Research shows significant racial bias against Asians in U.S. economic espionage prosecutions

NEW YORK, Sept. 21 (Xinhua) -- Individuals with Asian or Chinese names are punished twice as severely as those with Western names in economic espionage charges in the United States, showed a U.S. study released on Tuesday.

The study, titled "Racial Disparities in Economic Espionage Act Prosecutions (EEA): A Window into the New Red Scare," also said that one in three Asian Americans accused of espionage may have been falsely accused.

The study found that jail time for Chinese and Asian defendants doubles those of Western defendants. The Department of Justice (DOJ) is much more likely to publicize alleged "spying" by people with Asian names than people with Western names.

The study analyzed 276 individual defendants and 190 cases charged under the EEA from 1996 to 2020 as coded in the Federal Public Access to Court Electronic Records system.

The research made America "a less attractive place for immigrants of all backgrounds," said Zhengyu Huang, president of Committee of 100, a non-profit organization of prominent Chinese Americans that co-led the research.

Prior to 2009, only 16 percent of defendants charged under EEA were people with Chinese names. However, the majority of people charged with EEA offenses have been people of Chinese descent since 2009, according to the study.

"We spent thousands of hours analyzing federal court filings and Department of Justice press releases. Unfortunately, the data reveals that Asian Americans and others of Asian descent are treated differently by our justice system," said Andrew Chongseh Kim, an attorney with Greenberg Traurig, LLP and visiting scholar at South Texas College of Law.

"People of Asian descent are more likely to be accused of spying even though they are less likely to actually be convicted of those charges. Perhaps more troubling, the DOJ is much more likely to publicize allegations of spying when they involve people with Asian names," said Kim, who co-led the research.

The study found that 27 percent of presumed Asian American citizens charged under the EEA were not convicted of any crimes while an additional 6 percent of Asian Americans were convicted only of process offenses like false statements.

"In total, 1 in 3 Asian Americans accused of espionage may have been falsely accused," the study concluded.

Only 38 percent of EEA defendants with Western names were actually arrested and handcuffed. In contrast, the first time 69 percent of defendants of Asian descent and 78 percent of EEA defendants of Chinese descent learned they had been charged was when they were arrested, generally with handcuffs, says the study.

The Committee of 100 said for over three decades it has been committed to the dual missions of promoting the full participation of Chinese Americans in all aspects of American life and constructive relations between the United States and China.