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WSJ senior writer Jon Hilsenrath discusses the Elizabeth Holmes trial, arguing it shows the American sense of civic duty at work.

Theranos founder Elizabeth Holmes self-surrendered this week to a Texas women’s prison camp where she began serving her 11.25-year sentence for defrauding investors in her failed blood-testing startup, and although she is currently appealing her conviction, it appears she may have an extended stay at the facility regardless of that outcome.

While some view Holmes' decade-plus sentence as too light for her role in a scheme that cost victims hundreds of millions of dollars, others say it is too heavy for a non-violent offense. 

Either way, her life in federal detention will differ from the outside.

Former Theranos CEO Elizabeth Holmes alongside her boyfriend Billy Evans, walks back to her hotel following a hearing at the Robert E. Peckham U.S. Courthouse on March 17, 2023 in San Jose, California. Holmes began serving her 11.25-year sentence for (Photo by Philip Pacheco/Getty Images / Getty Images)

Holmes, 39, was checked in Tuesday to the Federal Prison Camp in Bryan, Texas, a low-level security facility roughly 100 miles from Houston, where she grew up, but is states away from the San Diego home where she and partner Billy Williams most recently lived raising their small children.

ELIZABETH HOLMES REPORTS TO PRISON; ‘DROPOUT’ STAR AMANDA SEYFRIED WEIGHS IN ON SENTENCE

The couple has a nearly 2-year-old son and a 3-month-old baby, who was conceived after Holmes' conviction and prior to sentencing. According to Lynn Espejo, who served 24 months at Bryan over a fraud conviction and now works as an advocate for criminal justice reform, Holmes' inability to raise her own children will likely be the most difficult part of her incarceration.

"It is traumatic having your freedom taken away, obviously," Espejo told FOX Business, "But just living away from your family like that.… My kids were grown. I can't imagine how it's going to feel for her that she has very small children that she doesn't get to raise."

Like any federal detention facility, new inmates are strip-searched upon arrival, and their street clothes are mailed to their loved ones and replaced with a khaki uniform and boots.

Disgraced Theranos CEO Elizabeth Holmes, center, is escorted by prison officials into a federal womens prison camp on Tuesday, May 30, 2023, in Bryan, Texas. Holmes will spend the next 11 years serving her sentence for overseeing an infamous blood-t (AP Photo/Michael Wyke / AP Newsroom)

Each prisoner is assigned to a small concrete room, which they share with three other women, each with their own bunk bed and a high school-sized locker for personal belongings.

Holmes will be paired with a fellow prisoner to help guide her, known as a "big sister," who will walk her through filling out her first commissary sheet, Espejo explained. Inmates must purchase all of their own hygiene products like soap and shampoo and are allowed to spend up to $350 per month on such items. 

New prisoners at Bryan typically start out working in the kitchen for the first 90 days before they are able to apply for another position. Espejo says "newbies'" kitchen shifts begin at 4:30 a.m. and run until around noon.

Espejo says that eventually Holmes, being a professional, will likely get a job at the facility teaching classes to other inmates within her realm of expertise that might help them become employed once they are released. 

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The 655 offenders housed at Bryan are allowed to have visitors on the weekends and on holidays, but can be limited depending on the availability of visiting space.

Inmates are also able to email family and friends through a fee-based system known as TRULINCS and may also buy up to 300 minutes per month to speak on the phone with loved ones.

"Divide that out by 30 days, that's roughly 10 minutes a day to talk to your family," Espejo noted. "It's not much, and if you've got little kids you're trying to help parent" like Holmes, she says, "it really has to be difficult."

Federal Prison Camp Bryan in Bryan, Texas. (Federal Bureau of Prisons)

Holmes will certainly make friends with other inmates, Espejo says, because nonviolent offenders in particular tend to rally around each other and try to help each other cope with their circumstances. According to a recent report from The Wall Street Journal, some fellow inmates were already hoping to befriend Holmes ahead of her arrival.

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Espejo acknowledges that Bryan may not appear as bad as some women's prisons, given that there is a recreational area and a track outdoors to walk around. Still, she says, the place is "horrible," and has blogged extensively about the conditions and alleged corruption at the facility.

"I wouldn't say it's the hellhole of the [Bureau of Prisons]," she said. "But it's close." 

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MLB: Iassogna crew chief, plate umpire for ASG

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MLB: Iassogna crew chief, plate umpire for ASG

NEW YORK — Dan Iassogna will be the umpire crew chief and work the plate during Tuesday night’s All-Star Game at Atlanta’s Truist Park.

