Former private school employee avoids prison for computer crimes

WATERBURY – A former Kent School employee convicted of accessing the private photos of 81 students and staff while working as an IT technician will avoid jail time after being sentenced on June 29.

The outcome was already determined in March when Daniel Clery, 49, of Brookfield, Connecticut entered into a plea deal when he pleaded no contest to two counts of first degree computer crimes, for which he was found guilty. While the deal was already established, Clery was formally sentenced at state Superior Court on June 29.

Under the terms of the agreement, Clery will face a 10-year suspended prison sentence that places him on probation for five years and requires him to register as a sex offender for 10 years.

Clery worked for the private school from 2000 to 2023, when he was fired after a staff member reported twice that he had accessed her personal information. A forensic report commissioned by the school and a police investigation yielded thousands of images taken from students’ and staff’s devices, and he was subsequently arrested in 2024.

A separate class-action lawsuit was allowed to partially proceed in March after a judge found the Kent School may be held liable for negligence in allowing for the data breach to occur. The court denied other aspects of the suit that claimed invasion of privacy, computer crimes and negligent infliction of emotional distress against the school.

The plaintiffs, represented by 17 female students who were minors during Clery’s employment at the school, filed an amended suit in April alleging the school should be held accountable for negligence, invasion of privacy, computer privacy violations, statutory computer privacy violations, recklessness and negligent infliction of emotional distress.

The School responded in May with a motion to strike all but the claims of negligence and negligent infliction of emotional distress. The dispute is currently under legal review. The next deadline is July 15, when the plaintiffs are due to respond to the school’s motion.

At the same time, the two sides dispute whether the class named in the suit should be all Kent School students enrolled between 2017 and Clery’s termination in 2023 or the 70 students identified as victims of the Kent School’s commissioned investigation.

Jennifer Sclar of Silver, Golub & Teitell LLP, an attorney representing the plaintiffs, said that the school’s investigation likely does not represent the full scope of those affected by Clery’s crimes. “There is no reason to believe that the universe of victims is limited to the 70 [students] plus 11 [staff],” she said.

“We believe that the notice should go to all students because all students could be victims.”