DOJ's "China Initiative" Falters

When Anming Hu, an engineering professor at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville ("UTK") was indicted in February 2020 on charges related to his alleged failure to disclose ties to a state-run Chinese university, the case was emblematic of those brought under the Department of Justice's "China Initiative." The government alleged that Hu failed to disclose his Chinese affiliation while working on a research project funded by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration ("NASA"). A little more than a year later, in June 2021, DOJ's prosecution against Hu appears to have derailed, as a jury failed to reach a verdict in the case and the district court declared a mistrial.

A month later, on July 15, 2021, DOJ dismissed the criminal case against Dr. Qing Wang, a researcher at the Cleveland Clinic Foundation, who was charged with wire fraud and false claims in connection with a $3.6 million grant from the National Institutes of Health ("NIH"). DOJ had alleged that