(Falls Church) Actress Amber Heard closed her case on Tuesday in the civil lawsuit between her and ex-husband Johnny Depp, without calling the actor to the stand.
Posted at 12:14 p.m.
The lawyers of M.me Heard had originally hinted that they might bring Johnny Depp to testify, but they ultimately chose not to.
The actor is suing his ex-wife for defamation following the publication in the washington post of an op-ed in December 2018. Mme Heard then described himself as “a public figure representing domestic violence.” The actor’s lawyers argue that he was defamed by this letter, even though his name was never mentioned.
Also on Tuesday, Fairfax County Circuit Court Judge Penney Azcarate, in Virginia, refused to grant a motion by Depp’s attorneys to immediately dismiss a $100 million counterclaim Mme Heard had filed against the actor. In this counter-claim, she alleges that Depp’s attorney at the time, Adam Waldman, defamed Mme Heard when he called his assault allegations a hoax.
PHOTOJIM WATSON, REUTERS
Johnny Depp was not called to testify on Tuesday.
Judge Azcarate said the bar for dismissing a claim before it goes to the jury is extremely high, and she believes there is enough evidence to allow this proceeding to move forward. The judge had also already ruled that Johnny Depp could be held responsible for statements made by his lawyer, a principle disputed by his team.
Johnny Depp denied ever hitting Mme Heard; he argues that she was the aggressor in their relationship. Mme Heard has testified to more than a dozen separate instances of physical assaults she says she suffered at the hands of Depp.
The trial is now in its sixth week. Mr. Depp and Mr.me Heard have both previously testified at length about their toxic relationship.