{"id":5467,"date":"2023-04-03T16:00:11","date_gmt":"2023-04-03T16:00:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/londonpost.news\/?p=5467"},"modified":"2023-04-03T17:06:00","modified_gmt":"2023-04-03T17:06:00","slug":"former-jewish-school-principal-convicted-of-sexual-abuse-in-australia","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/brusselsindependent.com\/en\/asia\/asia-pacific\/australian-news\/former-jewish-school-principal-convicted-of-sexual-abuse-in-australia\/2023\/04\/03\/admin1\/","title":{"rendered":"Former Jewish school principal convicted of sexual abuse in Australia"},"content":{"rendered":"

MELBOURNE<\/span>\u00a0(AP)<\/span> By Dr. Majid Khan–<\/span> A<\/span> former<\/span> headmaster<\/span> of<\/span> an<\/span> Australian<\/span> Jewish<\/span> girls’<\/span> school<\/span> was<\/span> convicted<\/span> Monday<\/span> of<\/span> sexually<\/span> abusing<\/span> two<\/span> schoolgirls,<\/span> straining<\/span> relations<\/span> between<\/span> the<\/span> Australian<\/span> and<\/span> Israeli<\/span> governments.<\/span> A<\/span> nine-year<\/span> legal<\/span> battle<\/span> that<\/span> has<\/span> also<\/span> affected<\/span> the<\/span> Australian<\/span> government<\/span> has<\/span> come<\/span> to<\/span> an<\/span> end<\/span>.<\/span>
\n<\/span>
\n<\/span>Her<\/span> Malka<\/span> Leifer,<\/span> 56,<\/span> a<\/span> Tel<\/span> Aviv-born<\/span> mother<\/span> of<\/span> eight,<\/span> was<\/span> found<\/span> guilty<\/span> of<\/span> 18<\/span> charges,<\/span> including<\/span> rape,<\/span> and<\/span> her<\/span> 5<\/span> on<\/span> her<\/span> oldest<\/span> student,<\/span> Nicole<\/span> Meyer.<\/span> She<\/span> was<\/span> acquitted<\/span> of<\/span> nine<\/span> charges,<\/span> including<\/span> the<\/span> Her<\/span> three<\/span> former<\/span> students,<\/span> Meyer,<\/span> Dassi<\/span> Erlich<\/span> and<\/span> Elly<\/span> Sapper,<\/span> are<\/span> all<\/span> sisters.<\/span>
\n<\/span>
\n<\/span>Trial<\/span> Judge<\/span> Mark<\/span> Gamble<\/span> said<\/span> the<\/span> media<\/span> would<\/span> report<\/span> at<\/span> the<\/span> trial<\/span> that<\/span> she<\/span> was<\/span> fighting<\/span> extradition<\/span> to<\/span> Australia<\/span> when<\/span> allegations<\/span> against<\/span> her<\/span> first<\/span> surfaced<\/span> after<\/span> Leifer<\/span> returned<\/span> to<\/span> Israel<\/span> in<\/span> 2008,<\/span>issued<\/span> a<\/span> restraining<\/span> order.<\/span> Her<\/span> legal<\/span> battle,<\/span> which<\/span> she<\/span> had<\/span> fought<\/span> in<\/span> a<\/span> Jerusalem<\/span> court<\/span> since<\/span> 2014,<\/span> ended<\/span> in<\/span> 2021<\/span> when<\/span> she<\/span> boarded<\/span> a<\/span> flight<\/span> to<\/span> Melbourne<\/span> from<\/span> Ben<\/span> Gurion<\/span> Airport<\/span> with<\/span> her<\/span> ankles<\/span> and<\/span> wrists<\/span> tied.<\/span> News<\/span> of<\/span> Leifer’s<\/span> extradition<\/span> was<\/span> welcomed<\/span> by<\/span> Australian<\/span> lawmakers<\/span> and<\/span> Jewish<\/span> community<\/span> leaders.<\/span>
\n<\/span>
\n<\/span>Leifer<\/span> sat<\/span> with<\/span> her<\/span> head<\/span> bowed,<\/span> looked<\/span> at<\/span> the<\/span> jury,<\/span> and<\/span> did<\/span> not<\/span> respond<\/span> when<\/span> the<\/span> verdict<\/span> was<\/span> read<\/span> out.The<\/span> two<\/span> former<\/span> students<\/span> she<\/span> was<\/span> convicted<\/span> of<\/span> for<\/span> molesting,<\/span> Erlich<\/span> and<\/span> Sapper,<\/span> were<\/span> at<\/span> the<\/span> verdict.<\/span> Leifer<\/span> had<\/span> previously<\/span> pleaded<\/span> not<\/span> guilty<\/span> to<\/span> all<\/span> 27<\/span> counts.<\/span>
