What was Elizabeth Holmes’ sentence? Can she avoid prison after having her second baby?

Convicted fraudster Elizabeth Holmes has submitted a court request to remain out of prison for the duration of her appeal, owing to the fact that she recently gave birth to her second child.

The 39-year-old had a one-year-old son and was expecting another child when she was sentenced to 135 months in prison last November. Holmes was found guilty of having defrauded investors in relation to her failed blood testing start-up.

The requested made by her legal team calls for Holmes to be allowed to remain out of prison while the courts consider her appeal.

Holmes claims she will be successful in appeal

The founder of Theranos has maintained her innocence throughout the court process and continues to fight the conviction in the appeals court. Her legal team claims that the conviction was the result of a number of mistakes during the trial, which will allow them to overturn decision on appeal.

With this in mind Holmes’ lawyers are calling for a delay to her prison sentence for the duration of the appeals process.

In the course of issuing the request her team have emphasised Holmes’ good behaviour while being free on bail for the past four years. They claim that she does not represent a flight risk and so should be allowed to remain free until the appeal is settled.

Will Elizabeth Holmes have to go to prison?

The request for a leave from prison was filed with the US District Court for the Northern District of California on 23 February and a decision has not yet been handed down. Holmes’ unblemished record while on bail previously was cited as a reason for the allowance in the court documents.

Her legal team claimed that Holmes is “highly motivated to continue complying with her conditions of release so that she can work with her lawyers while she pursues her appeal”.

Federal prosecutors have claimed that Holmes is a flight risk. In January 2022 she bought a one-way plane ticket to Mexico, scheduled just three weeks after she was convicted on fraud and conspiracy charges.

However she has maintained that the tickets were purchased to attend a friend’s wedding in Mexico and that she cancelled the trip as soon as prosecutors informed her lawyers of the “unauthorized flight”.

Holmes’ appeal is scheduled for 17 March, meaning that a ruling on her request to remain out of prison is expected in the coming days.