Depp-Heard trial | End of the debates, the jury deliberates

(Fairfax) The jury retired on Friday to deliberate in the high-profile trial amid mutual accusations of domestic abuse between Johnny Depp and his ex-wife Amber Heard in a US court, which cast a harsh light on their married life for six weeks.

Amber Heard’s life “has become hell” since the start of the trial, said his lawyer, Elaine Bredehoft, during this final day of proceedings before the court in Fairfax, near Washington.

She asked the jurors – five men and two women – to dismiss Johnny Depp’s complaint to “let her continue with her life and raise her child”.

The 58-year-old actor also wants to “resume the course of his life”, had previously affirmed his lawyer, Camille Vasquez.

The jurors left after more than two hours of discussions without making a decision. They will return from Tuesday to court, Monday being a holiday in the United States.

The star of the saga Pirates of the Caribbean is suing his ex-wife for defamation, who wrote in a column published by the washington post in 2018 to be “a public figure representing domestic violence”, without naming Johnny Depp.

He is seeking $50 million in damages, saying the forum destroyed his career and reputation.

Amber Heard, who appeared in particular in “Justice League” and “Aquaman”, counterattacked and asked for the double. According to her, this “futile” complaint prolongs “the abuse and harassment” that Johnny Depp subjected her to.

“One Attack”

If the jury decides that “Amber suffered even one assault, she wins,” said one of her lawyers, Ben Rottenborn, after listing the couple’s many arguments, some of which, according to the actress. , degenerated into violence.

“Think of the message Mr. Depp and his lawyers are sending to Amber, and by extension to every victim of domestic violence,” he added, referring to the Washington Post column.

“This lawsuit is about a lot more than Johnny Depp vs. Amber Heard, it’s about free speech. Defend her, protect her, ”he told the jurors.

“The First Amendment (of the Constitution) does not protect those who lie and defame others,” replied Camille Vasquez.

The actor’s lawyers have denounced the “lies” of Amber Heard, who according to them wanted to “ruin” her ex-husband.

“Six years ago to the day, on May 27, 2016, M^me Heard walked into court and filed a bogus domestic violence complaint,” Ms.^me Vasquez, claiming that his client was the victim, and not the reverse, of violence on the part of his partner.

His other lawyer, Ben Chew, recalled that “never before Amber Heard had a woman accused Mr. Depp of laying a hand on her in 58 years, and none have done so since”.

Johnny Depp “lost everything” and was “erased by Hollywood” after the column published by his ex-girlfriend, said the lawyer, because “everyone knew who (she) was talking about”.

Death threats

The actor “supports and believes in” the #metoo movement, which denounces violence against women, he assured.

Since April 11, the jury has heard dozens of hours of testimonies and audio or video recordings that have revealed the scabrous details of their life together, far from the glamor of Hollywood.

The actress said that Johnny Depp became a “monster” under the influence of an explosive cocktail of drugs and alcohol and did not follow rehab.

He would have raped her using a bottle of alcohol in March 2015, a month after their marriage, in Australia where the actor was filming episode 5 of Pirates.

That day, Johnny Depp had the end of a finger severed and was hospitalized. He claims it’s because of the glare from a bottle thrown by Amber Heard. She says he hurt himself.

After leaving him in May 2016, she says she became the target of a social media smear campaign that wiped out her career.

“Harassed” since the start of the trial, broadcast live on television, she says she has received “thousands” of death threats.

Johnny Depp can count on the support of hundreds of fans who cheered him on every day in court.

The comedian has already lost a first defamation lawsuit in London in 2020, against the tabloid The Sun who called him a “violent husband”.

The two actors, who divorced in 2017, each claim to have lost between 40 and 50 million dollars in fees since the publication of the tribune.