WHITE PAPER PROSECUTING CHINESE “SPIES:” · accountable. Then-President Bill Clinton declared...
Transcript of WHITE PAPER PROSECUTING CHINESE “SPIES:” · accountable. Then-President Bill Clinton declared...
PROSECUTING CHINESE “SPIES:”
PRESENTED BY COMMITTEE OF 100AUTHOR: ANDREW KIM | MAY 2017 | WASHINGTON DC
AN EMPIRICAL ANALYSIS OF THE ECONOMIC ESPIONAGE ACTEXECUTIVE SUMMARY
WHITE PAPER
The Committee of 100 is a leadership organization of prominent Chinese Americans in business, government, academia, and the arts. C100 members are leading U.S. citizens of Chinese descent who leverage their collective influence and resources to strengthen U.S.-China relations and promote the full participation of Chinese Americans. In 1999, the Committee led a coalition to raise national awareness of the denial of due process in the Wen Ho Lee case of alleged espionage, which later resulted in a public apology from the presiding judge. For over a quarter century, the Committee has monitored issues affecting Chinese Americans and served as a high-level bridge in the U.S.-China dialogue fostering regular exchanges with the leadership of Beijing, Taipei, and Washington. Learn more: www.committee100.org.!
CONTACTCOMMITTEE OF 100 257 PARK AVENUE SOUTH, 19TH FLOORNEW YORK, NY 10010 T 212.371.6565 | F 212.371.9009 WWW.COMMITTEE100.ORG
TABLE OF CONTENTS
FOREWORDbyFrankH.Wu,Chairman,Commi3eeof100
6EXECUTIVE SUMMARYProsecu)ngChinese“Spies:”AnEmpiricalAnalysisoftheEconomicEspionageActbyAndrewKim,OfCounsel,BeckReddenLLP
12COMMENTARY IbyDavidA.Harris,ProfessoratUniversityofPi3sburghSchoolofLaw
14COMMENTARY IIbyJaneAnneMurray,ProfessorofPracLceatUniversityofMinnesotaLawSchool
16ABOUT THE AUTHORS
18PROMOTIONAL PARTNERS
4
Page4
FRANKH.WUChairman,Commi>eeof100Dis)nguishedProfessor,UCHas)ngsCollegeofLaw
Prosecu2ngChinese"Spies:"AnEmpiricalAnalysisoftheEconomicEspionageAct,Execu2veSummaryForeword|FrankH.Wu,Chairman,Commi>eeof100
TheCommi>eeof100(C100)ispleasedtopresentthisimportantWhitePaper,“Prosecu)ngChineseSpies:An
EmpiricalAnalysisoftheEconomicEspionageAct”bylegalscholarAndrewC.KimofSouthTexasCollegeofLaw,
Houston.Thestudy,whichKimdevelopedoverthecourseofafullyearofresearch,offersanempiricalanalysisof
recentU.S.governmentespionageclaimsbroughtagainst
peopleofAsianheritage.C100ispublishinganexecu)vesummaryofKim’sreport,alongwithtwoindependent
commentaries,tobringa>en)ontothestudy’sfindings,
priortoitsappearanceinanacademicversion.
Thestudyprovidesempiricalindica)onsthatAsian
Americans,whetherimmigrantorna)ve-born,maybefacingunfairandincreasingracialprejudiceinthiseraof
geopoli)calcompe))on.C100recognizesthatthesenew
risksareunderscoredbyalegacyofalmosttwocenturiesofracialstereotypingasperpetual“foreigners,”wherethe
loyaltyofAsianAmericanstotheUnitedStateshasbeenrepeatedlychallengedwithsimilarthemes.
DuringWorldWarII,despiteevidenceknownatthe)me
thattherewasnogenuinethreat,120,000JapaneseAmericans—2/3ofthemU.S.ci)zens—weresentto
internmentcampsandincarceratedbasedsolelyonthesuspicionsthattheirethnicheritagemadethem"enemy
aliens."Despitesuchimprisonmentoftheirownfamilies,
thousandsofyoungJapaneseAmericanmenservedinsegregatedArmyunitsasthe442ndRegimentalCombat
Teamfigh)ngacrossEurope.TheirinfantrybecamethemostdecoratedfortheirsizeandlengthofserviceinU.S.
Armyhistory.
In2000,Dr.WenHoLee,ascien)stwhohaddedicatedhiscareertotheAmericangovernment,facedchargesof
disclosingsecretsaboutthena)on’snuclearweaponsandwasheldwithoutbailinsolitaryconfinementforovera
year.Intheend,theJus)ceDepartmentdroppedallofthechargesagainsthimexceptforonecounttowhichhepled
guiltytoendhistrauma)zingordeal.Manyotherswhohad
commi>edthesameactswerenotsimilarlyheldaccountable.Then-PresidentBillClintondeclaredhewas
“troubled”bythema>er.Thefederaljudgewhopresidedin
thecasepubliclyapologizedforhismistreatment.
