Elizabeth Holmes asks U.S. President Donald Trump to let her out of prison early

Disgraced Theranos CEO Elizabeth Holmes, center, is escorted by prison officials into a federal women's prison camp, May 30, 2023, in Bryan, Texas. (AP Photo/Michael Wyke, File)

Elizabeth Holmes, the disgraced Theranos CEO, has asked President Donald Trump for an early release from prison after being convicted of defrauding investors, according to a request filed last year with the Department of Justice.

Holmes was convicted in 2022 and reported to a federal prison in Texas in 2023 to serve out her 11-year sentence, which is currently set to end in December 2031. Holmes’ request to commute her sentence, if granted, could see her released nearly six years early.

Last year, a U.S. appeals court upheld the convictions of Holmes and Theranos President Ramesh “Sunny” Balwani. It also upheld the US$452 million in restitution that Holmes and Balwani were ordered to pay to victims.

Holmes started Theranos, once valued at $9 billion, as a college student and quickly became one of the most well known women in Silicon Valley thanks to her promise to upend the healthcare industry. Theranos claimed its technology could accurately and efficiently test for conditions like cancer and diabetes with just a few drops of blood. It attracted $945 million in financing, a board of well-known political figures and prominent retail partners.

But a Wall Street Journal investigation called into question the company’s testing methods and the capabilities of its technology. In 2018, Holmes and Balwani were each charged with a dozen counts of wire fraud and conspiracy to commit wire fraud. Both pleaded not guilty.

Holmes, 41, is currently serving out her sentence at Federal Prison Camp Bryan, a minimum security federal prison camp approximately 100 miles from Houston.

The White House does not comment on clemency requests, and the final decision on any pardons or commutations rests with the president, a White House official told CNN. Attorneys for Holmes could not be immediately reached for comment.

In recent months, Holmes has gained renewed attention online after posts again began appearing on her X account, including a recent post lauding Trump’s health care affordability efforts. The Holmes account, which also features posts about Holmes’ husband, children and activities in prison, notes that posts are “mostly my words, posted by others.” It’s not clear who is managing the account.

“We are continuing to fight for my innocence and we know the truth can not be repressed for ever (sic),” Holmes’ account posted Wednesday evening.

Trump has made a number of high-profile pardons during his second term, including Binance founder Changpeng Zhao, who pleaded guilty to a money laundering charge in 2023, and Ross Ulbricht, who had been serving a life sentence for creating the Silk Road dark web marketplace.