Disgraced Theranos CEO and tech billionaire Elizabeth Holmes will not be sent to prison, yet.
Holmes, who was scheduled to turn herself in to prison authorities Thursday, scored a delay after her appeal was accepted by the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals.
Her co-defendant, Ramesh Balwani, also secured a postponement of his prison sentence due to a similar appeal. It is not clear when the court will rule on Holmes’ plea.
Holmes’ extended freedom comes after U.S. District Judge Edward Davila this month ruled her appeals lacked any ”substantial questions of law or fact” and denied her ability to stay out on bail during her plea.
Last January, Holmes was convicted on several fraud charges and sentenced to 11 years in federal prison. Her trial was delayed many months due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
As CEO of blood testing tech company Theranos, Holmes deliberately misled investors, customers and the media for years. She claimed that the company’s new machines could test for hundreds of diseases in only a small drop of blood. Her claims made her one of the most popular figures in the tech world.
However, the machines were temperamental and often produced mixed results. Holmes used third-party machines to test customers’ blood and did not inform investors or customers.
• Vaughn Cockayne can be reached at vcockayne@washingtontimes.com.
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