Disgraced Theranos founder Elizabeth Holmes has formally requested the Trump administration to commute her prison sentence. This information was confirmed by the U.S. Justice Department’s Office of the Pardon Attorney. Holmes, currently 41 years old, faces nearly six years in prison following her conviction for defrauding investors with misleading claims regarding her company’s blood-testing technology.
The request for commutation was submitted in 2025 and is presently under review, as indicated on the Office of the Pardon Attorney’s official website. While the status of the request is noted as “pending,” the website states that specific details about the review process cannot be disclosed.
Holmes is slated for release on December 30, 2031, as per the Federal Bureau of Prisons’ records. She had previously attempted to postpone her incarceration after being found guilty of investor fraud and conspiracy in 2022. An appeals court upheld her convictions and sentences last year, along with a restitution order of $452 million for Holmes and her former business partner, Ramesh “Sunny” Balwani, who also faced similar charges.
The appeals court rejected arguments made by Holmes and Balwani that claimed legal errors occurred during their trials, asserting that any potential mistakes were inconsequential. The three-judge panel concluded that their claims did not adequately demonstrate any violation of constitutional rights.
As part of their appeal, Holmes and Balwani contested the restitution amount, arguing that it should not have been based on the total investments made by the victims. The panel affirmed the lower court’s decision, stating that the victims’ actual losses corresponded to the total amounts they invested.
Holmes’ case has attracted considerable attention, not only due to the high-profile nature of the trial but also because it raises significant questions about ethics and accountability in the tech and startup sectors. As her request for a commutation is reviewed, it remains to be seen how this aspect of her legal journey will unfold.
