© Reuters. FILE PHOTO: Former Theranos CEO Elizabeth Holmes leaves after a listening to at a federal court docket in San Jose, California, July 17, U.S., 2019. REUTERS/Stephen Lam/File Photograph
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By Jody Godoy
SAN JOSE (Reuters) – Theranos founder Elizabeth Holmes’ claims that she was abused by the corporate’s chief working officer, who on the time was her boyfriend, might complicate jury choice in her extremely anticipated fraud trial, authorized specialists stated.
The in-person questioning of potential jurors, as much as roughly 170, is anticipated to start on Tuesday in federal court docket in San Jose, California.
Holmes, 37, has pleaded not responsible to defrauding Theranos traders and sufferers by falsely claiming that the corporate had developed know-how to run a variety of checks on a single drop of blood.
Identified for dressing in a Steve Jobs-style black turtleneck, Holmes herself has lengthy been an object of fascination in Silicon Valley.
The meteoric rise and spectacular fall of Theranos turned Holmes from a younger billionaire to a defendant who might face years in jail if convicted.
Her legal professionals have stated she could make the bizarre transfer of taking the stand in her personal protection, one thing that the majority defendants select to not do as a result of it opens them as much as cross-examination by prosecutors.
Court docket papers submitted greater than 18 months in the past and unsealed late Friday revealed that Holmes had accused former Theranos COO Ramesh “Sunny” Balwani of psychological and sexual abuse.
Holmes’ legal professionals stated her “deference” to Balwani led her to consider allegedly false statements about elements of Theranos that he managed, together with a declare a few partnership with drugstore chain Walgreens.
The legal professionals informed U.S. District Decide Edward Davila, who’s overseeing the case, final 12 months that Holmes was “extremely possible” to testify about these claims, court docket papers present.
Balwani denied allegations of abuse in a 2019 court docket submitting. He’s scheduled to be tried on fraud fees associated to Theranos after the tip of Holmes’ trial.
Legal professionals for Holmes and Balwani didn’t instantly return requests for touch upon Monday.
Earlier than coming to court docket, 200 potential jurors stuffed out questionnaires about their familiarity with Holmes, who has been the topic of two books, two documentaries and a podcast. Thirty-three potential jurors have been excused final week, together with some who admitted bias.
Christina Marinakis, a jury guide with IMS, a supplier of skilled and litigation consulting providers, stated prosecutors and Holmes’ legal professionals have possible combed by way of potential jurors’ social media posts for his or her views about abuse, since they typically “don’t love to speak about this stuff in open court docket.”
Marinakis stated jurors could also be reluctant to confess to an inclination to view a declare of abuse as an “excuse” for Holmes’ conduct.
“They could concern they will be checked out as misogynists,” she stated.
Holmes was 18 years previous when she met Balwani, who’s 20 years older than her, and began residing with him round three years later, in line with “Dangerous Blood,” Wall Avenue Journal reporter John Carreyrou’s best-selling guide on the Theranos saga. The guide chronicles the rise and fall of the corporate Holmes began at age 19, concluding that she was a “manipulator” whose “ethical compass was badly askew.”
Tracy Farrell, a jury guide who has labored on sexual assault circumstances involving clergy, stated Holmes’ legal professionals could favor youthful jurors, particularly girls, who would possibly query any try by prosecutors to point out the abuse protection as “simply one other con.”
“It creates a sort of dissonance for girls,” Farrell stated. “We need to consider them.”
Marc Agnifilo, a New York lawyer, stated Holmes’ case had some parallels with that of Martin Shkreli, a former shopper discovered responsible in 2017 of bilking traders in his hedge funds.
Earlier than his trial, Shkreli gained notoriety for mountain climbing the worth of Daraprim, a drug that treats life-threatening parasitic infections, by greater than 4000% in at some point.
Shkreli “impressed this visceral detrimental response that was fairly difficult to maintain out of the jury,” Agnifilo stated.
Holmes’ legal professionals, he stated, ought to search out “sensible, open-minded jurors [who] will not be simply going to purchase into the federal government’s view of the details.”
