Legal Defense Fund for Franklin Tao

Dear Friends and Supporters,

As you may know, on July 11th, 2024 , the U.S. 10th Circuit Appeal Court overturned Franklin’s only remaining conviction and ordered the district court to enter a verdict of NOT GUILTY!!! After the five year long and difficult period, Franklin has been completely exonerated!!!

Franklin and I wish to express our heartfelt gratitude for your unwavering support and dedication, which have been instrumental in our winning the appeal in the Appeal Court. As a result of your support, Franklin has proved his innocence! All 10 counts imposed on him were expunged. We always knew he was innocent, and now the Court has finally agreed.

However, it is a bittersweet win. The total cost of fighting these bogus charges for the past five years cost over $2.3 million, and we still carry over $1.05 million in debt despite your generous support. Franklin has not earned a salary for over four years. Our family is deeply in debt, and I kindly request your assistance with this remaining legal defense debt.

Once again, thank you for your exceptional dedication and support. May GOD bless you and your family abundantly.

Warm regards,

Hong Peng

The following is a brief of the five-year ordeal.

You may learn more about the case from https://www.apajusticetaskforce.org/china-initiative-cases/franklin-tao

On August 21, 2019, the Department of Justice (DOJ) announced the indictment of Franklin Tao, a professor at University of Kansas for failing to disclose alleged conflict of interest with Fuzhou University in China.

Professor Tao was the first professor indicted under the China Initiative.

Professor Tao was born in China and moved to the U.S. in 2002. He earned his doctorate’s degree from Princeton University in 2006 and worked at the University of California-Berkeley and Lawrence Berkeley National Lab as a postdoc in 2006-2010 and at Notre Dame as a tenure-track assistant professor in 2010-2014; Then, he was hired as a tenured Miller associate professor at the University of Kansas in August 2014.

The jury trial was delayed several times. The government superseded the indictment on June 24, 2020, imposing the total of 10 counts of wire fraud and false statement.

In full support of Professor Tao, the community submitted amicus briefs, organized rallies, and raised legal defense funds.

In February 2021, the government voluntarily dropped two counts.

A jury trial started on March 21, 2022. The jury acquitted him on four counts.

On September 20, 2022, U.S. District Court Senior Judge Julie Robinson acquitted him on three wire fraud counts.

On January 18, 2023, U.S. District Court Senior Judge Julie Robinson handed down the lightest possible sentence with no jail time, no fine, and 2 years of probation.

Professor Tao started to appeal for overturning the conviction of the sole remaining count in Jan 2023.

On September 21, 2023, the 10th Circuit Appeals Court held a hearing in Denver, Colorado, on Professor Tao’s appeal to overturn the sole conviction.

The district court ended the probation on February 26, 2024 in advance.

On July 11, 2024, the Appeals Court reversed the conviction of the sole remaining count and ordered the district court to enter an order of acquittal.

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We have an important update and decision to share with you.

On September 20, Judge Robinson found my husband NOT GUILTY of the three counts of wire fraud that he was convicted of by a jury. We are grateful to the Judge for the acquittal of the three counts. We have come a long way: from ten federal felony charges down to one last single count of false statement. This could not have happened without your support and spiritual comfort. (See report by Nature: https://www.nature.com/articles/d41586-022-03007-w or search in Google with " Convictions reversed for US chemical engineer accused of hiding China ties " )

Now, with your unfailing and continued support, our family will go on to appeal this last count to the higher court! It has been a long, tough journey. Three years of living in hell. It has ruined our family. We currently still have $1.1 million in debt to the law firm after paying with gofundme donations and our loans and savings. With more legal fees to come for this expensive appeal, we really cannot go on without you standing by our side. America has a great legal system if only you can afford it. We come to seek your help once again. Our family needs to win it. Our community needs to win it! We need to fight this last fight together!! (Tip is not necessary when donating).

May God Bless You and Your Family!!

Hong Peng

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(Posted in March 2022)

Dear Fellow Citizens and Residents,

University of Kansas professor Franklin Tao needs your help!

