Defense team rests in Elizabeth Holmes fraud trial

By MICHAEL LIEDTKE

SAN JOSE, Calif. (AP) — Fallen entrepreneur Elizabeth Holmes has finished her effort to transportation a assemblage that she suffered lapses successful concern judgement but ne'er engaged successful fraud portion moving blood-testing startup Theranos.

Her defence lawyers rested their lawsuit Wednesday soon aft she walked disconnected the witnesser stand.

That gave Holmes the last accidental among the much than 30 witnesses who testified successful a high-profile proceedings that began 3 months agone one n the bosom of Silicon Valley. It’s the aforesaid locale wherever Holmes became a media sensation earlier Theranos collapsed successful ruins amid grounds that its ballyhooed blood-testing exertion was dangerously flawed.

U.S. District Judge Edward Davila recessed the proceedings for a week to let clip for refining the instructions to the assemblage successful a analyzable lawsuit what began 3 1/2 years agone with Holmes’ indictment connected aggregate counts of fraud. If convicted, she could beryllium sentenced 20 years successful prison.

Closing arguments are scheduled for Dec. 16-17. Depending connected the duration of those arguments, the assemblage could get the lawsuit precocious successful the time of Dec. 17 and proceed deliberations during the week of Dec. 20.

The abrupt extremity of the defense’s lawsuit came arsenic somewhat of a surprise. Holmes’ lawyers had indicated that they mightiness telephone connected a scientist to sermon the allegations of affectional and intersexual maltreatment Holmes, 37, had raised earlier successful her grounds against her erstwhile person and concern partner, Sunny Balwani, 56. Holmes was conscionable 1 of the 3 witnesses to attest for the defense, but she spent much than 25 hours connected the basal since she was sworn Nov. 19.

The determination to fto Holmes herself person the past connection was an denotation that her lawyers believed she did a compelling occupation telling her story, said David Ring, an lawyer who has represented victims of alleged intersexual maltreatment and has been pursuing the proceedings closely.

“You privation to extremity connected a bully note, and it sounded similar they felt similar she was their champion witness,” Ring said. “You besides don’t privation to hazard having a batch of intelligence gobbly goop get into the jury’s minds, truthful you tin extremity with a bang, not a whimper.”

Holmes, Theranos’ CEO for 15 years, spent immoderate much clip Wednesday blaming Balwani for neglecting to hole the blood-testing problems that helium had told her helium would code arsenic the company’s main operating serviceman and her astir trusted adviser.

She besides made it wide that Balwani was a volatile antheral who she tried not to “ignite” whenever helium would “blow disconnected steam done texts.” She besides emphasized she wasn’t liable for each the cardinal decisions astatine Theranos from 2010 until she dumped Balwani successful 2016.

That six-year agelong spanned a play erstwhile Holmes was the taxable of flattering articles portraying her arsenic a tech visionary. But a bid of explosive articles published successful The Wall Street Journal opening successful precocious 2015 revealed that Theranos’ blood-tests were producing faulty results that misled doctors and patients. John Carreyrou, the newsman who wrote those pivotal stories, sat successful the backmost of a packed San Jose, California, courtroom passim Holmes’ testimony.

Before Theranos melted down, Holmes and Balwani raised much than $900 cardinal from a database of billionaire investors that included media mogul Rupert Murdoch and the Walton household down Walmart. That portion assembling a committee of directors that included erstwhile Cabinet members ranging from the Nixon to Trump administrations.

Jeffrey Coopersmith, Balwani’s attorney, has vehemently denied Holmes’ attempts to blasted him for Theranos’ downfall, arsenic good arsenic the allegations of spouse abuse. He told Davila that Balwani would workout his Fifth Amendment close against self-incrimination if helium were called to attest during Holmes’ trial. Balwani is facing akin fraud charges successful a proceedings scheduled to commencement adjacent month.

But earlier that play begins, a assemblage of 10 men and 4 women, including 2 alternates, volition yet get their accidental to find if Holmes volition beryllium branded arsenic a crook, alternatively of Silicon Valley sensation who revolutionized wellness attraction arsenic she acceptable retired to bash successful 2003 erstwhile she dropped retired of Stanford University to recovered Theranos.

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This communicative has been corrected to bespeak the closing arguments are scheduled for Dec. 16-17, alternatively of Dec. 15-16.