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SAN Disgraced Theranos CEO Elizabeth Holmes on Friday made what might be her final court appearance before beginning a 11-year prison sentence, unless a judge grants her request to remain free while her lawyers appeal her conviction for masterminding a blood-testing hoax.
The 90-minute hearing came four months after Holmes’ last court hearing. That was when U.S. District Judge Edward Davila sentenced her for duping investors in Theranos, a startup she founded 20 years ago and rode to fleeting fame and fortune on her promises of a revolutionary blood-testing technology.
Before the hearing started, a man in the audience in the San Jose, California, courtroom tried to approach the table where Holmes was sitting while carrying a document in his hand. He was quickly intercepted by security officers who forcibly removed him. Holmes didn’t appear flustered by the disruption.
The proceedings ended without a determination whether Holmes, 39, will be able to stay out of prison while her appeal unfolds or have surrender to authorities on April 27, as currently scheduled. Davila said he hopes to issue his ruling in early April.
The judge earlier this month rejected a similar bid to avoid prison made by Holmes’ former lover and convicted Theranos accomplice, Ramesh “Sunny” Balwani, who is facing a nearly 13-year sentence after a jury found him guilty of 12 counts of fraud and conspiracy.