His crew will include Marvin Hudson at first, Chris Segal at second, Jansen Visconti at third, Jeremie Rehak in left and Erich Bacchus in right, Major League Baseball said Thursday.

Iassogna, 56, will work his second All-Star Game. He was at third base for the 2011 game at Arizona.

He worked his first big league game in 1999, was hired to the major league staff in 2004 and appointed a crew chief ahead of the 2020 season. Iassogna umpired the World Series in 2012, ’17 and ’22 along with eight League Championship Series and seven Division Series.

Segal, Visconti, Rehak and Bacchus will work their first All-Star Games and Hudson his second after being in left field in 2004 at Houston.

Tony Randazzo will be the replay umpire in New York.

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A’s Rooker joins list of HR Derby participants

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A's Rooker joins list of HR Derby participants

WEST SACRAMENTO, Calif. — Athletics slugger Brent Rooker is adding his name to the list of Home Run Derby participants.

Rooker announced Thursday that he’s participating in the event, which takes place Monday in Atlanta. He will become the first Athletics player in the Home Run Derby since Matt Olson in 2021.

“Competing in the Home Run Derby has always been a dream of mine,” Rooker said in an Instagram post. “Can’t wait to make it happen next week in Atlanta! See ya there!”

Rooker, 30, entered Thursday with a .270 batting average, 19 homers and 50 RBIs, putting him on pace for a third straight season of at least 30 homers. He went deep 30 times in 2023 and had 39 homers in 2024.

His 58 homers since the start of the 2024 season rank him third among all American League players.

The only A’s to win the Derby were Mark McGwire in 1992 and Yoenis Céspedes in 2013 and 2014.

Other announced participants include Atlanta’s Ronald Acuña Jr., Minnesota’s Byron Buxton, Tampa Bay’s Junior Caminero, Pittsburgh’s Oneil Cruz, Seattle’s Cal Raleigh and Washington’s James Wood.

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O’s trade reliever Baker to Rays for draft pick

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O's trade reliever Baker to Rays for draft pick

BALTIMORE — The Orioles traded right-handed reliever Bryan Baker to AL East rival Tampa Bay on Thursday in exchange for the 37th overall pick in the 2025 MLB amateur draft, a sign that one of baseball’s most disappointing clubs could be sellers at the upcoming trade deadline.

Orioles general manager Mike Elias wouldn’t completely commit to that idea. Speaking to reporters before Thursday’s split doubleheader against the New York Mets, he cited the 2024 Detroit Tigers, who traded players off their major league roster but held on to ace Tarik Skubal and then surged into a playoff spot.

Elias did, however, acknowledge the possibility of selling on a day that began with last-place Baltimore (40-50) sitting 12½ games behind the division-leading Toronto Blue Jays and seven out of the final AL wild-card spot.

“I think it’s a step in that direction,” said Elias three weeks before the July 31 deadline. “There’s no way around that. The timing of the draft, and when you have draft picks involved in the trades, kind of front-loads these decisions, and it’s earlier than my comfort level. But we thought it was a really good return and a good trade for everyone. So, we did it.”

The draft begins Sunday. In a corresponding move, the Orioles selected the contract of catcher David Bañuelos from Triple-A Norfolk.

After a dreadful start that brought the May dismissal of manager Brandon Hyde, the Orioles have steadied under interim skipper Tony Mansolino, playing to a 21-14 record since a loss to St. Louis on May 28.

Baker was a solid part of that, posting a 3.52 ERA, striking out 49 batters and posting a 1.096 WHIP in 38⅓ innings as the setup man for closer Felix Bautista.

“This is a team that is moving in the right direction, and we still have a lot of time left before the deadline, but this was a trade with the draft coming up in a couple days that we had to make a decision on,” Elias said. “We didn’t want to pass up on the opportunity. Hopefully, we can use the pick wisely, bring a lot of value back, and Bryan’s going to a good place.”

Mansolino is also hoping his team will get replenishments in the form of players eventually returning from the injured list. That sizable group includes several possible starting pitchers: Grayson Rodriguez (shoulder), Albert Suarez (shoulder), Tyler Wells (elbow) and Kyle Bradish (Tommy John surgery).

Meanwhile, Baltimore will now have four of the first 37 and seven of the first 93 draft picks.

“All the drafts are important, but when you have this amount of picks, it becomes more important, there’s no question about it,” Elias said. “There’s just a much bigger opportunity ahead of us, and the draft is a lifeblood for our franchise.”

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