Schoolteacher granted new trial in spyware-porn case

Computer-forensic evidence could keep Amero out of jail

Connecticut schoolteacher Julie Amero, convicted in a classroom computer-porn incident she says happened because spyware took over the computer at her desk, today was granted a new trial instead of a possible jail term.

Amero, a substitute teacher, had faced a possible 40-year jail term related to her conviction last January on four counts of risk to a minor pertaining to the porn-image pop-ups that students at Kelly Middle School saw on Oct. 19, 2004, on the computer at her desk.

But instead of sentencing Amero today, as had been scheduled, New London Superior Court Judge Hillary Strackbein granted the request filed yesterday by Amero’s defense lawyer William Dow III for a new trial based on additional computer-forensic evidence he has shared with the state.

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Connecticut schoolteacher Julie Amero, convicted in a classroom computer-porn incident she says happened because spyware took over the computer at her desk, today was granted a new trial instead of a possible jail term.

Amero, a substitute teacher, had faced a possible 40-year jail term related to her conviction last January on four counts of risk to a minor pertaining to the porn-image pop-ups that students at Kelly Middle School saw on Oct. 19, 2004, on the computer at her desk.

But instead of sentencing Amero today, as had been scheduled, New London Superior Court Judge Hillary Strackbein granted the request filed yesterday by Amero’s defense lawyer William Dow III for a new trial based on additional computer-forensic evidence he has shared with the state.

In Connecticut, the Norwich Bulletin reported today Amero that said she “felt very comfortable with the decision” to be granted another trial to defend herself, and that state prosecutor David Smith also said forensic evidence presented during Amero’s first trial may have included some “erroneous information.”

The case of Amero, who has protested her innocence from the start and blamed spyware for taking over her computer for the pornographic images that students saw, has attracted attention among IT managers at school districts across the country.

Some IT managers, such as Tom Sims, director of network services for Miami-Dade Public Schools, have said it’s not out of the question to imagine that Amero’s computer was infected by spyware.

The case has also caught the attention of antispyware industry experts, some who have been quietly contributing their expertise in malware detection and forensics behind the scenes to assist Amero in her defense.

Alex Eckelberry, president of Sunbelt Software, says computer forensics expert Dr. Glenn Dardick, along with individuals from security firms Sunbelt, MessageLabs and SecureWorks, have lent their expertise in the Amero case.

“Obviously, I’m very pleased at the outcome,” Eckelberry says, alluding to Amero’s chance at a second trial. That trial has not yet not been scheduled.

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