The start of former Theranos CEO Elizabeth Holmes’ 11-year prison sentence has been automatically delayed after she appealed a lower court’s decision earlier this month to deny her release as she appeals her original fraud conviction.
The Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals’ stay of Holmes’ prison term Thursday came after Holmes sought to overturn District Court Judge Edward Davila’s April 11 decision to reject her plea for release.
Holmes was slated to report to a minimum-security prison Thursday near Houston.
In a filing Wednesday, Holmes’ lawyers state Davila’s decision to reject her release contained “numerous, inexplicable errors,” including references to “patient fraud convictions,” even though the jury acquitted Holmes on those counts.
Holmes was convicted in January 2022 of four counts of wire fraud charges. In November, she was sentenced to more than 11 years in a federal penitentiary.
While Tuesday’s motion keeps Holmes out of prison for now, it may only be a brief reprieve. Holmes’ mentor and former boyfriend Ramesh “Sunny” Balwani, convicted in a separate trial last year, also sought to remain free pending his appeal, and he appealed to the Ninth Circuit when Davila denied his motion.
But the appeals court turned down his request within 3 weeks. Last week, Balwani, 57, reported to a low-security federal prison in Los Angeles to begin serving his nearly 13-year sentence.
The government will have until May 3 to respond to Holmes’ latest motion.
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