Prosecutors Push Elizabeth Holmes of Theranos to Take Responsibility
The New York Times
Under cross-examination, the founder of the failed blood testing start-up defended herself but admitted that she had made mistakes.
SAN JOSE, Calif. — For four days, Elizabeth Holmes took the stand to blame others for the alleged fraud at her blood testing start-up, Theranos. On the fifth day, prosecutors tried making one thing clear: She knew.
Over more than five hours of cross-examination on Tuesday, Robert Leach, the assistant U.S. attorney and lead prosecutor for the case, pointed to text messages, notes and emails with Ms. Holmes — and with her business partner and former boyfriend, Ramesh Balwani — discussing problems with Theranos’s business and technology. Mr. Leach had a common refrain: No one hid anything from Ms. Holmes. As Theranos’s chief executive, he argued, she was to blame.
“Anything that happens at the company was your responsibility at the end of the day?” Mr. Leach asked.