Bankstown nurses accused of threatening patients to face video evidence at trial

Video evidence once deemed inadmissable has been reinstated as two nurses accused of making hateful statements towards Israeli patents near trial.

Sarah Abu Lebdeh, 27, and Ahmad Rashad Nadir, 28, drew online ire after a video of the duo was leaked last February by an Israeli activist.

Police alleged Ms Abu Lebdeh and Mr Nadir, in the video, threatened violence against Israeli patients at Bankstown Hospital, in Sydney’s west, where the pair worked as nurses.

The pair were charged with using a carriage service to menace, harass or offend, with Ms Abu Lebdeh also charged with threatening violence to a group.

Both have pleaded not guilty to all charges.

In June, a NSW court ruled the video was inadmissable and would be excluded from trial as it was taken without consent.

The video was a recorded snippet from an online chatroom.

“Ultimately, I have come to the firm view that all the video evidence must be excluded from each of the trials of the applicants,” Judge Michael McHugh said at the ruling.

“(Evidence obtained illegally should only be allowed if) the desirability of admission outweighs the undesirability of admitting evidence that has been obtained in such a way or ways.”

In NSW, it is illegal to record a “private conversation” or activity without the consent of the parties involved. The crime carries a maximum sentence of five years imprisonment if convicted.

Following Judge McHugh’s ruling, the Commonwealth Department of Public Prosecutions appealed the decision to exclude the evidence.

On Friday, the NSW Supreme Court set aside Judge McHugh’s decision, instead ruling the “unedited audio visual” evidence was admissible and can be used at trial.

The court’s reasons will be published at a later date.

The former nurses are set to stand trial from August 31.