A U.S. judge on Monday denied Theranos founder Elizabeth Holmes‘ request to remain free on bail while she appeals her conviction on charges of defrauding investors in the failed blood-testing startup that was once valued at $9 billion. Holmes rose to fame with her startup Theranos, claiming that small machines could run diagnostic tests with just a few drops of blood. She was sentenced to 11 years and three months in prison in November 2022.
Holmes asked the Court to postpone the sentence while the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals reviews her case. However, Judge Edward Davila concluded that even if Holmes won her appeal to challenge the Theranos technology evidence, it wouldn’t result in a reversal or a new trial of all the counts she was found guilty of.
The ruling says that “even though Ms. Holmes has presented clear and convincing evidence that she would not flee, the Court does not find that she has raised a “substantial question of law or fact” that is “likely to result in reversal or an order for a new trial of all counts.”
“Contrary to her suggestion that accuracy and reliability were central issues to her convictions, Ms. Holmes’s misrepresentations to Theranos investors involved more than just whether Theranos technology worked as promised,” he said. While denying the release appeal, the Judge noted that Holmes was unlikely to flee or endanger the community.
Elizabeth Holmes has been ordered to begin serving her sentence on April 27.