Today,therearemoresuchcasessimilartoDr.Lee’sin
whichracialprofilingandethnichos)lityseemtohavecoloredthejudgmentofgovernmentofficialsandtainted
thecriminalprocess.PeoplesuchasSherryChen,a
hydrologistwiththeNa)onalOceanographicandAtmosphericAdministra)on,andDr.XiaoxingXi,aphysicist
atTempleUniversity,areessen)ally“WenHoLee2.0.”
ChenandXihavebeenexoneratedinfull.Therewasno
basisforanysuspicionofthem—otherthan,apparently,
thecoloroftheirskin.Thesheernumberandfactualsimilari)esamongtheseprosecu)onshavecreatedan
apparentpa>ernandprac)ceofselec)veanddiscriminatorytreatmentthatdemandsgreater
transparencyandaccountability.Monitoring,oversight,and
safeguardsareneeded.
ThehistoryofAsianAmericansdatesbacktotheearly
nineteenthcentury,withnumerouscontribu)onsextraordinaryandordinary,infieldsrangingfromthe
sciencestotheartstotechnologyandbusiness.These
Page5Prosecu2ngChinese"Spies:"AnEmpiricalAnalysisoftheEconomicEspionageAct,Execu2veSummaryForeword|FrankH.Wu,Chairman,Commi>eeof100
FOREWORD
FRANKH.WUCHAIRMAN,COMMITTEEOF100
contribu)onshavebeenmadepossibleinana)onthatwelcomeseveryone.Theruleoflawpromisesequality
withoutregardtorace,color,orcreed.
Yetfrom)meto)me,wefailtoliveuptoourownideals.
Wehavefoundevidenceofdepriva)onsofdueprocessthat
affectinnocentindividuals.Thesepreventsocietyfromrealizingthebenefitofthefullpoten)alofAsianAmerican
contribu)ons.
NodoubttherehavebeeninstancesofAsianAmericans,like
otherAmericans,whohaveviolatedthelawandwhohave
thenfacedjus)fiableinves)ga)onandprosecu)on.Adefinitelinecanbedrawnbetweenappropriateprosecu)on
thatisbasedonactualevidenceandfreeofbiasandoverreachingpersecu)onthatistriggeredbyunfounded
suspicionsandtaintedbyracialprejudice.AllAmericans,
regardlessofethnicity,dependonthatline.
Itisinthisdefenseofcons)tu)onalrightsforeveryone,and
thespiritofpublicservice,thattheCommi>eeof100supportsandreleasesthefindingsofProfessorKim's
independentstudy.
TheCommi>eeof100isanon-par)sanleadershiporganiza)onofprominentChineseAmericansinbusiness,
government,academia,entertainment,andthearts.Establishedin1990,theCommi>eehasalonghistoryof
contribu)ontotwinmissionspromo)ngthefullpar)cipa)on
andinclusionofChineseAmericansinallfieldsofAmericanlife,andencouragingconstruc)verela)onsbetweenthe
peoplesoftheUnitedStatesandGreaterChina.Forthepastfiveyears,C100memberssuchasNelsonDong,GeorgeKoo,
andBrianSunhavelededuca)onalworkshopsaroundthena)onpresen)ngbackgroundonsomeoftheissues
discussedhere.
Recently,theCommi>eeof100formedaLegalDefense&
Educa)onFund,throughwhichfinancialsupporthasbeen
offeredtovic)msofracialprofiling.TheFundhasalsopaidfortheprin)nganddistribu)onofthisWhitePaper.C100
expressesitsgra)tudeforalldonorstotheFund.C100MemberJeremyWuhasprovidedinvaluableinputasa
sta)s)cian,whichhashelpedtoinformthefindings
presentedinthefollowingpages.
Recentprosecu)onsofinnocentChineseAmericansforespionagehaveraisedconcerns
thatDepartmentofJus)ce(DOJ)inves)ga)onsofsuspectedespionagehavebeeninfectedby
racialbiases.Althoughnotconclusive,thisstudyfindsevidenceconsistentwiththose
concerns.Itfinds:1)Thepercentageofpeople
ofChineseheritagechargedundertheEconomicEspionageAct(EEA)hastripledsince
2009,to52%.Includingpeopleofnon-Chinese
Asiandescent,62%ofEEAdefendantschargedsince2009havebeenpeopleofAsianheritage;
2)Inhalf(48%)ofcases,theallegedbeneficiaryofespionagewasanAmerican
en)tywhileathird(34%)ofcasesinvolveda
Chinesebeneficiary.
Russiawasnotiden)fiedastheallegedbeneficiaryinanycasesinthesample;3)
DefendantsofAsianheritageconvictedofespionagereceivedsentencesovertwiceas
severeasthoseofotherethnici)es;4)22%ofpeopleofAsianheritagechargedwith
economicespionagewereneverconvictedof
espionage.Inotherwords,asmanyas1in5Asianpeopleprosecutedasspiesmaybe
innocent,aratetwiceaslargeasforother
races.
