Harvard scientist Lieber seeks acquittal in 'ill-conceived' China Initiative case

 Years after getting swept up in the controversial Trump-era “China Initiative” — and months after being convicted on six felony charges — notable Harvard scientist Charles Lieber is seeking an acquittal or new trial, as his lawyer maintains that the jury’s decision would not stand today.

Lieber was convicted in December of lying to the federal government about his ties to China’s Thousand Talents Program. He was arrested back in 2020 as part of the divisive “China Initiative,” which was set up to stop the purported theft of American intellectual property by the Chinese government.

Civil rights activists and scientists lambasted the program — and last month, President Biden announced the Department of Justice would drop the “China Initiative” name and change several policies. In the wake of several high-profile cases of prosecutors dropping their charges against researchers, Lieber’s attorney told a Boston federal courtroom that the initiative has become “an embarrassment,” according to a Law360 report.

“No rational juror could have found Professor Lieber guilty on the evidence presented to the jury,” Lieber’s attorneys wrote in a motion for acquittal.

That evidence, they added, included:

Antiquated emails from persons halfway around the world who could not be cross-examined at trial, government agents who could not recall questions and answers in their interview of Professor Lieber, interview ‘statements’ that were never properly memorialized and were, in fact, warped by the government, and a post-arrest statement that was puzzling and indecipherable.

China’s Thousand Talents Program was designed to draw scientists from overseas through funding and other resources. Lieber was accused of concealing a relationship with the Wuhan University of Technology, where he agreed to be a “strategic scientist” and open up a lab in exchange for funding and participation in Thousand Talents.

'He repeatedly lied': Feds pile on as Harvard chemist Charles Lieber convicted of lying about Chinese ties

“He repeatedly lied to his employer, the federal government, and taxpayers to fraudulently maintain access to federal research funds,” FBI special agent Joseph Bonavolonta said in a statement.

Lieber, currently on administrative leave from Harvard, was convicted of six felony charges, including two counts of making false statements, two counts of filing false tax returns and two counts of failing to disclose a foreign (in this case Chinese) bank account. The three types of charges carry maximum sentences of five years, three years and five years, respectively, adding up to a 26-year stretch plus hundreds of thousands of dollars in fines.

The scientist has yet to be sentenced — but weeks after his jury verdict, prosecutors dropped all charges against another professor wrapped up in the China Initiative, MIT’s Gang Chen. Chen had been accused of lying and omitting information on US federal grant applications.

“The dismissal of Professor Chen’s case, mere weeks after the verdicts against Professor Lieber, came amidst a continued and growing call for an end to the China Initiative – and to the accompanying intimidation and harassment of lawful pursuits by academicians,” Lieber’s lawyers wrote in court documents.

Just yesterday, it was revealed that the DoJ ended its investigation into Yale professor and stem cell pioneer Haifan Lin.

Mukasey declined a request for comment.

“At the very least, the Court should grant a new trial in this ill-conceived and ill-advised case,” Lieber’s attorneys wrote.

https://endpts.com/harvard-scientist-charles-lieber-seeks-acquittal-in-ill-conceived-china-initiative-case/