled.”
Theranos: The Rise of a Billionaire When Blood Tests Prevented and Aren’t They Produced by Independent Companies
Theranos raised $945 million from an impressive list of investors, including media mogul Rupert Murdoch, Oracle founder Larry Ellison, Walmart’s Walton family and the billionaire family of former Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos. At its peak, Theranos was valued at $9 billion, making Holmes a billionaire on paper. She was lauded on magazine covers, frequently wearing a signature black turtleneck that invited comparisons to late Apple CEO Steve Jobs.
The company began to collapse after a Wall Street Journal investigation found that it only used its proprietary blood testing device to do a dozen tests, with questionable accuracy, and that it had only ever performed hundreds of tests. Instead, Theranos was relying on third-party manufactured devices from traditional blood testing companies.