INTRODUCTION
62%ofEEAdefendantschargedsince2009havebeenpeopleofAsianheritage.
22%ofpeopleofAsianheritagechargedwitheconomicespionagewereneverconvictedofespionage.
“As many as 1 in 5 Asian people prosecuted as spies may be innocent, a rate twice as large as for other races.”
Page6 Execu2veSummary|Prosecu2ngChinese"Spies:"AnEmpiricalAnalysisoftheEconomicEspionageActExecu)veSummary|AndrewKim,Commi>eeof100
ThisStudyanalyzesarandomsampleofcaseschargedundertheEconomicEspionageAct(EEA)from1997to
2015,(136casesinvolving187individualdefendants),usingpubliclyavailablecourtdocumentsdrawnfromthe
PublicAccesstoCourtElectronicRecordssystem(PACER).Notallsuspectedeconomicespionagespiesare
prosecutedundertheEEA.Forexample,Dr.XiXiaoxing,
whowasfalselyaccusedofstealingsuperconductortechnologyforChina,waschargedwithwirefraud,acrime
thatusuallydoesnotinvolveespionage-typeac)vity.By
focusingonEEAcases,however,thisstudywasabletoproduceanunbiasedsampleoffederalcasesallofwhich
includeallega)onsofthethesofsecretinforma)on.
Tes)ngforracialdispari)esrequiresanindicatorofthedefendant’srace,avariablethatisabsentfrommostPACER
records.Toworkaroundthisotherwisefatalcomplica)on,thisstudyusedthedefendant’snameasaproxyforrace.
Thesampleincludes107defendantswith“Western”names,(definedtoincludethosewithEasternEuropean,
Hispanic,andLa)nonames),59defendantswithChinese
names,17defendantswithotherAsiannames(includingIndiannames),and4defendantswithArabicnames.
SearchesonGoogleandFacebookwereusedto
disambiguateanynameswithunclearna)onalorigins.Becausethisstudycouldnotiden)fydefendants’
ci)zenshipstatuses,itcannotdis)nguishbetweenthetreatmentofAsian-Americanci)zensandna)onalsofAsian
countries.
DATA
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
Page7Execu2veSummary|Prosecu2ngChinese"Spies:"AnEmpiricalAnalysisoftheEconomicEspionageActExecu)veSummary|AndrewKim,Commi>eeof100
107 59 17
136EEACASES187DEFENDANTSTOTESTFORRACIALDISPARITIES,THISSTUDYUSEDDEFENDANTS’NAMESASPROXIESFORTHEIRRACE!
DEFENDANTSWITH“WESTERN”NAMES
DEFENDANTSWITHCHINESENAMES
DEFENDANTSWITHNON-CHINESEASIANNAMES
4DEFENDANTSWITHARABICNAMES
(1)Since2009,themajorityofdefendantschargedundertheEEAhavebeenpeopleofAsianheritage.From1996to2008,17%ofEEAdefendantswereChinesewhile8%wereotherAsians.Between2009and
2015,however,therateofChinesedefendantstripled,to52%.TherateforotherAsiansincreasedonlyslightlyoverthesame)meperiod,to10%.Insum,62%ofEEAdefendantsprosecutedundertheObama
administra)onwerepeopleofAsianheritage.
FINDINGS
Page8 Execu2veSummary|Prosecu2ngChinese"Spies:"AnEmpiricalAnalysisoftheEconomicEspionageActExecu)veSummary|AndrewKim,Commi>eeof100
EEA DEFENDANTS BY RACE
72%
17%
8%3%
Western Chinese
OtherAsian Arabic
37%
52%
10% 1%
Western Chinese
OtherAsian Arabic
1996-2008 2009-2015
(2)HalfofEEAcasesallegedthe\ofsecretsforaUSAen2ty,onethirdforChina,andnoneforRussiaTheintendedbeneficiaryoftheallegedespionagecouldbe
iden)fiedin118outofthe136casesinthesample.Inhalf(48%)ofcases,tradesecretswereallegedlystolento
benefitanAmericanen)ty.Inonethird(34%)ofcases,theallegedthesswereintendedtobenefitChineseen))es.
Theremainingcasesinvolvedna)onsasdiverseasSouth
Africa,India,Iran,andtheCzechRepublic.Noneofthecasesinwhichanallegedbeneficiarycouldbeiden)fied
involvedRussia.
