Countdown to Wrongful Conviction Day: Friday, October 2, 2105; 6 days. For information: http://www.aidwyc.org/wcd-2015/
"The report that all espionage charges
against Temple University physicist Xiaoxing Xi have been withdrawn
raises the obvious question: How could things have gone so wrong? Reading the story raises a concern about cognitive biases at work. The term
biases
does not refer to a prejudice or dislike, but rather a process in which
the brain biases the observer to favor a particular conclusion. One
particular type, "confirmation bias," is common and particularly human:
What a person expects to see colors the perception of what is then
examined. Confirmation bias is no stranger to criminal and forensic
investigations. It played a part in the misidentification of a suspect
in a 2004 terrorist train bombing in Madrid, and its effect has been
shown repeatedly in research. Whether it is a DNA analyst or a
fingerprint examiner, erroneous information or our expectations can
cause the person to see what is not actually there or miss what is
present.
The concern about cognitive biases is neither illusory nor academic. It
is now a subject of discussion at the National Commission on Forensic
Science, and forensic labs and police agencies around the country are
offering training on cognitive bias and potential systems responses to
reduce its effect. There is no easy antidote. But depending on the type of investigation,
different tools may be used to reduce its effect. ........In the case of the Temple physicist, there is no way yet to know whether
cognitive bias - the fear that Chinese-born scientists were engaged in
espionage - "made" the investigators see what wasn't there: the "pocket
heater" used in superconductor research that was supposed to be kept
secret. But the question should be asked - internally at the FBI and in
the Justice Department, and more generally in police or prosecutors'
offices. The more we know about the risk of seeing what isn't there, the
better
we can reduce the risk of another Xiaoxing Xi being wrongfully charged."
Jules Epstein is director of advocacy programs at Temple University's
Beasley School of Law and a member of the National Commission on
Forensic Science.
http://www.philly.com/philly/opinion/20150923_Did__confirmation_bias__play_role_in_espionage_case_.html
Wikipedia account: "Xiaoxing Xi (
Chinese:
郗小星;
pinyin:
Xī Xiǎoxīng; born 1958) is a Chinese-born American physicist. He is
Laura H. Carnell Professor of Physics at
Temple University in
Philadelphia, and was chairman of Temple's physics department.
[1] In May 2015, the
United States Department of Justice
arrested him for allegedly sending restricted American technology to
China, but dropped all charges in September after independent scientists
discovered that the prosecutors had misconstrued the evidence against
him...Xi was born in China and received his Ph.D. from
Peking University in 1987. He was a researcher at the
Karlsruhe Nuclear Research Center in Germany, Bell Communication Research at
Rutgers University, and
University of Maryland, before becoming a faculty member of
Pennsylvania State University in 1995. He was named chairman of Temple University's physics department in 2014.
[1] He moved to the United States in 1989 and has become a naturalized US citizen.
[2][3]...In May 2015, the
United States Department of Justice accused him of sending restricted American technology to China, specifically, the design of a
pocket heater used in
superconductor research. Xi was arrested by about a dozen
FBI
agents at his home, and faced charges carrying a maximum penalty of 80
years in prison and a $1 million fine. He was put on administrative
leave by Temple University, and resigned as chairman of the physics
department.
[2][3 In September 2015, however, the DOJ dropped all charges against him
after leading scientists, including a co-inventor of the pocket heater,
provided
affidavits that the schematics that Xi shared with Chinese scientists were not restricted technology, and not for a pocket heater.
[2][3]
According to Xi's lawyer Peter Zeidenberg, the government did not
understand the complicated science and failed to consult with experts
before arresting him.
[2]
He said that the information Xi shared, as part of "typical academic
collaboration", was about a different device, which Xi co-invented and
is not restricted technology.
[4]"
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Xiaoxing_Xi