Knoxville (TN) - David Kernell, who was indicted earlier in the week for illegally gaining access to Governor Sarah Palin’s personal Yahoo e-mail account, was allegedly also involved in computer intrusion almost eight years ago, when he was only in middle school. Another student and Kernell guessed the password to a school server when they were in attendance at Easter Hills Middle School in Texas. They were able to gain access to nothing more than some lesson plans, alleges one of Kernell’s middle school teachers.
This news was reported recently by The Killeen Daily Herald, which quoted Kernell’s former history teacher, Tracey McDaniels, who made the discovery.
The incident, which was considered by the school to be minor, happened from a computer in a classroom when Kernell was only in the seventh grade. The server for the school stored nothing more than teaching materials, so the students were not able to access anything private or sensitive data on the network. Once they were caught by McDaniels, they quickly admitted to what they had done.
For the unauthorized access, the students were given after-school detention.
The Killeen Daily Herald stated that Kernell was residing in Killeen, Texas, with his mother Dr. Lillian Landrigan. His father, state representative for Tennessee, Mike Kernel, was residing in Memphis where Kernell would visit.
McDaniels told the Daily Herald that Kernell was one among the students to take higher level classes for the talented and gifted; he described Kernell as "the kind of kid you could not forget."
"He was one of the smartest kids I ever taught, especially when it came to social sciences and politics," McDaniels said, adding that "he stood head and shoulders above everybody else in the political spectrum. I was a political science major in college, and he could hold a conversation with me — a coherent one."
Kernell was into computer games and computers his entire life. He has also been described as been a great chess player, and was a United States Chess Federation-rated player.
McDaniels also mentioned that Kernell kept to himself and was “standoffish” and that he felt other children didn’t really know what to make of him.
By the time Kernell arrived in college, he had obviously come into his own, and no longer kept to himself. He had roommates at the University of Tennessee- one male and two females who were all enjoying themselves and throwing a party when the FBI showed up to deliver and execute a search warrant on September 21, 2008. During his arraignment yesterday, Kernell also stated that he has a girlfriend who resides in South Carolina.
This news was reported recently by The Killeen Daily Herald, which quoted Kernell’s former history teacher, Tracey McDaniels, who made the discovery.
The incident, which was considered by the school to be minor, happened from a computer in a classroom when Kernell was only in the seventh grade. The server for the school stored nothing more than teaching materials, so the students were not able to access anything private or sensitive data on the network. Once they were caught by McDaniels, they quickly admitted to what they had done.
For the unauthorized access, the students were given after-school detention.
The Killeen Daily Herald stated that Kernell was residing in Killeen, Texas, with his mother Dr. Lillian Landrigan. His father, state representative for Tennessee, Mike Kernel, was residing in Memphis where Kernell would visit.
McDaniels told the Daily Herald that Kernell was one among the students to take higher level classes for the talented and gifted; he described Kernell as "the kind of kid you could not forget."
"He was one of the smartest kids I ever taught, especially when it came to social sciences and politics," McDaniels said, adding that "he stood head and shoulders above everybody else in the political spectrum. I was a political science major in college, and he could hold a conversation with me — a coherent one."
Kernell was into computer games and computers his entire life. He has also been described as been a great chess player, and was a United States Chess Federation-rated player.
McDaniels also mentioned that Kernell kept to himself and was “standoffish” and that he felt other children didn’t really know what to make of him.
By the time Kernell arrived in college, he had obviously come into his own, and no longer kept to himself. He had roommates at the University of Tennessee- one male and two females who were all enjoying themselves and throwing a party when the FBI showed up to deliver and execute a search warrant on September 21, 2008. During his arraignment yesterday, Kernell also stated that he has a girlfriend who resides in South Carolina.