FINDINGS
0
2
4
6
8
10
12
14
16
18
20
1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014
NUMBER OF EEA CASES FILED BY YEAR
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
Page9Execu2veSummary|Prosecu2ngChinese"Spies:"AnEmpiricalAnalysisoftheEconomicEspionageActExecu)veSummary|AndrewKim,Commi>eeof100
48%
34%
3%2%2%2%2%7%
USA China India
Japan SouthKorea Australia
Israel Other
NATION OF BENEFITING ENTITY
(3)ConvicteddefendantsofAsianheritagereceivedsentencestwiceassevereTheaveragesentenceforChineseandallAsiandefendants
convictedofespionagewas25monthsand22monthsrespec)vely,twiceaslongasthe11monthaverage
sentencefordefendantswithWesternnames.Wherealmosthalf(48%)ofdefendantswithWesternnames
receivedsentencesofproba)ononly,only21%ofChinese
defendantsand22%ofallAsiandefendantsreceivedproba)ononly.Thesefiguresincludeonlydefendantswho
wereconvictedofanyoffenseotherthanfalsestatements.
(4)Oneinfiveaccused“spies”ofAsianheritagemaybeinnocentTwenty-onepercentofChineseand22%ofallAsiandefendants
chargedundertheEEAareneverprovenguiltyofspyingoranyotherseriouscrime,aratetwiceaslargeasfordefendantswith
Westernnames.Instead,thesedefendantswereacqui>edattrial,pledguiltyonlyto“falsestatements”andreleasedonproba)on,
or,mostosen,hadallchargesagainstthemdropped.Thefactthat
thesedefendantswereneverprovenguiltyofespionagedoesnotnecessarilymeantheywereinnocent.Aserall,therearereasons
otherthaninnocence,suchassuppressionofkeyevidence,forwhyaprosecutormightdropallchargesorallowadefendantto
pleadguiltytoaminoroffenselikefalsestatements.Nonetheless,
thesefindingsraisethepossibilitythatasmanyasoneinfiveaccusedAsian“spies”mightactuallybeinnocent,aratethatis
twiceaslargeasthatfordefendantswithWesternnames.
Page10 Execu2veSummary|Prosecu2ngChinese"Spies:"AnEmpiricalAnalysisoftheEconomicEspionageActExecu)veSummary|AndrewKim,Commi>eeof100
0% 0%
15%
50%
0%
5%
0%
29% 0% 0%
0%
15%
18%
10%
15%
0%
0%
28%
0%
10%
20%
30%
40%
50%
60%
70%
80%
90%
1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014
OtherAsian
Chinese
% CHINESE AND ASIAN EEA DEFENDANTS BY YEAR
FINDINGS
ThesefindingsareconsistentwithconcernsthattheDOJhasimproperlytargeted,engagedinracialprofilingof,and
usedbiasedjudgmentwithrespecttoAsianAmericansandAsianna)onalssuspectedofespionage.Without
furtherinforma)on,however,thisstudycannotruleoutinnocentexplana)onsfortheseracialdispari)es.Rather
thanconclusions,thisstudyraisesanumberoftroubling
ques)onsthatcanonlybeansweredthroughanindependentandtransparentinves)ga)onofDOJ
espionageinves)ga)ons.
First,whyaresomanyEEAdefendantsofAsiandescent,andhowmuch,ifany,ofthesedispari)escanbeexplained
bythehigherratesatwhichAsian-Americansworkintechnicalfields?WhydidthepercentageofChinese
defendantstripleundertheObamaadministra)on?Isit
possiblethatthree)mesasmanyChinese-Americansbeganstealingsecretsaround2009,ordidtheDOJunder
Obamasimplydevotemoreresourcestoiden)fyingandprosecu)ngespionagerelatedtoChina?Ifthela>eris
true,doesthisreflectalegi)matepriori)za)onofDOJ
resources,orisitacaseofunfairracialprofilingandthestartofa“NewRedScare”?
Second,whydononeofthecasesinvolveallega)onsofespionagetobenefitRussia?Isitpossiblethatinspiteof
recentallega)onsofstate-sponsoredhackinganddecades
ofpost-coldwarespionage,RussiaisactuallynotinterestedinobtainingAmericantradesecrets?Arethere
diploma)creasonsforwhytheDOJmightavoidprosecu)ngRussianspies,orchargethemunderstatutes
otherthantheEEA?HastheDOJfocusedsomuchenergy
oninves)ga)ngAsiarelatedspyingthattheyhavemissedtheRussianspiesinourmidst?
Third,whyareguiltydefendantsofAsiandescentpunishedmorethantwiceasharshlyasguiltydefendants
withWesternnames?Arethetradesecretsstolenby
defendantswithAsiannamestwiceasharmfulasthosestolenbydefendantswithWesternnames?Alterna)vely,
coulditbethatsubconsciousracialbiasescausejudgesandprosecutorstoperceivethecrimescommi>edbyAsian
defendantsasmoreseverethanobjec)velysimilarcrimescommi>edbynon-Asiandefendants?