\n<\/span>Erlich<\/span> told<\/span> her<\/span> jury<\/span> that<\/span> she<\/span> tried<\/span> to<\/span> get<\/span> in<\/span> touch<\/span> with<\/span> another<\/span> teacher<\/span> to<\/span> ask<\/span> what<\/span> her<\/span> Leifer<\/span> was<\/span> doing,<\/span> but<\/span> Leifer<\/span> dissuaded<\/span> her.<\/span> “Having<\/span> connections<\/span> with<\/span> other<\/span> teachers,<\/span> having<\/span> multiple<\/span> mentors,”<\/span> Leifer<\/span> said,<\/span> “wasn’t<\/span> healthy<\/span> for<\/span> me,”<\/span> Erlich<\/span> testified.<\/span>
\n<\/span>
\n<\/span>The<\/span> sisters<\/span> testified<\/span> behind<\/span> closed<\/span> doors<\/span> for<\/span> more<\/span> than<\/span> two<\/span> weeks<\/span> under<\/span> the<\/span> rules<\/span> governing<\/span> sexual<\/span> assault<\/span> trials<\/span> in<\/span> Victoria,<\/span> closed<\/span> to<\/span> the<\/span> public<\/span> and<\/span> media.<\/span>
\n<\/span>
\n<\/span>Other<\/span> witnesses<\/span> were<\/span> those<\/span> to<\/span> whom<\/span> the<\/span> sisters<\/span> disclosed<\/span> their<\/span> allegations.<\/span>
\n<\/span>
\n<\/span>Erlich<\/span> first<\/span> spoke<\/span> with<\/span> her<\/span> social<\/span> worker<\/span> Chana<\/span> Rabinowitz<\/span> in<\/span> Israel<\/span> in<\/span> early<\/span> 2008.<\/span> She<\/span> said<\/span> that<\/span> when<\/span> Mr.<\/span> Rabinowitz<\/span> asked<\/span> her<\/span> sister<\/span> who<\/span> had<\/span> hurt<\/span> her,<\/span> she<\/span> replied<\/span> that<\/span> the<\/span> young<\/span> woman<\/span> was<\/span> “Mrs.<\/span> Rabinowitz.”<\/span> Lives.<\/span>
\n<\/span>
\n<\/span>Psychologist<\/span> Vicky<\/span> Gordon<\/span> testified<\/span> that<\/span> she<\/span> heard<\/span> Sapper<\/span> complaining<\/span> of<\/span> abuse<\/span> by<\/span> Leifer.<\/span> Gordon<\/span> said<\/span> in<\/span> court<\/span> that<\/span> her<\/span> sisters<\/span> alleged<\/span> that<\/span> Rafer<\/span> described<\/span> the<\/span> abuse<\/span> as<\/span> an<\/span> attempt<\/span> to<\/span> overcome<\/span> the<\/span> girls’<\/span> lack<\/span> of<\/span> warmth<\/span> and<\/span> affection<\/span> in<\/span> their<\/span> family<\/span> life.<\/span>
\n<\/span>
\n<\/span>Hill<\/span> told<\/span> jurors<\/span> that<\/span> her<\/span> sisters<\/span> loved<\/span> Leifer<\/span> and<\/span> that<\/span> letters<\/span> from<\/span> her<\/span> school<\/span> days<\/span> showed<\/span> that<\/span> she<\/span> appreciated<\/span> her<\/span> support,<\/span> Hill<\/span> said<\/span> after<\/span> the<\/span> allegations<\/span> were<\/span> filed<\/span> in<\/span> 2008.<\/span> ,<\/span> stated<\/span> that<\/span> Ehrlich’s<\/span> story<\/span> changed<\/span> several<\/span> times.<\/span>
\n<\/span>
\n<\/span>“The<\/span> false<\/span> reports<\/span> robbed<\/span> us<\/span> of<\/span> truth<\/span> and<\/span> credibility,”<\/span> Hill<\/span> said.<\/span> “Perhaps<\/span> at<\/span> times<\/span> it<\/span> even<\/span> hardens<\/span> into<\/span> false<\/span> concepts<\/span> and<\/span> false<\/span> memories<\/span> of<\/span> false<\/span> realities.”<\/span>
\n<\/span>
\n<\/span>
\n<\/span>Meyer<\/span> told<\/span> reporters<\/span> in<\/span> court<\/span> that<\/span> her<\/span> conviction<\/span> was<\/span> “everything<\/span> we<\/span> wanted.”<\/span>
\n<\/span>
\n<\/span>“She’s<\/span> fought<\/span> for<\/span> years<\/span> to<\/span> hear<\/span> the<\/span> word<\/span> ‘guilty,’<\/span> ever<\/span> since<\/span> we<\/span> started<\/span> this<\/span> fight,<\/span> since<\/span> she<\/span> made<\/span> a<\/span> statement<\/span> to<\/span> the<\/span> police<\/span> in<\/span> 2011,”<\/span> she<\/span> called.<\/span>
\n<\/span>
\n<\/span>Waks<\/span> said<\/span> the<\/span> trial<\/span> process<\/span> had<\/span> been<\/span> challenging<\/span> for<\/span> the<\/span> sisters<\/span> until<\/span> the<\/span> verdict<\/span> was<\/span> announced.<\/span>
\n<\/span>
\n<\/span>“The<\/span> process<\/span> the<\/span> sisters<\/span> went<\/span> through<\/span> is<\/span> unique<\/span> and<\/span> arduous.<\/span> I<\/span> attended<\/span> 75<\/span> court<\/span> hearings<\/span> in<\/span> Israel<\/span> to<\/span> get<\/span> her<\/span> extradition,”<\/span> Wax<\/span> said.<\/span>
\n<\/span>
\n<\/span>Leifer<\/span> will<\/span> return<\/span> to<\/span> court<\/span> on<\/span> her<\/span> April<\/span> 26th<\/span> to<\/span> hear<\/span> the<\/span> sentencing.<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

MELBOURNE\u00a0(AP) By Dr. Majid Khan– A former headmaster of an Australian Jewish girls’ school was convicted Monday of sexually abusing two schoolgirls, straining relations between the Australian and Israeli governments. A nine-year legal battle that has also affected the Australian government has come to an end. Her Malka Leifer, 56, a Tel Aviv-born mother of […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":5469,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"tdm_status":"","tdm_grid_status":""},"categories":[1566,2403],"tags":[3232,3233,3234,3235,3236,3237,3238,3239,3240,3225,3241,3226,3242,3227,3243,3228,3244,3229,3245,3230,3231],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/brusselsindependent.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/JEW.webp","amp_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/brusselsindependent.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5467"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/brusselsindependent.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/brusselsindependent.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/brusselsindependent.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/brusselsindependent.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=5467"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/brusselsindependent.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5467\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":5484,"href":"https:\/\/brusselsindependent.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5467\/revisions\/5484"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/brusselsindependent.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/5469"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/brusselsindependent.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=5467"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/brusselsindependent.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=5467"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/brusselsindependent.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=5467"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}