Professor Tao was charged by the federal government under the now-defunct China Initiative for something he insists he did not do, and no one would have been charged for it were it not related to China. Right now, he is standing trial at a federal district court in Kansas City.

Like Professor Tao, we were once prosecuted by our own government. The charges were either later dropped by the government or rejected by a judge because they were false. The nightmarish experiences ruined our lives and the lives of our families. They happened only because the DOJ thinks we are spies for China since that's where we came from.

Whatever the outcome of Professor Tao's trial is, we want to see justice being served, which cannot happen if the defendant does not have enough money to pay for the defense. We can never forget our anguish of not knowing how to find hundreds of thousand of dollars to pay for the legal fees despite knowing that we were innocent.

Professor Tao's case has lasted for two and a half years. His family is in a crushing debt. We know some cases when people pleaded guilty not because they thought it was fair or they were guilty, but because they did not have the money to fight on. Professor Tao has chosen not to do this, and we should help him in his fight for justice.

Please donate NOW to Professor Tao's legal defense fund at https://www.gofundme.com/f/Legal-Defense-Fund-for-Franklin-Tao. If justice is not served for one, it is not served for us all.

Sincerely,

Sherry Chen, Dr. Xiaoxing Xi, Dr. Qing Wang, Dr. Anming Hu & Dr. Gang Chen

MIT Prof. Gang Chen: “I have just gone through this worst nightmare of my life. It is utterly unjust and utterly un-American. We should support Professor Tao so that he can have a fighting chance in the upcoming court battle.”

UTK Prof. Anming Hu: “ 我叫胡安明，是“中国行动计划”被起诉教授中第一个经历了庭审的，刚刚在法庭上重获我的清白和自由。就像陈刚教授所说，我也成为不幸的人中最幸运的一位。我深知在这个关键时刻，大家的帮助对陶教授来说是多么的重要！陶教授一家及其律师团队在过去二年半的法律斗争及庭审等待中做出了艰苦卓绝的努力， 已经耗尽一切可以利用的资源。在他们一家最艰难的时刻，迫切希望您能伸出援助之手！帮助陶教授就是帮助我们自己。衷心感谢您的声援和爱心！”

CALDA (华美维权同盟) : “ 陶教授被美国政府起诉只因为他是华人，如果陶教授不安全，我们所有在美华人都不安全。帮陶教授就是帮我们自己! ”

Dear Family and Friends, 

My name is Hong Peng, wife of Prof Franklin Feng Tao, who has been a victim of the by now terminated “China Initiative”. Even as the nation came to realize the harm and suffering the China Initiative has caused, DOJ has not dropped the case against my husband who will still face the trial soon, starting from March 21, 2022. I have been working for three jobs to sustain my family and pay for the legal bill. We are now more than half a million in debt for our legal defense, this is after the Chinese community helped us raise $430,000 last year to help pay my husband’s prior legal bill, for which we are forever grateful. Ever since then we have accumulated another $570,000 new legal fee to be paid. We don’t have any other sources of income (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IA4oT0EHjZ0 at 59:25). 

Now, Prof Gang Chen of MIT, another victim under the China Initiative ( https://www.cbsnews.com/video/mit-professor-who-faced-charges-for-china-ties-speaks-out/#x ), has stepped up to support my family by calling for people to support us while also donating $10,000 of his personal income to help us, in addition to the previous donation from his wife. “I have just gone through this worst nightmare of my life,” says Prof Chen. “It is utterly unjust and utterly un-American. We should support Professor Tao so that he can have a fighting chance in the upcoming court battle.” 

To pay for the bill now before the trial even starts, we have to raise a minimum of $570,000 we owe, in addition to last year’s $430,000 you all donated to the Franklin Tao Legal Defense Fund. We are deeply grateful for your generosity and help in spreading words on the fundraising. May God Bless You!

A kindly reminder: GoFundMe automatically applies a 15% tip when you donate. You don’t have to. You may change the tip % to 0 or any other number. 

Sincerely

Hong Peng