Fourth,whydoesitappearthattheDOJaccusesinnocent
peopleofAsiandescentfarmoreosenthanothers?Coulditbethatpreexis)ngimagesofAsianpeopleasspiescause
prosecutorstomisinterpretambiguousevidenceas
conclusiveevidenceofguilt?Mightfearsthatasuspectwillfleethecountryif)ppedoffjus)fyfilingchargesearlyinthe
inves)ga)on,whentheevidenceisli>lemorethaninnuendo?Althoughsuchconcernswouldbeirrelevantin
caseslikeSherryChenandWenHoLee,wherethesuspect
wasawareofandcoopera)ngwiththeinves)ga)onpriortofilingcharges,therewerefourdefendantsinthesample,all
ofChinesedescent,whosecaseswereneverresolvedbecausethedefendantremainsafugi)vefromjus)ce.Or,is
itpossiblethat,ashasbeenarguedinthewaragainstterror,
aretheharmsofsomecrimessogreatthatitisworthprosecu)ngsomeinnocentAmericanstoavoidallowingthe
guiltytogofree?
Fish,whydoprosecutorsallowsomedefendantswhowere
originallychargedwithespionagetopleadguiltytominor
crimeslikefalsestatements?Arethesecasesinwhichcrasyspiescutadealtoavoidconvic)ononmoreseriouscharges?
Or,couldthesebecasesinwhichprosecutorsaccusedaninnocentdefendantofespionageandinsistedonobtaininga
convic)onforanycrimeratherthanadmittheirmistake?
Finally,ifthesefindingsdoreflectproblemsintheDOJ,whatcanbedonetoaddressthoseproblemsandreducethe
numberofinnocentAmericanswhoselivesaresha>eredbyfalseaccusa)onsofbetrayingtheirowncountry?
CONCLUSIONS: MORE QUESTIONS
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
Page11Execu2veSummary|Prosecu2ngChinese"Spies:"AnEmpiricalAnalysisoftheEconomicEspionageActExecu)veSummary|AndrewKim,Commi>eeof100
WithhisstudyProsecu)ngChinese“Spies,”ProfessorAndrewC.Kimraisesanimportantques)on.Inlightofthe
factthatprosecu)onsofChineseandotherAsianpersonsundertheEconomicEspionageAct(EEA)haveincreased
since2009,ProfessorKimaskswhetherthewearewitnessingethnictarge)ngofChinesescien)stsand
researchers.Inotherwords,areweseeingracialprofiling
directedatanewgroup,foranewpurpose,inmuchthesamewaywewitnessedtarge)ngofAfricanAmericans
through“drivingwhileblack”inthepast?Theansweristhat
wesimplydon’tknowyet;thedatapresentedinthestudydonotprovetheexistenceof“researchingwhileAsian,”to
borrowProfessorKim’sphrase.Butwecanseeenoughthat,goingforward,wemustremainvigilant,watchthedata,and
followupwithfurtherstudy.
ProfessorKimbeginsbylayingoutthedatahehas,asampleof136casesbroughtundertheEconomicEspionageAct,
between1997and2015.From1997un)l2008,Chinesepersonsmadeup17percentofthecasesbrought;between
2009and2015,thatpercentagetripled,to52percent.
ConvicteddefendantsinEEAcasesof“Asianheritage”(includingethnici)esotherthanChinese)received
sentencesovertwiceaslong,onaverage,asnon-Asiandefendants.Further,21percentofallChineseEEA
defendantswerenotprovenguiltyofspyingorother
seriouscrimes–abouttwicetherateofmembersofotherethnicgroups;instead,theywereacqui>ed,pleadguilty
onlytomakingfalsestatements
andnottoespionageoffenses,orhadchargesdroppedagainstthemen)rely.“Inotherwords,”ProfessorKimsays,
“oneinfiveaccusedAsian‘spies’mightactuallybeinnocent.”
Itisimportant,upfront,torecognizethelimita)onsof
thesedata.First,thenumberofcasesinthesampleisrela)velysmall,andasmallsamplesizelimitsanyanalysis.
(Bywayofcomparison,thefirststudiesofracialprofilingofAfricanAmericansonhighwaysinNewJerseyandMaryland
inthe1990s,conductedbyDr.JohnLamberth,involveda
vastlylargeramountofdata--manythousandsofvehiclesobserved,inaddi)ontothosevehiclesstoppedand
searched.)Wealsocannottellhowmanyinves)ga)onsundertheEEA(asopposedtocasescharged)tookplace
duringthestudyperiod,whatethnicgroupsthetargetsof
thoseinves)ga)onscamefrom(ChineseorAsianorother),andtherateatwhichthoseinves)ga)onsactually
blossomedintochargedcases.Wealsodonotknowhowmanyespionagerelatedcaseswerechargedunderstatutes
otherthantheEEA(ProfessorKimcitesanumberofother
federalstatutesprosecutorscoulduseandhaveusedinothercases.)Moreover,asProfessorKimhimself
acknowledges,thereare“manyreasonsotherthaninnocence”thatcouldexplainwhydefendantswere
acqui>ed,hadchargesdropped,orpleadguiltytoreduced
charges..Overall,ashesays,hisstudy“cannotruleoutinnocentexplana)onsforthefindings.”
