Elizabeth Holmes is trying to delay the Theranos fraud verdict

Former Theranos CEO Elizabeth Holmes exits federal court with her legal team after a status hearing July 17, 2019 in San Jose, Calif. (Photo by Kimberly White/Getty Images)

Theranos founder Elizabeth Holmes returned Friday for a court hearing to determine if she can delay her 11-year sentence pending appeal and avoid paying hundreds of millions of dollars to victims of her massive fraud.

After nearly 90 minutes of hearings, U.S. District Judge Edward John Davila issued no ruling, suggesting he will later file a written order.

In 2015, Holmes became the talk of Silicon Valley when Forbes declared that her company Theranos had made her the youngest and richest self-made billionaire. Theranos claimed to have revolutionized blood testing with a patented nanotainer that only needed a pinprick to work. The invention never worked, but Holmes convinced patients and investors alike, valuing her company at $9 billion at its peak.

The Wall Street Journal’s John Carreyrou pierced Holmes’ carefully curated PR glosses in a series of articles culminating in the book Bad Blood: Secrets and Lies in a Silicon Valley Startup. The author was featured in the HBO documentary The Inventor.

Holmes’ prosecution followed the exposure, and her lawyers argue that her client has always trusted the court system under the international gaze.

“MS. Holmes is not, and never has been, a flight risk,” her attorney, Amy Mason Saharia, wrote in a 20-page plea pending appeal. she has been in contact with investigative authorities throughout the case, she has two young children and family support in the United States, and her bail is secured by her parents’ only home. Ms. Holmes is also not a physical or financial threat to the community.”

Prosecutors say that’s not entirely true. The government says it learned Holmes booked a one-way ticket to Mexico in January 2020, just weeks after her conviction.

“It was only after the government raised this unauthorized flight with the defense attorney that the trip was canceled,” prosecutors added.

Holmes’ legal team insisted there was a misunderstanding.

“The hope was that the verdict would be different and Ms. Holmes could make this trip to attend a close friend’s wedding in Mexico,” her attorney, Lance Wade, told prosecutors at the time. “Given the verdict, she has no plans to make the trip – and therefore has not given notice, obtained permission or requested access to her passport (which the government holds) for the trip.”

The government suggested that Holmes’ continued attempt to stay out of prison was due to their sense of impunity.

“There are not two justice systems – one for the rich and one for the poor – there is one criminal justice system in this country,” the government wrote earlier this year.

Also, Holmes hopes US District Judge Edward John Davila will not force them to pay $803,840,309 in damages. Her defense team argues that the court should decline to issue a refund, saying the government has “no basis in fact or law to conclude that the criminal conduct was the proximate cause of the alleged investor losses.” “.

Do you have a tip we should know? [email protected]