A judge excused 2 jurors from the trial of Elizabeth Holmes' ex-boyfriend Sunny Balwani because they'd watched 'The Dropout'
- The trial of Theranos ex-president and COO Ramesh "Sunny" Balwani begins this week.
- The jury selection process was made more difficult by the release of the Hulu miniseries "The Dropout."
Hulu's dramatization of the collapse of Theranos has inadvertently helped narrow the selection of jurors for the trial of the company's former president, Ramesh "Sunny" Balwani, due to begin this week.
Law 360 reported that US District Judge, Edward Davila, swore in 12 jurors for Balwani's trial on Tuesday. During the selection process, Davila excluded two potential jurors because they had watched "The Dropout," Hulu's 8-part miniseries about Theranos' founder and Balwani's ex-girlfriend, Elizabeth Holmes, Law 360 reported.
Theranos' highly publicized collapse already made the jury selection process delicate. Law 360 reported the judge excluded multiple jurors who'd been following the case in the news.
One prospective juror told the judge she'd watched two episodes of the show and felt she could not be unbiased, Law360 reported.
Another prospective juror told the judge he'd "accidentally" watched three episodes because his girlfriend had been watching the show and he'd not realised it was linked to the case, Law360 reported.
Per Law360, he told the judge he wasn't entirely focused on the show but he "got the gist of what was going on."
Holmes was convicted on three counts of wire fraud and one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud in January. During her trial Holmes testified Balwani emotionally and physically abused her over the course of their romantic relationship. A lawyer for Balwani denied the allegations of abuse at Holmes' trial.
The trial's opening statements were delayed Wednesday after an individual who had been in court the previous day for jury selection had come into contact with someone who had tested positive for COVID-19, the Wall Street Journal reported.