An Australian court ruled on Thursday that a former principal of an ultra-Orthodox Jewish girls’ school must stand trial on charges that she had sexually assaulted students under her care. The decision came months after she was extradited from Israel, following a long deportation battle that strained ties between the two countries.
The Australian police initially charged the former principal, Malka Leifer, in 2012 with 74 sexual offences, but a lawyer for the prosecution asked the court to withdraw four counts because the alleged crimes had occurred in Israel.
The magistrate, Johanna Metcalf, determined there was enough evidence “to support a conviction for the remainder of the offenses of which the accused is charged”. Leifer, 55, pleaded not guilty to 70 counts in connection with offences that the prosecution said happened between 2004 and 2008.