DAVIDA.HARRISDis)nguishedFacultyScholar/ProfessorUniversityofPi>sburghSchoolofLaw
Page12 Execu2veSummary|Prosecu2ngChinese"Spies:"AnEmpiricalAnalysisoftheEconomicEspionageActCommentaryI|DavidA.Harris,ProfessoratUniversityofPi>sburghSchoolofLaw
First,ProfessorKimsaysthedataindicatethattheaveragesentenceforChinesedefendants“convictedofespionage”
inthesecaseswas25months(22monthsforallAsiandefendantscombined),twicetheaveragesentencefor
defendantsfromotherethnicgroups.Thistroublingfindingraisesaredflag;thefederalsentencingsystemis
designedtoensurethatdefendantswhocommitsimilar
crimesreceivesimilarsentences,regardlessofrace,gender,orreligion.Thissentencingdisparityisanobvious
targetforfurtherstudy;ifthefindingofdisparityholdsup
asercontrollingfortheFederalGuidelinesfactorsthatwereunavailabletoProfessorKim,thiswouldmeanthat
wemightindeedbeseeingnotjustunexplaineddisparity,butdiscrimina)on.
Second,considerthedataindica)ngthattwiceasmany
casesagainstChinesedefendantsresultinacqui>als,guiltypleastoreducedcharges,ordroppedchargesasistrueof
casesagainstnon-Chinesedefendants.Thoughthesedataareconsistentwithbothinnocentandtroubling
explana)ons,theydeservefurtherscru)ny.Thisis
becauseofthestrikingparallelwithstopandfriskdatagatheredinNewYorkoverthelastdecade.IntheFloydv.
NewYorkCitycase,whichresultedinafederalcourtordertoreformtheuseofstopandfriskprac)cesbytheNew
YorkPoliceDepartment,anastonishing88percentofall
stopsyieldednothing–notanarrest,notarecoveryofagunorothercontraband–notevenasummons.Buried
deeperinthedatawasthis:policeweremorelikelybyfartostopAfricanAmericanandLa)nosthanwhites,but
muchmorelikelytofindcontrabandon,andmakearrests
of,whitesthanAfricanAmericansorLa)nos.
Thisseemingcontradic)onlaidbareahiddenopera)onalstandard–perhapshiddenevenfromofficersthemselves:
whilethelegalstandardforstoppinganypersonwasthesame–reasonable,fact-basedsuspicionofinvolvementin
criminalac)vity,accordingtotheU.S.SupremeCourt–theactualstandardinuseonthestreetseemedtobelowerfor
AfricanAmericansandLa)nosthanforwhites.Inother
words,AfricanAmericansandLa)noswereseenassuspiciousonmuchlessevidencethanwerewhites,
resul)nginstopsthatwere“hits”–thatis,theyresultedin
anarrestorasummons–muchlessosenthanstopsofwhites,becauseofficersdidnotstopwhitesun)ltheyhad
more,andmoresolid,evidenceofcriminality.Thesamekindofprocessmaybeatworkhere:whiletheremaybe
innocentexplana)onsforthedisparity,itmaybethat
inves)gatorsandprosecutorsaremorewillingtogoforwardwithcasesagainstChineseandAsiandefendants
onlessevidencethantheyareininves)ga)onsofwhites.Becausewehaveseenprecedentforthisinverydifferent
kindsoflawenforcementac)vity,thisissomethingto
inves)gatemoredeeplyinexis)ngcasesinthedata,andtotrackcarefullygoingforward.
Forallthesereasons,ProfessorKim’sstudydoesarealservice.Hepointstoanissuemanyperceivetoexistinthe
realworld,andmarshalsthedatatoexamineit.Whilethat
dataremainstooscarcetodrawdefini)veconclusions,hecorrectlypointsoutthatthedatadoraiseseriousques)ons.
Aswetransi)onintoanewpresiden)aladministra)on,withanewteamatoptheDepartmentofJus)ce,these
ques)onscannot–theymustnotbe–ignored.
COMMENTARY I
Page13Execu2veSummary|Prosecu2ngChinese"Spies:"AnEmpiricalAnalysisoftheEconomicEspionageActCommentaryI|DavidA.Harris,ProfessoratUniversityofPi>sburghSchoolofLaw
Ourfederalcriminaljus)cesystemisrelentlesslyefficient.Ofthecasesadjudicatedeachyear,morethan97%are
resolvedbyguiltyplea,and90%oftheremainderendinguiltyverdictsattrial.Lessthan7%ofchargedcasesare
dismissedordeferredannually,andmostofthosethroughdiversionaryprogramsforlow-leveloffenders.These
sta)s)csareduemainlytofederalprosecutors’careful
selec)onprocess(theydeclineasmuchas63%ofcasesbroughttothemannually).Withtrialsallbutdisappearing
asanadjudica)vemechanism,wetrusttheseprosecutors–
somesaytoomuch–toleveragetheirconsiderablecharging,bargainingandsentencingpowerwith
propor)onalityandprecision.
