Theranos' Elizabeth Holmes tries to keep luxury lifestyle out of trial
3Attorneys for disgraced Theranos founder Elizabeth Holmes are still trying to keep her luxurious CEO lifestyle out of her upcoming trial because it 'risks invoking class prejudice'.The government has alleged that before Holmes' fall from grace she employed personal assistants to run her luxury shopping sprees, traveled by private jet and stayed at exclusive hotels. Prosecutors have argued that such a lifestyle was fueled by her fraud. But according to a filing submitted on Tuesday and obtained by CNBC, her lawyers wrote that she earned a salary and benefits commensurate with her position as the blood-testing startup's CEO. They argue that the evidence says nothing about her motive, 'if it did any CEO could be said to have a motive to commit fraud'. 'Rather the real value of the evidence to the government is to paint a (misleading) picture of Ms Holmes as a woman who prioritized fashion, a luxurious lifestyle, and fame, and to invite a referendum on startup and corporate culture,' the attorneys said. Scroll down for video The attorney continued: 'Evidence regarding the purchase of expensive clothing, makeup and self-care products, and other goods (again, none of which are alleged to be beyond her means), which the government intends to introduce through otherwise irrelevant emails by Ms Holmes' personal assistants, does not establish a motive to commit fraud.'Instead, they said, the government's argument 'seeks to inflame by appealing to stereotypes of class and gender'.Theranos became a big name in Silicon Valley led by Holmes, a Steve Jobs-obsessed leader who wore black turtlenecks everyday like her Apple idol, something her attorneys also noted in the filing. 'The government ignores that Ms Holmes was criticized for wearing the same outfit every day,' the attorneys wrote. Holmes attracted investors and venture capital firms and the company was valued at $9billion before crashing in 2015.Now, she and her ex-boyfriend Ramesh Balwani are awaiting their day in court after being accused of falsely claiming the company's machines could perform breakthrough blood tests with a single drop of blood, duping investors out of millions and misleading doctors and patients. She and Balwani are accused of scamming investors out of more than $700million. Tuesday's filing marks a second attempt by her attorneys to block prosecutors from mentioning her wealth, spending habits and luxurious lifestyle during her fraud trial.Federal prosecutors had previously revealed that while investigators were closing in on Theranos, Holmes was using company funds to fund an extravagant lifestyle that included ‘travel on private jets, stays in luxury hotels, and access to multiple assistants'. 'Although Defendant's assistant was an employee of the company, she handled a range of non-business tasks for Defendant, including personal clothes and jewelry shopping, home decorating, food and grocery buying, and other items,’ prosecutors said. According to a filing submitted in Nove