By Staff Writer
On Thursday, NBC Bay Area’s Scott Budman reported that the prosecution in the Elizabeth Holmes trial started the day by focusing on the faulty Theranos testing machines. Jurors listened intently to powerful testimony as Erin Tompkins of Arizona explained how she was told by a Theranos test that she had tested positive for HIV antibodies, which she later found out was incorrect.
Another witness, Dr. Mark Burnes, testified about one of his patients that took a Theranos test, which wrongly detected prostate cancer.
Esquire Digital’s chief legal analyst, Aron Solomon, commented: “This is going to resonate far more with the jury, rather than sad tales of billionaires who lost a couple of millions of dollars investing in a company.”
Following the incredibly personal testimony, journalist Roger Parloff, who wrote a Fortune magazine cover story on Elizabeth Holmes, took the stand. The jury heard recorded interviews between Parloff and Holmes, which Solomon believes could cause a problem if Holmes chooses to take the stand in her own defense.
“I think it’s a very, very dangerous gambit on behalf of the defense, because if the jury is sitting there and they see such a duality between Elizabeth Holmes as the persona, as the start-up co-founder and Elizabeth Holmes the person – that’s very close to seeing someone as a fraud.”
Budman concluded his coverage by saying that now, three months into the trial, the prosecution says it’s on the verge of wrapping up things on their side of the case, allowing the defense to soon take over. “Which means, we will soon get an answer to the question I’ve been asked 5,000 times: will Elizabeth Holmes herself actually testify?”
Watch the full report below: