Leifer looked downward for most of the hearing, only speaking once to answer “yes” when asked if she could see the court proceedings on the video link – a question she did not respond to during her previous court appearance.
Prosecutor Holly Baxter said she would prefer the five-day committal hearing set for September be conducted in-person, as the sisters want to give evidence against Leifer in person, as opposed to remotely.
Leifer’s lawyer, Tony Hargreaves, also said he preferred an in-person committal hearing.
Hargreaves said the defence planned to cross-examine sisters Dassi Erlich, Elly Saper and Nicole Meyer, who have alleged abuse by Leifer when they were her students at the Adass Israel ultra-Orthodox Jewish girls school.
The former principal of the Adass Israel School in Elsternwick is accused of sexually abusing three of her then students between 2004 and 2008.
Charge sheets allege most of the offences were committed in Elsternwick, but also in Elwood, Frankston and Emerald and the regional towns of Blampied and Rawson.
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Sisters Elly Sapper, Dassi Erlich and Nicole Meyer, the women who allege they were abused as children by Ms Leifer, were among the 30 people watching Thursday’s hearing via video link.
Ms Leifer has long maintained she is innocent.
She fled to Israel in 2008 when the allegations were first aired, but was extradited this week following the decision of the Supreme Court of Israel, which dismissed her final appearance and ordered she return to Australia to face prosecution.
Extradited teacher appears in Australia court on sex charges thetelegraph.com - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from thetelegraph.com Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
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Wearing a headscarf, she sat with her head in her hands during the 20-minute hearing where the 74 charges against her were read in court for the first time. She did not respond when Magistrate Johanna Metcalf asked if she could see and hear the proceedings.
Guards in the room with Leifer confirmed that the audio-visual link was working.
She previously has maintained her innocence against accusations of sexually abusing several former students at a Jewish school in Melbourne.
The 74 charges include 11 of rape and three of sexually penetrating a child. There were also 47 counts of indecent assault and 13 of committing an indecent act with a child. It was not immediately clear what the maximum penalty would be that she could face.
Leifer appeared in Melbourne Magistrates Court on Thursday via video link from North Melbourne Police Station.
It was her first Australian court appearance following years of extradition proceedings in Israel.
She did not respond when asked by magistrate Johanna Metcalf if she could see and hear the court.
Custody officials in the room with her confirmed the audio-visual link was working.
Leifer sat with her head in her hands.
Lawyer Tony Hargreaves said she had significant mental health issues requiring various types of medication.
Victorian Police officers are stationed at Melbourne International Airport as Malka Leifer arrives.
AAP
He asked for Leifer to be transferred to a prison as quickly as possible for the sake of her mental health, because the police station did not have the resources needed.