Againstthatbackdrop,AndrewKim’sme)culousresearch
oneconomicespionagecasesraisesmanytroubling
ques)ons.Notonlyarethesecasesoutofwhackwithna)onalaverages(producingdoublethedismissals,five
)mesmoretrials,andalmosttwiceasmanyacqui>als),butasKimoutlines,individualsofChineseorotherAsian
descentaredispropor)onatelychargedwithespionage,
receivehighersentences,andaretwiceaslikelyasnon-Asiandefendantstohavetheirchargesdropped.Perhaps,
asKimevenhandedlysuggests,individualsofChineseorAsiandescentareengaginginmore(andmoreserious)acts
ofeconomicespionage,orperhapsprosecutorsareforced
toarrestbeforetheyhavefullyanalyzedtheircasetoavoidevidencedestruc)onorflight.Butanother,simpler
explana)onisthatthesesta)s)csreflectanimplicitbiasagainstAsians.
It’snotthatChineseandAsianespionageisincreasing,butratherthatprosecutorsbelieveittobe,andtherefore,they
maydispropor)onatelyandprecipitouslytargetindividualsofChineseandotherAsiandescentasspies,leading
inevitablytoahighrateoffalseposi)ves.
Thereisagrowingempiricalliteratureexamininghow
implicitbiaspervadesourcriminaljus)cesystem,fromthe
decisiontostopandques)onanindividual,tothedecisiontoarrest,tothedecisiontocharge,tothetypeofchargeto
belevied,tothedegreeofleniencyofferedinplea
bargaining,totheseverityofsentencing.Mostofthisresearch–drivenbythedispari)esinourconvictedand
incarceratedpopula)ons,aswellasstudiesofDNAexonera)oncases–focusesondifferencesinthe
experiencesandoutcomesofwhitesandAfricanAmericans.
Kim’sresearchisamajorcontribu)ontothisscholarshipfortworeasons.First,rela)velyli>leisknownaboutimplicit
biasinourcriminaljus)cesystembeyondthestudiesrela)ngtobiasesagainstAfricanAmericans.Byfocusingon
anethnicitythatisrarelythesubjectofsuchresearch–
indeed,agroupthatisosenviewedashavingovercomehistoricalprejudices–Kimcorroboratesanddeepensthe
exis)nginsightsaboutimplicitbiasinthecriminaljus)cecontext,demonstra)ngthepoten)alforbiasinarangeof
lesstradi)onalcases(beyonddrugsandterrorism,for
example)andamonggroupsoutsidethetradi)onalblack-whiteparadigmofracialjus)ce.Inotherwords,implicitbias
inajus)cesystemthatprizesaccuracybut
JANEANNEMURRAYProfessorofPrac)ceUniversityofMinnesotaLawSchool
Page14 Execu2veSummary|Prosecu2ngChinese"Spies:"AnEmpiricalAnalysisoftheEconomicEspionageActCommentaryII|JaneAnneMurray,ProfessorofPrac)ceatUniversityofMinnesotaLawSchool
essen)allydelegatestheaccuracyjudgmenttoall-too-humanprosecutorsislikelyfarmorepervasivethanweare
preparedtoadmit.
Second,Kim’sworkisanimpressiveexampleofhowthis
researchcanandshouldbedone.Hisanalysisdoesnot
simplycrunchdisembodiednumbers.Itisbasedonapainstakingsearchoftheelectronicdatabaseofallbut
threeofthe94federaldistrictsandanindividualexamina)onofthecourtfilingsorotherpubliclyavailable
informa)onrelatedtoall170casesinhissample.Asa
result,hisanalysisofthedataisespeciallynuancedandrich.Heuncoveredseveralcaseswhere,forexample,itwasclear
thatchargesweredismissedoninnocencegrounds,caseswhereriskofflightanddestruc)onofevidencecouldnot
havebeenlegi)mateconcerns,andcaseswheretherewas
astronginferencethataconvic)ontoacountofmakingafalsestatementdidnotindicateculpabilityforespionage.
Allofthesefindingsstrengthentheinevitabletakeawayfromthepaper:itislikelythatthecharging,convic)onand
sentencingdispari)esineconomicespionagecasesare
drivenbybiasagainstAsians.
