[BostonCard]

https://www.wsj.com/articles/u-s-files-c...malertNEWS

I suppose it was bound to happen sometime; there's only so much fraud you can perpetuate and have exposed before the fed has enough.

Ms. Holmes, 34 years old, and Mr. Balwani, 53, were each charged with two counts of conspiracy to commit wire fraud and nine counts of wire fraud in an indictment handed up Thursday and unsealed Friday. If convicted, they each face a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison and a fine of $250,000, plus restitution to those found to have been defrauded, on each count.

By and large my experience has been that Stanford is a great place and most of the people that I have met and known from there are wonderful. And yet...

BC

[BostonCard]

https://www.wsj.com/articles/u-s-files-c...malertNEWS

I suppose it was bound to happen sometime; there's only so much fraud you can perpetuate and have exposed before the fed has enough.

Ms. Holmes, 34 years old, and Mr. Balwani, 53, were each charged with two counts of conspiracy to commit wire fraud and nine counts of wire fraud in an indictment handed up Thursday and unsealed Friday. If convicted, they each face a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison and a fine of $250,000, plus restitution to those found to have been defrauded, on each count.

By and large my experience has been that Stanford is a great place and most of the people that I have met and known from there are wonderful. And yet...

BC

[2006alum]

That makes three of my fellow class of 2006 alums who have been criminally indicted for white collar fraud... Though she didn't graduate, so maybe she only counts half?

[2006alum]

That makes three of my fellow class of 2006 alums who have been criminally indicted for white collar fraud... Though she didn't graduate, so maybe she only counts half?

[BostonCard]

Imagine how Georgetown class of 1971 alums feel today.

BC

[BostonCard]

Imagine how Georgetown class of 1971 alums feel today.

BC

[wallendar]

That makes three of my fellow class of 2006 alums who have been criminally indicted for white collar fraud... Though she didn't graduate, so maybe she only counts half?

Yep, she is referenced in the article as a Stanford dropout.  No need to count her in your class....

[wallendar]

That makes three of my fellow class of 2006 alums who have been criminally indicted for white collar fraud... Though she didn't graduate, so maybe she only counts half?

Yep, she is referenced in the article as a Stanford dropout.  No need to count her in your class....

[82lsju]

I just finished reading “Bad Blood”, if it is even vaguely accurate in describing what it was like to be at Theranos it was an incredibly toxic place to work. The fraud there was long and on-going.  Both Holmes and Balwani belong in prison.

[82lsju]

I just finished reading “Bad Blood”, if it is even vaguely accurate in describing what it was like to be at Theranos it was an incredibly toxic place to work. The fraud there was long and on-going.  Both Holmes and Balwani belong in prison.

[akiddoc]

My guess is that the enterprise began with an idea that seemed legitimate, but when the business turned out to be unworkable, no one, especially Holmes, was able to admit defeat. Things went into the side of criminal activity at that point.

[akiddoc]

My guess is that the enterprise began with an idea that seemed legitimate, but when the business turned out to be unworkable, no one, especially Holmes, was able to admit defeat. Things went into the side of criminal activity at that point.

[82lsju]

My guess is that the enterprise began with an idea that seemed legitimate, but when the business turned out to be unworkable, no one, especially Holmes, was able to admit defeat. Things went into the side of criminal activity at that point.

I’m sure it did.  From the book things started going really off the rails 5-10 years  ago, depending on how charitable you want to be.  I have worked for/with some real jerks in my time, none held a candle to Holmes and Balwani.

You might find the details on their lab operations en your background as a doctor.  The claimed reason for many who spoke out to the WSJ reporter was to protect patients from tests that were very inaccurate

[82lsju]

My guess is that the enterprise began with an idea that seemed legitimate, but when the business turned out to be unworkable, no one, especially Holmes, was able to admit defeat. Things went into the side of criminal activity at that point.

I’m sure it did.  From the book things started going really off the rails 5-10 years  ago, depending on how charitable you want to be.  I have worked for/with some real jerks in my time, none held a candle to Holmes and Balwani.

