SAN JOSE, Calif. — The fourth week of the fraud trial of Theranos founder Elizabeth Holmes lacked star power, but jurors got their most detailed look yet at how medical tests from the failed blood-testing start-up were plagued with inaccuracies.
In the trial’s first few weeks, several high-profile witnesses testified in the government’s case against Ms. Holmes, who had founded Theranos and built it into a $9 billion company before it spectacularly imploded. (She now faces 12 counts of wire fraud and conspiracy to commit wire fraud.) The star witnesses included Erika Cheung, a former Theranos employee turned whistle-blower, and former Defense Secretary James Mattis, who once sat on Theranos’s board.
But this week, jurors mainly heard intricate technical accounts of the problems with Theranos’s blood tests. Just two witnesses, both scientists, testified as prosecutors sought to show that Ms. Holmes had intentionally misled investors and others on her start-up’s track record.
Here are three takeaways from the week.
A Theranos lab director emerged as key for the prosecution.
Dr. Adam Rosendorff, who joined Theranos as a lab director in April 2013 before leaving the company in 2014, began his testimony last week and was still going on Friday. His four days on the stand so far have been the longest of any witness in the trial. He will resume on Tuesday.
His testimony stood out because of his senior position in Theranos’s lab. While previous witnesses, including Ms. Cheung, also testified to Theranos’s failed tests, Dr. Rosendorff provided greater detail about the range of problems — including how one test was so inaccurate it had “lost any diagnostic value” — and patient complaints.
He also had access to Ms. Holmes and said she had been aware of his concerns but pressed forward with Theranos’s commercial launch anyway.
In his testimony, Dr. Rosendorff said he became increasingly uncomfortable with the failure rate of Theranos’s blood-testing machines and the volume of physician complaints about inaccurate test results before ultimately quitting.
“The company was more about P.R. and fund-raising than patient care,” he said.
John Carreyrou, who exposed Theranos’s problems in 2015 while he was at The Wall Street Journal, revealed on Tuesday that Dr. Rosendorff was his “first and most important source” in breaking the story.
“Hats off to his courage and integrity,” Mr. Carreyrou wrote on Twitter.
Who’s Who in the Elizabeth Holmes Trial
Who’s Who in the Elizabeth Holmes Trial
Elizabeth Holmes, the disgraced founder of the blood testing start-up Theranos, stands trial for two counts of conspiracy to commit wire fraud and 10 counts of wire fraud.
Here are some of the key figures in the case →
Who’s Who in the Elizabeth Holmes Trial
Holmes founded Theranos in 2003 as a 19-year-old Stanford dropout. She raised $700 million from investors and was crowned the world’s youngest billionaire, but has been accused of lying about how well Theranos’s technology worked. She has pleaded not guilty.
Who’s Who in the Elizabeth Holmes Trial
Ramesh Balwani, known as Sunny, was Theranos’s president and chief operating officer from 2009 through 2016 and was in a romantic relationship with Holmes. He has also been accused of fraud and may stand trial next year. He has pleaded not guilty.
Who’s Who in the Elizabeth Holmes Trial
David Boies, a prominent litigator, represented Theranos as its lawyer and served on its board.
He tried to shut down whistle-blowers and reporters who questioned the company’s business practices.
Who’s Who in the Elizabeth Holmes Trial
The journalist John Carreyrou wrote stories exposing fraudulent practices at Theranos.
His coverage for The Wall Street Journal helped lead to the implosion of Theranos.
Who’s Who in the Elizabeth Holmes Trial
Tyler Shultz and Erika Cheung are former Theranos employees and were whistle-blowers. They worked at the start-up in 2013 and 2014.
Shultz is a grandson of George Shultz, a former secretary of state who was on the Theranos board.
Who’s Who in the Elizabeth Holmes Trial
James Mattis, a retired four-star general, was a member of Theranos’s board.
He went on to serve as President Donald J. Trump’s secretary of defense.
Who’s Who in the Elizabeth Holmes Trial
Edward Davila, a federal judge for the Northern District of California, will oversee the case.
Kevin Downey, a partner at the Washington law firm Williams & Connolly, is the lead lawyer for Holmes.
Robert Leach, an assistant United States attorney for the Northern District of California, will lead the prosecution for the government, along with other prosecutors from the U.S. attorney’s office.
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