Kimconcludeswithsomeprac)calcallsforaddi)onal
ac)on,includingimplicitbiastrainingforprosecutors,sugges)onstoslowtherushtoindict,and,mostnotably,a
requirementoftransparentexplana)onsfordecisionsto
droporsignificantlyreducecharges.Prosecutorialdiscre)onpowerstheefficiencyofourcriminaljus)ce
system,which,intheend,toborrowfromHaroldLasswell,isallaboutwhogetscharged
what,whereandwhy.Asthesta)s)cscitedatthebeginningofthiscommentaryestablish,achargeis
tantamounttoaconvic)oninmostfederalcases.Evenwithoutaconvic)on,achargealoneiscertainlypersonally
devasta)ngtotheindividualinvolved.Butapartfromoccasionalhigh-profileexamina)ons(theTedStevenscase,
forexample),theopera)onofprosecutorialdiscre)onis
largelyablackbox.Kim’sprojectinfactgrewoutofunheededcallstotheDOJforanindependentinves)ga)on
intoitsespionageprosecu)onstoaddressconcernsabout
racialdisparity.Weretheprosecutors,however,requiredtoexplainpubliclywhytheydismissedespionagecharges,we
wouldgetawindowintothefactorsthatleadbothtoaprosecutorialrushtoajudgmentandthemorepainfulbut
necessaryprocessofredressingini)alerrors.Byillustra)ng
boththedangersofrelyingtooheavilyontheini)aljudgmentsofpoliceandprosecutorsandthemechanisms
bywhichprosecutorscanreassessthesejudgments,thisdatarevealstheprosecutorastheministerforjus)cethat
shemustbe(andis,forthemostpart),ratherthanjustan
advocateforconvic)onatallcost.Moreover,thefactthatanylaterdecisiontodismissespionagecharges–amongthe
mostchallengingforanyonetoface–willbescru)nizedcloselymaypromotegreaterprosecutorialaccountability
throughoutthelifeofthecase.
COMMENTARY II
Page15Execu2veSummary|Prosecu2ngChinese"Spies:"AnEmpiricalAnalysisoftheEconomicEspionageActCommentaryII|JaneAnneMurray,ProfessorofPrac)ceatUniversityofMinnesotaLawSchool
ANDREWKIMVisi)ngScholar,SouthTexasCollegeofLawOfCounsel,BeckReddenLLP!
AndrewChongsehKimisana>orneyatBeckReddenLLPandVisi)ngScholaratSouthTexasCollegeofLawHouston.KimreceivedhisundergraduatedegreefromtheUniversityof
ChicagowithtriplemajorsinEconomics,Physics,andAnthropology.HegraduatedcumlaudefromHarvardLawSchool,wherehewashonoredasaDean’sScholar,andclerkedatthe
SupremeCourtofConnec)cut.Asascholar,Kimappliessophis)catedsta)s)caltechniquestothestudyoftheAmericancriminaljus)cesystem.Hisresearchhasbeenpeerreviewedand
publishedintop100lawreviews.Kim’sprivateprac)ceworkfocusesoncommercial
li)ga)on.
ABOUT THE AUTHORS
Page16 Execu2veSummary|Prosecu2ngChinese"Spies:"AnEmpiricalAnalysisoftheEconomicEspionageActAbouttheAuthors|AndrewKim,Commi>eeof100
DAVIDA.HARRISDis)nguishedFacultyScholar/ProfessorUniversityofPi>sburghSchoolofLaw!
DavidA.HarrisistheJohnEMurrayFacultyScholarandProfessorofLawattheUniversityofPi>sburgh.Hisbook"ProfilesinInjus)ce:WhyRacialProfilingCannotWork"isthestandardwork
onthesubject,andhisresearchhasledtostatutes,regula)ons,andproposedlawsagainstprofilinginhalfthestatesandhundredsofpolicedepartments.Heisalsothecreatorandhostof
the"CriminalInjus)ce"podcast.
JANEANNEMURRAYProfessorofPrac)ceUniversityofMinnesotaLawSchool
JaneAnneMurrayisProfessorofPrac)ceattheUniversityofMinnesotaLawSchool,wheresheteachescriminalprocedureandrunsaprograminwhichstudentsrepresentfederal
inmatesseekingclemency.Sheisalsoaprac)cingfederalcriminaldefenselawyer,andhasrepresentedclientsinmanyhigh-profilecriminalcasesinMinneapolisandNewYorkCity.She
isco-chairoftheSentencingCommi>eeoftheNa)onalAssocia)onofCriminalDefenseLawyers,andwasamemberoftheSteeringCommi>eeofClemencyProject2014andofthe
ABATaskForceontheReformofFederalSentencingofEconomicCrimes.Sheobtainedher
BachelorinCivilLawfromUniversityCollegeCorkandherMasterinLawsfromtheUniversityofCambridge.From1990to2000,shewastheInterna)onalAdvisorfortheOfficeofthe
UnitedNa)onsHighCommissionforHumanRightsinKampot,Cambodia.
ABOUT THE AUTHORS
Page17 Execu2veSummary|Prosecu2ngChinese"Spies:"AnEmpiricalAnalysisoftheEconomicEspionageActAbouttheAuthors|AndrewKim,Commi>eeof100
PROMOTIONAL PARTNERS
SpecialThankstoAdrianandMonicaArima
Page18 Execu2veSummary|Prosecu2ngChinese"Spies:"AnEmpiricalAnalysisoftheEconomicEspionageActPromo)onalPartners|AndrewKim,Commi>eeof100
www.committee100.org!