Johnny Depp v. Amber Heard: What we know

The libel lawsuit between actors Johnny Depp and Amber Heard in Virginia has become a fierce battleground over the truth about their relationship, with both sides accusing it of repeated domestic abuse in an arguably turbulent marriage.

Before a seven-member jury at Fairfax County Circuit Court, attorneys questioned witnesses about what has been described as a whirlwind romance that began on a movie set and escalated into a series of fights and physical confrontations. largely account dependent.

Mr. Depp, 58, filed a defamation lawsuit against Ms. Heard, 35, after writing a letter. op-ed He refers to himself as “a public figure representing domestic abuse” for the Washington Post. After more than a year of legal debate, Ms. Heard filed a lawsuit against Mr. Depp, claiming that her former lawyer defamed her when she published statements saying her harassment allegations were a hoax.

Most of the allegations that were aired in the courtroom have already been heard in a British case where Mr Depp lost – in which the actor sued The Sun for making a headline that called him “beating the wife”.

Attempt, The process, which started with the opening discussions on April 12, is expected to take about six weeks.

Why is Mr. Depp suing Ms. Heard?

Mr Depp’s 2019 lawsuit revolves around a 2018 article by Ms Heard entitled “I spoke out against sexual violence and inflicted the wrath of our culture”. That needs to change.”

Mr. Depp is not named in the Op-ed, but Ms. Heard wrote that two years before the article was published, he was “a public figure representing domestic abuse.”

In 2016, Ms. Heard was given a temporary restraining order after she appeared in a California court with a bruised face, writing in an application for an order that Mr. Depp threw a phone in her face at close range. (The player denies this.)

In the application, Ms. Heard wrote that Mr. Depp had verbally and physically abused her throughout their relationship and detailed a recent incident in which she said Depp grabbed her by the hair and violently pushed her to the ground. (Mr Depp wrote in court documents that this was a lie and that he was the one who punched her in the face that night.)

Mr Depp’s lawsuit alleges that Ms. Heard’s harassment allegations were “an elaborate hoax” that cost the actor his career and reputation.

“Mr. Depp is filing this defamation lawsuit to clear his name,” he said.

What did Miss Heard’s Washington Post column say?

Op-ed says that after she became a “public figure representing domestic abuse,” she began to have a backlash on her career.

“My friends and mentors told me I would never work as an actor again, that I would be blacklisted,” he wrote. “It’s a movie I got hooked on to change my role. I shot a two-year campaign as the face of a global fashion brand and the company let me go.”

He wrote that he saw “in real time how institutions are protecting men accused of abuse.” Ms. Heard was identified in the op-ed as a women’s rights ambassador for the American Civil Liberties Union, and in court documents Ms. Heard said she recommended that the ACLU write and submit the article.

Although the trial became a sweeping investigation into the couple’s marriage, Ben Rottenborn, one of Ms. Heard’s attorneys, tried to impress the jury with open arguments that the case was ultimately based on “a single piece of paper” – this op-ed.

Why is Miss Heard suing Mr Depp?

The jury is also considering Ms Heard’s 2020 counterclaim against Mr Depp.

Ms Heard’s allegation of defamation is against Mr Depp, but the statements she focused on came from her former lawyer, Adam Waldman, who told British tabloid The Daily Mail that the actress’s allegations were an “abuse hoax”.

His lawsuit alleges that Mr Depp “authorized and conspired” with Mr Waldman, acting on the actor’s behalf, to “attempt to destroy Ms. Heard and defame Ms. (Mr. Waldman was not named as a defendant.)

What did Mr. Depp say in his statement?

So far, Mr. Depp has testified that he never hit Ms. Heard. nor any other woman. Instead, he claimed The attacker was Miss Heard giving angry speeches and “derogatory nicknames” in the relationship, which often turn into physical violence.

“It can start with a slap, it can start with a push, it can start with throwing a TV remote at my head, it can start with throwing a glass of wine in my face,” Depp said.

The actor recounted several confrontations at the heart of the case, including an incident in 2015 when the couple went to Australia to film the fifth “Pirates of the Caribbean” movie. Mr. Depp said that Ms. Heard was angry that he had spoken to a lawyer about a possible post-nuptial agreement and threw a vodka bottle into her hand, which shattered her hand and seriously injured her middle finger.

“The tip of my finger was severed and I was looking directly at my bone sticking out,” he testified.

At the start of Mr Depp’s cross-examination on Thursday, Mr Rottenborn confronted him with text messages he sent to others, which Ms. Heard called obscenity and called her a “worthless whore”.

Who else will testify?

Most importantly, Miss Heard. Based on the opening argument from one of his lawyers, it’s likely that he gave a very different explanation of the relationship, including what happened in Australia.

Lawyer Elaine Charlson Bredehoft told the jury that Mr. Depp tore Ms. Heard’s nightgown and sexually assaulted her, and Ms. Heard said in court papers that Mr. Depp injured his fingers while “smashing” a phone. she hit him. (Mr Depp testified that he had never sexually assaulted Ms. Heard.)

Ms. Heard’s lawyers have released an extensive list of potential witnesses, including Elon Musk and James Franco. (Ms. Heard exchanged text with Mr Musk about her marriage, which was used as evidence in the British case, and said at this hearing that Mr Franco saw bruises on his face after a controversial argument.)

Other potential witnesses include Mr. Waldman; Anthony Romero, executive director of the ACLU; and Miss Heard’s friends who were present for the important events in the case.

Mr. Depp’s lawyers are a sister, Christi Dembrowski, who acts as personal manager; David Kipper, a doctor who says he treated the actor for his opioid addiction; and the couple’s marriage counselor, Laurel Anderson, said she saw “mutual abuse” in the relationship.

What happened in the British case?

In 2020, a judge found there was “overwhelming evidence” that Mr Depp had repeatedly assaulted Ms. Heard during their marriage and was “fearing for her life”.

Some restrictions appear to have been placed on the British case in Virginia, but these have not been made public. Ms Heard’s lawyers were allowed to reference Mr Depp’s testimony in the case.