A federal judge on Friday sentenced former technology executive and founder of Theranos, Elizabeth Holmes, to 11 years and three months in prison for defrauding investors in her now-defunct blood testing startup, which was once valued at $9 billion.
U.S. District Judge Edward Davila in San Jose, California, sentenced Holmes (38) on three counts of investor fraud and one count of conspiracy, after a jury convicted her last January in a trial that lasted three months. The prosecution had recommended a 15-year prison sentence, while the defense urged the judge not to impose any prison time.
During the sentencing hearing, Holmes cried and said she was devastated by her failures, that she would have done many things differently if given the chance, and that she feels “deep shame for what people went through because I betrayed them.”
Judge Davila stated that this is ‘a case of fraud in which an exciting venture began with great expectations only to be shattered by untruths, false representations, sheer hubris, and lies.’
Holmes’ attorneys are expected to ask the judge to allow her to remain free on bail during the planned appeal and will appeal the judge’s decision to uphold the jury’s conviction against Holmes, as well as her sentence to the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals based in San Francisco.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Jeff Schenk told Davila during the hearing that a 15-year sentence would send a message that the ends do not justify the means.
