News
Johnny Wins Trial Against Amber As Jury Rules She Defamed Him
Heard is awarded 2M in compensatory damages and zero in punitive damages.
Johnny Depp has won his defamation case against Amber Heard, with the jury awarding him $15million. The jury of five men and two women resulted in the verdict after nearly 13 hours of deliberations spread over three days at the district court in Fairfax, Virginia.
The Pirates of the Caribbean actor has WON! And while the judge reduced the punitive damages to the Virginia maximum of $350k, Depp will now only receive $8.35 million in total.
Heard was also awarded $2M for one part of her counterclaim, that Mr. Depp’s lawyer had called her abuse allegations against her ex-husband a hoax. The Aquaman star was awarded zero dollars in punitive damages. It’s reported that Depp wasn’t present in court when the verdict was passed as he was in the United Kingdom on tour with guitar legend Jeff beck.
A source claimed his absence was due to previously scheduled work commitments. But then, Heard was seen in court, donning a black dress, and appeared anxious. The actress reportedly hugged her lawyers and exited the courtroom when the verdict was read out. But it was all smiles for Depp’s legal team as they joined in a group hug of ten people.
Accordingly, fans of Mr. Depp cheered outside the courthouse, and a few rejoiced with the actor when he was spotted in Newcastle Quayside.
For anyone interested…Johnny Depp and Sam Fender just been seen in The Bridge Tavern pub on Newcastle Quayside 👍🏻⚫️⚪️ pic.twitter.com/j73jjiSiop
— Darren Williams (@DazWilliams) June 1, 2022
In a statement on his Instagram page, Depp poured out his heart to the public, stating: “And six years later, the jury gave me my life back. I am truly humbled. I feel at peace knowing I have finally accomplished that.”
Heard equally released a statement where she expressed she was heartbroken. She added: “The disappointment I feel today is beyond words. I’m heartbroken that the mountain of evidence still was not enough to stand up to the disproportionate power, influence, and sway of my ex-husband.”
Depp had sued his ex-wife Heard for $50million, claiming she defamed him in an op-ed for The Washington Post, where she described herself as a victim of domestic violence. The trial, which spanned for six weeks, beginning on April 11th, heard both Heard and Depp accuse each other of abuse and gave vastly different accounts of particularly violent incidents during their relationship. Witnesses also testified, including famous faces like Kate Moss, psychiatrists, Hollywood agents, and relatives.
However, the courtroom had experienced a dramatic moment when the jury returned with their verdict only to be told by the judge they hadn’t completed the paperwork.
The judge was given an envelope by an officer of the court and requested the lawyers to approach for a brief discussion. As she was left alone, Heard reportedly looked down to the floor, lost in thoughts before her lawyers returned. Judge Azcarate then had addressed the jury, saying: “I need to give the forms back to you. When you find a defamatory statement, one or more, you need to fill out the compensatory damages. It needs to be at least a dollar up to whatever the damages are. For punitive damages, you can put a zero. I need those lines filled out. Retire back to the deliberation room and do that for me.”
Before the jury came in, Judge Penney Azcarate had also addressed the public gallery: “This is a court of law. Regardless of the verdict, I will not tolerate any outbursts whatsoever.” However, it was the 2nd time the former husband and wife squared off in court as Depp lost a libel case against a British newspaper at the High Court in London in 2020, where a judge ruled it was ‘substantially true’ he was a wife-beater.
