Julie Amero
Posted by: Webmaster in Connecticut, FE-CP, Middle Schools, Substitute TeachersJulie Amero, 40, of Windham, Connecticut and a former substitute seventh grade teacher at Kelly Middle School, in Norwich was looking at up to 40 years in prison.
She won a victory of sorts today when at her formal sentencing her conviction was tossed out.
At the sentencing hearing the defense made a motion for a new trial and prosecutors did not object. This owing to the fact that AFTER Amero’s trial was concluded and she was found guilty on four counts of risk of injury to a minor, or impairing the morals of a child the state FINALLY sent the classroom computer at the center of the charges against Amero into a state lab for testing.
The computer was sent to a state laboratory after the trial, and the judge said Wednesday that those findings may contradict evidence presented by the state computer expert.
“The jury may have relied, at least in part, on that faulty information,” said Judge Hillary B. Strackbein, who granted the request for a new trial.
All along Amero who pleaded not guilty to the charges has denied clicking on pornographic Web sites that appeared on her classroom’s computer screen in October 2004 exposing seventh graders to hard-core porn.
Amero’s attorney commended prosecutors saying they acted responsibly in not opposing the motion for a new trial.
No date has been set for the new trial and there is a possibility there will be none owing to the new evidence and a groundswell of support from technology experts who believe spyware and adware programs might have generated the pop-up ads for pornographic Web sites.
07/21/08 - Charges Still Pending
Thirteen months after a judge threw out a jury’s verdict against former substitute teacher Julie Amero, supporters of the accused woman have turned up the heat on Connecticut prosecutors to drop all charges.
Opinion of the Webmaster
I was shocked and dismayed to read that prosecutors are still holding the possibility of another trial over the head of this poor woman, who has been through so much already.
Granted prosecutors do not like to admit that the prosecution of any individual was a mistake, but the weight of collected evidence proves to anyone with an open mind and a bit of common sense that Julie Amero is not only not guilty but in fact innocent beyond any doubt.
That this case demonstrates a gross miscarriage of justice in the extreme is without doubt and gives rise to consideration of the possibility of a malicious prosecution and the civil rights issues that entails.
It is well beyond time that prosecutors sucked up their guts, summoned up their courage and admit that they made a mistake and drop all charges against Julie Amero.
To do otherwise is an extreme insult to the very justice they claim to uphold.
11/22/08 - Guilty Plea to Misdemeanor Disorderly Conduct
After four long years, the Julie Amero case has come to a conclusion with a plea deal with Amero pleading guilty to a misdemeanor disorderly conduct count, giving up her teaching certificate and paying a $100 fine.
Opinion of the Webmaster
Who can blame Julie Amero for wanting this horror story over once and for all.
Shortly after entering her plea Amero said, “Oh honey, it’s over. I feel wonderful” and that is certainly understandable considering what Julie Amero has gone through.
Seldom does the criminal justice system demonstrate such an utter failure to achieving justice as occurred in this case.
In light of this fiasco I am led to the opinion that the Norwich Police Department, the New London County State’s Attorney’s office and its so called “expert witness” are a disgrace to competent law enforcement officers everywhere and as such should not be entrusted with investigating parking infractions, let alone criminal matters that could send a person to prison for 40 years or more.
Hopefully Julie Amero will find peace and happiness this holiday season.
And hopefully the bozos that tried to put her in prison will find a new line of work, for the sad truth is that they are miserable failures in the criminal justice system.
Reference:
How Spyware Nearly Sent a Teacher to Prison (11/26/08)
Plea deal ends case in teacher porn allegation (11/22/08)
Norwich “pop-up” porn case settled (11/22/08)
Misdemeanor Plea Ends Norwich Pornography Case (11/22/08)
Spyware case finally closed for teacher Julie Amero (11/22/08)
Prosecutors criticized in pop-up porn case (07/21/08)
New Trial Granted for Former Teacher Accused of Showing Students Pornography
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November 24th, 2008 at 3:20 pm
This is a sad end to one of the sorriest prosecutions I have ever seen on this site. If the DA was worth his or her license, (s)he would have dropped the charges or gone through with a retrial and let the innocence be proved.
That Ms. Amero will not have to register as a sex offender is a pyrrhic victory, because it came at the cost of her teaching license.
November 23rd, 2008 at 4:15 pm
This whole case is so sad. It is a true testament to the prosecutor’s utter ignorance, arrogance, and lack of any sense of morality. I am glad it is over her, but it is sad she had to go through this at all, and in the end, give up her teaching license just to appease this maniac’s ego. A sad day for justice to be sure.