You might find the details on their lab operations en your background as a doctor.  The claimed reason for many who spoke out to the WSJ reporter was to protect patients from tests that were very inaccurate

[JohnR34232]

My guess is that the enterprise began with an idea that seemed legitimate, but when the business turned out to be unworkable, no one, especially Holmes, was able to admit defeat. Things went into the side of criminal activity at that point.

I’m sure it did.  From the book things started going really off the rails 5-10 years  ago, depending on how charitable you want to be.  I have worked for/with some real jerks in my time, none held a candle to Holmes and Balwani.

You might find the details on their lab operations en your background as a doctor.  The claimed reason for many who spoke out to the WSJ reporter was to protect patients from tests that were very inaccurate

Yeah, I've worked with people like that, too. Their egos will not allow them to admit they are doing anything but a superb job, so when things go south they start fudging things. The situation goes from bad to worse.
Reminds me of why I don't particularly miss working in Silicon Valley.

[JohnR34232]

My guess is that the enterprise began with an idea that seemed legitimate, but when the business turned out to be unworkable, no one, especially Holmes, was able to admit defeat. Things went into the side of criminal activity at that point.

I’m sure it did.  From the book things started going really off the rails 5-10 years  ago, depending on how charitable you want to be.  I have worked for/with some real jerks in my time, none held a candle to Holmes and Balwani.

You might find the details on their lab operations en your background as a doctor.  The claimed reason for many who spoke out to the WSJ reporter was to protect patients from tests that were very inaccurate

Yeah, I've worked with people like that, too. Their egos will not allow them to admit they are doing anything but a superb job, so when things go south they start fudging things. The situation goes from bad to worse.
Reminds me of why I don't particularly miss working in Silicon Valley.

[burger]

Stanford alums can take a tiny bit of consolation from the fact that Balwani has an MBA from Cal (UT Austin undergrad).

[burger]

Stanford alums can take a tiny bit of consolation from the fact that Balwani has an MBA from Cal (UT Austin undergrad).

[2006alum]

Hah! I am generally of the view that while institutions may shape people, the people much more collectively constitute the institution (see, e.g., recent scandals at U$C).

Holmes clearly embodies a bit of the entitled, of course-I-can-change-the-world-myself attitude I've found more common in Stanford alums than in peer alums from East Coast undergraduate institutions. We want to skip all steps, rules, and conventions, and change things directly ourselves. But that is no more or less true than that Andrew Luck, Nneka Ogwumike, or Katie Ledecky are representative of the part of Stanford's alumni culture that is down-to-earth, quiet, well spoken, and mild-mannered all while being totally precedent setting and world destroying, and such talent coming from our peer institutions almost always manifests itself with far more arrogance, vanity, and self-congratulation. So I suppose you take the good with the bad.

[2006alum]

Hah! I am generally of the view that while institutions may shape people, the people much more collectively constitute the institution (see, e.g., recent scandals at U$C).

Holmes clearly embodies a bit of the entitled, of course-I-can-change-the-world-myself attitude I've found more common in Stanford alums than in peer alums from East Coast undergraduate institutions. We want to skip all steps, rules, and conventions, and change things directly ourselves. But that is no more or less true than that Andrew Luck, Nneka Ogwumike, or Katie Ledecky are representative of the part of Stanford's alumni culture that is down-to-earth, quiet, well spoken, and mild-mannered all while being totally precedent setting and world destroying, and such talent coming from our peer institutions almost always manifests itself with far more arrogance, vanity, and self-congratulation. So I suppose you take the good with the bad.

[BostonCard]

Stanford alums can take a tiny bit of consolation from the fact that Balwani has an MBA from Cal (UT Austin undergrad).

Great!  My wife was a Stanford undergrad and has an MBA from Haas (Cal's Business School).  Thankfully, no affiliation with Theranos.

BC

[BostonCard]

Stanford alums can take a tiny bit of consolation from the fact that Balwani has an MBA from Cal (UT Austin undergrad).

Great!  My wife was a Stanford undergrad and has an MBA from Haas (Cal's Business School).  Thankfully, no affiliation with Theranos.

BC

[chrisk]

She got support from Stanford stalwarts George Schultz and Channing Robertson.

[chrisk]

She got support from Stanford stalwarts George Schultz and Channing Robertson.

[fullmetal]

That makes three of my fellow class of 2006 alums who have been criminally indicted for white collar fraud... Though she didn't graduate, so maybe she only counts half?

Yep, she is referenced in the article as a Stanford dropout.  No need to count her in your class....

Technically, all you need to do to be an alum is to complete three consecutive quarters (iirc).

[fullmetal]

That makes three of my fellow class of 2006 alums who have been criminally indicted for white collar fraud... Though she didn't graduate, so maybe she only counts half?

Yep, she is referenced in the article as a Stanford dropout.  No need to count her in your class....

Technically, all you need to do to be an alum is to complete three consecutive quarters (iirc).

[Redrum]

That makes three of my fellow class of 2006 alums who have been criminally indicted for white collar fraud... Though she didn't graduate, so maybe she only counts half?

Yep, she is referenced in the article as a Stanford dropout.  No need to count her in your class....

Technically, all you need to do to be an alum is to complete three consecutive quarters (iirc).

Just when you think you're out...they drag you back in.
So, whatchersayin is: I can do freshman year at Stanford, then finish up at Cal State Los Angeles and I'm still an alum? For donation solicitation purposes only, I suppose.

[Redrum]

That makes three of my fellow class of 2006 alums who have been criminally indicted for white collar fraud... Though she didn't graduate, so maybe she only counts half?

Yep, she is referenced in the article as a Stanford dropout.  No need to count her in your class....

Technically, all you need to do to be an alum is to complete three consecutive quarters (iirc).

Just when you think you're out...they drag you back in.
So, whatchersayin is: I can do freshman year at Stanford, then finish up at Cal State Los Angeles and I'm still an alum? For donation solicitation purposes only, I suppose.

[qwerty49]

That makes three of my fellow class of 2006 alums who have been criminally indicted for white collar fraud... Though she didn't graduate, so maybe she only counts half?

Yep, she is referenced in the article as a Stanford dropout.  No need to count her in your class....

Technically, all you need to do to be an alum is to complete three consecutive quarters (iirc).

Hence John McEnroe is an alum.

[qwerty49]

That makes three of my fellow class of 2006 alums who have been criminally indicted for white collar fraud... Though she didn't graduate, so maybe she only counts half?

Yep, she is referenced in the article as a Stanford dropout.  No need to count her in your class....

Technically, all you need to do to be an alum is to complete three consecutive quarters (iirc).

Hence John McEnroe is an alum.

[82lsju]

"Theranos founder Elizabeth Holmes, charged with a dozen felony fraud counts over her defunct Palo Alto blood-testing startup, plans to introduce evidence of a mental condition that affects the issue of guilt, a blockbuster judge’s order has revealed."

https://www.mercurynews.com/2020/09/11/t...-of-guilt/

[82lsju]

"Theranos founder Elizabeth Holmes, charged with a dozen felony fraud counts over her defunct Palo Alto blood-testing startup, plans to introduce evidence of a mental condition that affects the issue of guilt, a blockbuster judge’s order has revealed."

https://www.mercurynews.com/2020/09/11/t...-of-guilt/

[TinderForMidgets]

"Theranos founder Elizabeth Holmes, charged with a dozen felony fraud counts over her defunct Palo Alto blood-testing startup, plans to introduce evidence of a mental condition that affects the issue of guilt, a blockbuster judge’s order has revealed."

https://www.mercurynews.com/2020/09/11/t...-of-guilt/

This is getting ridiculous. I mean if she had debilitating mental illness, why didn't she try to seek help for it earlier?

