Elizabeth Holmes, the former biotech star who was sentenced to 11 years in prison for defrauding investors with her Silicon Valley start-up Theranos, will not be going to prison for the time being, as her lawyers have lodged a last-minute appeal to avoid starting her sentence.
The appeal was filed after her request to remain free pending her appeal was refused earlier this month. Holmes was found guilty of duping investors into believing that she had developed a revolutionary medical device that could carry out a wide range of medical diagnostics with just a few drops of blood.
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Her company, Theranos, flamed out after a Wall Street Journal investigation into the validity of the tests. Holmes had a child shortly before her trial and has had a second since her conviction. Her ex-boyfriend and top aide at Theranos, Ramesh “Sunny” Balwani, was also convicted and is slated to serve nearly 13 years in prison for his role in the fraud.
