United States v. Zhi Yong Guo

A jury convicted Defendant Zhi Yong Guo of knowingly and willfully conspiring to export, and attempting to export, ten export-controlled thermal imaging cameras without a license. We affirm because the statute of conviction is constitutional.

I. BACKGROUND

The United States restricts the export of technologies that it deems potentially dangerous to national security. A complicated framework of statutes, executive orders, and regulations effects those restrictions. This case concerns one such export-controlled technology, namely, thermal imaging cameras.

Thermal imaging cameras convert heat energy into live video, allowing users to see the images around them at any time of day or night. Anyone who wants to take or send a thermal imaging camera of the kind restricted by United States regulations to an export-controlled country must first obtain a license from the Department of Commerce. Failure to obtain such a license subjects the offender to civil and criminal penalties under 50 U.S.C. § 1705 .

Defendant worked as an engineer in Beijing, China, where he owned and operated a company devoted to developing photoelectric technologies. He is a Chinese citizen and national.…