Elizabeth Holmes' Husband Billy Evans: The Trial, Prison & Nathan Fielder’s Documentary

Meeting Elizabeth Holmes [00:00:00]

• Billie Evans describes meeting Elizabeth Holmes at a Fleet Week party in San Francisco in October 2017.
• He was initially unaware of her identity and was drawn to her curiosity and ability to listen.
• They discovered they lived only two doors apart on Page Mill Road.

  "And when I first met her, I didn't know she was Elizabeth Holmes. She was just Elizabeth."

The Theranos Investigation Context [00:01:00]

• Their meeting occurred after the DOJ investigation began but before Holmes was indicted.
• Numerous critical articles about Theranos and Holmes had already been published.
• Evans acknowledged the difficulty of reconciling the person he met with Holmes' public reputation.

  "It was pretty hard to grok. I mean, it was like a hard thing to come to terms with because you get to know this person separate and apart of how you're supposed to feel about them."

Early Relationship and Indictment [00:02:00]

• Evans and Holmes became friends for six months, going on walks with their dogs.
• Their relationship turned romantic and progressed quickly.
• Holmes was indicted just three weeks after they began dating.

  "I mean, it's like one hell of an experience to fall in love with somebody so quickly and then immediately come to terms with like, I didn't even know what an indictment was."

Holmes' Demeanor During Crisis [00:03:00]

• Evans described Holmes as "cool as a cucumber" despite the mounting negative press.
• She fundamentally believed in her innocence and was told she would not be indicted.
• Evans noted that she was perpetually surprised by the negative turns of events.

  "She is like cool as a cucumber. So while this was happening, all the articles are coming out."

Preparing for Trial [00:04:00]

• There was a long period of preparation for the trial, involving extensive work with lawyers.
• Holmes and her legal team reviewed hundreds of thousands of records.
• Evans described it as an intense time, but also noted beautiful moments.

  "So it was a really intense time, but there's also some really beautiful moments in there too."

An Eight-Month RV Road Trip [00:05:00]

• Evans revealed that he and Holmes spent eight months traveling the country in an off-road RV with their Husky, Balto.
• They visited trailer parks and National Forests, hiking during the day and working at night.
• This period offered an escape from the media attention in San Francisco.

  "Elizabeth and I spent, uh, eight months traveling the country in an off-road RV."

Media Scrutiny and Public Perception [00:06:00]

• Evans described the intense media attention and public judgment they faced.
• He noted that any public outing resulted in immediate recognition and judgment.
• He addressed the narrative of Holmes being manipulative, wearing turtlenecks, and speaking in a deep voice.

  "We couldn't go anywhere without immediately being recognized, immediately being judged."

Misrepresentation and Financial Fraud [00:07:00]

• Evans discussed the perception of Holmes misrepresenting the capabilities of Theranos' technology.
• He argued that the company's issues, like missed revenue numbers, were complex and involved hundreds of employees.
• He explained that contractual defaults, like with Walgreens, contributed to missed revenue obligations.

  "And then when bad press came out, then they defaulted on those obligations and then the business didn't fulfill those revenue obligations."

Birth of Children Amidst Legal Battles [00:08:00]

• Their son, Wills, was born on July 10, 2020, during the lead-up to the trial.
• Their daughter, Ivy, was born in February 2022, shortly before Holmes reported to prison.
• Evans emphasized that the children were unexpected gifts.

  "Well, our son was born on July 10th of 2020."

The Trial and Motherhood [00:09:00]

• Holmes was pregnant with their daughter when the trial was supposed to start, causing delays due to COVID-19.
• Holmes was described as militant about not showing weakness to the jury.
• She would wake up early to care for their baby son, pump milk during breaks, and have it delivered to their home.

  "So we would wake up at 4.30 every morning with a baby, with Wills is his name, and we would... Liz would feed him, and we'd change him, and we'd get him ready."

Acquittal and Conviction [00:10:00]

• Holmes was acquitted of charges related to defrauding four patients with inaccurate results.
• She was convicted of defrauding three investors and conspiracy with her partner.
• The conspiracy conviction allowed the judge to consider additional victims, increasing her sentence.

  "She was acquitted of those counts. So there was no evidence that was brought forward that was convincing to a jury that there was any fraud associated with patients."

Sentencing and Financial Obligations [00:11:00]

• Holmes was sentenced to 135 months (11.25 years) in prison.
• The sentencing was influenced by factors including the amount of financial loss and the number of victims.
• She owes $435 million to victims, though Evans disputes the calculation and the inclusion of certain investors.

  "So they, they calculate this through a point system and the points are dependent upon a variety of things."

Life in Prison and Family Support [00:12:00]

• Holmes is serving her sentence at the Bryan Federal Prison Camp in College Station, Texas.
• Evans visits her weekly and describes the facility as challenging, not easy.
• He expresses newfound respect for single mothers managing similar circumstances.

  "And Elizabeth has been there for 1,205 days. And every single day has been incredibly painful."

Explaining Prison to Children [00:13:00]

• Evans and Holmes' rule is to tell their children the truth about her incarceration.
• Their son, who was 22 months old when Holmes went to prison, knows where she is.
• Evans finds it difficult to explain the situation to their young children.

  "So my son knows where she is. But to start, it was just, this is mommy's work."

The Documentary "You Can See Everything" [00:14:00]

• The documentary aims to offer a personal perspective on Holmes' life, as she was prevented from speaking publicly for years.
• It focuses on her personal life and the reality of their situation, not relitigating the case.
• The intention is to allow viewers to see Holmes and form their own opinions.

  "So the whole idea was here she is, see her and make up your own mind."

Evans' New Venture: Hamanthus [00:15:00]

• Evans' background is in photonics, having helped build Luminar, a company specializing in LiDAR for autonomous vehicles.
• His new company, Hamanthus, is developing a new layer of sensors using Raman spectroscopy to analyze biological samples.
• He aims to make these devices cheaper and more widely distributed for AI analysis of biological data.

  "So my company is called Hamanthus, we are building a new layer of sensors to better understand biology."