UNITED STATES OF AMERICA v. XIAORONG YOU aka Shannon You - Articles

All Content

UNITED STATES OF AMERICA v. XIAORONG YOU aka Shannon You

Posted by: Karen Belcher on Jul 11, 2023

Court: 6th Circuit Court (Published Opinions)

Attorneys 1: ARGUED: John D. Cline, LAW OFFICE OF JOHN D. CLINE, Seattle, Washington, for Appellant.

Attorneys 2: ARGUED: Joseph Palmer, UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE, Washington, D.C., for Appellee.

Attorneys 3: ON BRIEF: John D. Cline, LAW OFFICE OF JOHN D. CLINE, Seattle, Washington, Jason Liang LIANG LY LLP, Los Angeles, California, Brian A. Sun, NORTON ROSE FULBRIGHT, Los Angeles, California, for Appellant.

Attorneys 4: ON BRIEF: Joseph Palmer, UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE, Washington, D.C., for Appellee.

Judge(s): BOGGS, GIBBONS, and McKEAGUE, Circuit Judges

Court Appealed: United States District Court for the Eastern District of Tennessee at Greeneville

BOGGS, Circuit Judge. A jury convicted Xiaorong You, a chemical engineer, of stealing trade secrets from her former employers. On appeal, You argues that the district court admitted racist testimony that denied her a fair trial, gave jury instructions that mischaracterized the government’s burden of proof as to You’s knowledge of the trade secrets and their value to China, and, in calculating her sentence, both improperly considered and unreasonably calculated the loss that she intended to cause.

We affirm You’s conviction, but vacate the sentence imposed and remand for resentencing. The district court did not err in its evidentiary rulings, its jury instructions, or its reliance on intended loss. However, in calculating the intended loss, the district court clearly erred by relying on market estimates that it deemed speculative and by confusing anticipated sales of You’s planned business with its anticipated profits.

Attachments: