Jurors Begin Deliberations in Elizabeth Holmes' Silicon Valley Fraud Trial
A federal jury starts deliberating the fate of former tech CEO Elizabeth Holmes after a 15-week trial examining whether she intentionally defrauded investors. The verdict hinges on deciding if she is a calculated scam artist or an overwhelmed entrepreneur.
A federal jury begins deliberations to decide the fate of former Silicon Valley star Elizabeth Holmes after sitting through a 15-week fraud trial. The eight men and four women on the jury weigh whether Holmes acts as a callous scam artist or a tech visionary who simply gets in over her head. Her legacy and freedom hang in the balance as the group shares their opinions for the first time.
Prosecutors argue that Holmes intentionally lies about what her blood-testing startup Theranos can accomplish in order to drum up investment and build a $9 billion operation. They state she promises the technology processes hundreds of tests when it really only scans for about a dozen, choosing fraud over business failure. Holmes' lawyer presents a dizzying number of defenses to make her story appear more tangled than the government portrays.
The outcome relies heavily on how the jury interprets Holmes' own seven days of testimony on the witness stand. Deliberations conclude only when the jury reaches a unanimous verdict, a process that takes hours or drags on for weeks. If the jurors fail to reach a consensus, the judge declares a mistrial.