[TinderForMidgets]

"Theranos founder Elizabeth Holmes, charged with a dozen felony fraud counts over her defunct Palo Alto blood-testing startup, plans to introduce evidence of a mental condition that affects the issue of guilt, a blockbuster judge’s order has revealed."

https://www.mercurynews.com/2020/09/11/t...-of-guilt/

This is getting ridiculous. I mean if she had debilitating mental illness, why didn't she try to seek help for it earlier?

[lex24]

"Theranos founder Elizabeth Holmes, charged with a dozen felony fraud counts over her defunct Palo Alto blood-testing startup, plans to introduce evidence of a mental condition that affects the issue of guilt, a blockbuster judge’s order has revealed."

https://www.mercurynews.com/2020/09/11/t...-of-guilt/

This is getting ridiculous. I mean if she had debilitating mental illness, why didn't she try to seek help for it earlier?

Because she never had been indicted before.....

[lex24]

"Theranos founder Elizabeth Holmes, charged with a dozen felony fraud counts over her defunct Palo Alto blood-testing startup, plans to introduce evidence of a mental condition that affects the issue of guilt, a blockbuster judge’s order has revealed."

https://www.mercurynews.com/2020/09/11/t...-of-guilt/

This is getting ridiculous. I mean if she had debilitating mental illness, why didn't she try to seek help for it earlier?

Because she never had been indicted before.....

[teejers1]

"Theranos founder Elizabeth Holmes, charged with a dozen felony fraud counts over her defunct Palo Alto blood-testing startup, plans to introduce evidence of a mental condition that affects the issue of guilt, a blockbuster judge’s order has revealed."

https://www.mercurynews.com/2020/09/11/t...-of-guilt/

This is getting ridiculous. I mean if she had debilitating mental illness, why didn't she try to seek help for it earlier?

Because she never had been indicted before.....

Probably true.
But when reading all the stories about Holmes and seeing her interviews - including stuff before the Fit hit the shan - didn't you get the impression she was a bit "off?"  The Jobs' Acolyte attire; the all big talk that had an "all hat, no cattle" aura, etc.  (Maybe I was jaded/biased by a family friend who has founded and worked extensively in the field and he was convinced from the jump that there was "no there, there" when it came to Holmes and Theranos). 

I don't know the legal significance of any of it, but it wouldn't surprise me at all that someone would conclude she has some personality disorders that could affect her judgment.  Hell, at this point I consider that a given.

[teejers1]

"Theranos founder Elizabeth Holmes, charged with a dozen felony fraud counts over her defunct Palo Alto blood-testing startup, plans to introduce evidence of a mental condition that affects the issue of guilt, a blockbuster judge’s order has revealed."

https://www.mercurynews.com/2020/09/11/t...-of-guilt/

This is getting ridiculous. I mean if she had debilitating mental illness, why didn't she try to seek help for it earlier?

Because she never had been indicted before.....

Probably true.
But when reading all the stories about Holmes and seeing her interviews - including stuff before the Fit hit the shan - didn't you get the impression she was a bit "off?"  The Jobs' Acolyte attire; the all big talk that had an "all hat, no cattle" aura, etc.  (Maybe I was jaded/biased by a family friend who has founded and worked extensively in the field and he was convinced from the jump that there was "no there, there" when it came to Holmes and Theranos). 

I don't know the legal significance of any of it, but it wouldn't surprise me at all that someone would conclude she has some personality disorders that could affect her judgment.  Hell, at this point I consider that a given.

[BostonCard]

I'm impressed that a two year old thread was resurrected.

I'll be interested to see if that bar is cleared.  That her judgment was impaired is self-evident by the fact that she perpetrated the fraud, but then does everyone who commits fraud then get to claim that their judgment was faulty because of mental illness?

BC

[BostonCard]

I'm impressed that a two year old thread was resurrected.

I'll be interested to see if that bar is cleared.  That her judgment was impaired is self-evident by the fact that she perpetrated the fraud, but then does everyone who commits fraud then get to claim that their judgment was faulty because of mental illness?

BC