Elizabeth Holmes (ex-head of Theranos) has been delayed in her sentencing while a judge reviews whether testimony from a key witness at her high profile trial was truthful.
Holmes demanded a new trial, alleging that federal prosecutors had presented false evidence.
She was convicted in January of four of the eleven charges of defrauding investors at the company that tests blood.
This latest twist is in an ongoing case that has gripped Silicon Valley.
Court papers reveal that Holmes filed the “motion for a new trial” in behalf of Adam Rosendorff, ex-director at Theranos Laboratory.
Holmes lawyers claimed that Rosendorff visited Holmes’ house in August to express regret over his testimony.
This latest development comes after her lawyers failed to reverse the conviction last month.
Holmes was released on bail and is due to be sentenced on 17 October.
Holmes was convicted by a jury in California on January 1, after a lengthy and difficult trial.
She was convicted of conspiracy against investors fraud, wire fraud, and other charges.
Holmes was accused of lying about the technology that could detect diabetes and cancer using just a few drops of blood. The company claimed it would revolutionize healthcare.
The Wall Street Journal exposed these claims in 2015. The Wall Street Journal exposed these claims in 2015.
Her ex-boyfriend, former Theranos President Ramesh Balwani, was found guilty in July of similar charges and defrauding patients.
Theranos was once valued at $9bn (PS7.9bn in its peak) and was the darling Silicon Valley biotech.
received funding of more than $900m from billionaires, including Rupert Murdoch (a media mogul) and Larry Ellison (a technology mogul).
The post-trial
The post-trial hearing further prolongs the spectacle-laden criminal-fraud saga that began to play out in court with a jury trial over a year ago. Holmes was charged with 11 counts of wire fraud and conspiracy for running a yearslong scheme at Theranos, the defunct blood-testing startup she founded and ran as chief executive until 2018. In January, a jury convicted her on four counts of fraud for deceiving investors. Her one-time business and romantic partner, former Theranos President Ramesh “Sunny” Balwani, was convicted of 12 fraud counts in July. He is set to be sentenced in November.
The post-trial hearing further prolongs the spectacle-laden criminal-fraud saga that began to play out in court with a jury trial over a year ago. Ms. Holmes was charged with 11 counts of wire fraud and conspiracy for running a yearslong scheme at Theranos, the defunct blood-testing startup she founded and ran as chief executive until 2018. In January, a jury convicted her on four counts of fraud for deceiving investors. Her one-time business and romantic partner, former Theranos President Ramesh “Sunny” Balwani, was convicted of 12 fraud counts in July. He is set to be sentenced in November.
Ms. Holmes’s attorneys
According to a court filing from Ms. Holmes’s attorneys, Dr. Rosendorff showed up at her house unannounced on Aug. 8 and spoke to Ms. Holmes’s partner, Billy Evans. During that exchange, Dr. Rosendorff told Mr. Evans that the government had twisted his testimony, and that he “tried to answer the questions honestly” during the trial, but that the government made things sound worse than they were, according to the filing.
The judge in the Theranos case said it was “unusual” for a witness to appear at a defendant’s home after a trial, CNN reported. “I will say I haven’t seen a case where this happened before,” he said.
After Holmes used Rosendorff’s appearance at her home to request a new trial, the former lab director filed a sworn declaration with prosecutors stating he stands by his testimony “in every respect”.
“Nevertheless, I feel compassion for Ms Holmes and Mr Balwani, and even more so for the members of their families who were not responsible for their conduct but will be affected by the punishment they may receive,” he wrote.
