Statement on the Dismissal of the Federal Indictment
Xiaoxing Xi
September 12, 2015
I am gratified and relieved that the justice system has done its work and the threat of criminal prosecution of me has been lifted.
We have been living through a nightmare and suffered professionally, mentally, physically, and financially. Although the road ahead will not be easy, I do hope my wife can finally have a good night's sleep free from the all-consuming worries about me and our family. I hope my elder daughter Joyce can again focus on her college work without being occupied by trying to tell everybody that her dad is not a spy. I hope my younger daughter Sarah can start healing from the trauma of seeing armed agents burst into our home and her daddy taken away in handcuffs. I hope my students can now finish their degree work without being concerned about having a "criminal" as their advisor. For me, I can finally travel to see my mother, who had to spend her 90th birthday last June without my presence.
I want to thank my legal team for their excellent work: the lead counsel Mr. Peter Zeidenberg, the local counsel Mike Schwartz, and attorney Tony Shaw. I want to thank my friends, attorneys Tim Tingkang Xia and Yitai Hu, whose advices had been most consequential to me. I want to thank the expert witnesses Dr. Paul Chu, Dr. David Larbalestier, Dr. John Rowell, Mr. Ward Ruby, and Dr. Venky Venkatesan, whose statements were critical in helping to persuade the government to dismiss the case. I want to thank Dr. Charles Clark and Dr. Rongjia Tao for agreeing to serve as the trustees of my legal defense fund (www.xiaoxingxi.org), and attorney Christian McBurney for guidance in setting up the fund. I want to thank Temple University for treating me in the true spirit of "presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty." I want to thank members of my research group who have been working hard just to show me their support by producing good results. I want to thank the many colleagues and friends who expressed their concern and support for me and offered us help and suggestions. I want to thank yet many more friends, known and unknown to me, who have prayed for me. Most of all, I want to thank my family - my wife, my daughters -- who have endured unthinkable anguish, remained strong, did not crumble, and gave me unwavering support that has sustained me through the most difficult of times.
I am innocent. I have done nothing more than common academic collaborations practiced by so many colleagues every day. I am deeply moved by the outpouring of support for me since the dismissal, in particular the sincere apologies from fellow Americans on behalf of the government. At the right time, I will tell my side of the story. Not just to clear my name and repair my reputation, but to do my part in making sure that no American citizen, regardless of where he or she was born, should have to be put through the ordeal that I have gone through. For now, my family and I will take our time to let this momentous event sink in and try to get our life back to some kind of normalcy. Thank you!