The defamation case brought by Johnny Depp against his ex-wife Amber Heard moved to the jury Friday afternoon after both actors' teams offered closing arguments.
After hearing six weeks of testimony, in which both Heard and Depp took the stand multiple times, the jury must sift through the evidence to determine whether Heard defamed Depp when she wrote an essay for The Washington Post in 2018 describing herself as a domestic abuse survivor. Depp was not named in the opinion-editorial.
The jury is also tasked with addressing the $100 million defamation countersuit Heard filed over statements made by Depp's former attorney Adam Waldman. Waldman made three statements in the Daily Mail in 2020 accusing Heard of orchestrating an abuse "hoax."
During her testimony, Heard alleged that Depp subjected her to years of abuse, testifying in graphic terms about the tumult of their marriage and the toll of his “pattern” of violence. Depp, for his part, said Heard was the aggressor.
Camille Vasquez, who represents Depp in the case, told the jury Friday that Heard is the abuser and that she did in fact orchestrate an "abuse hoax." She alleged that Heard fabricated and staged photos that have been submitted as evidence.
"Today, on May 27, 2022 ... we ask you to give Mr. Depp his life back by telling the world that Mr. Depp is not the abuser Ms. Heard said he is and hold Ms. Heard accountable for her lies," Vasquez told the jury.
But Heard's attorneys pushed back. They said Heard was verbally, emotionally and physically abused during the course of her relationship with Depp. Her op-ed, they argued, was about her own experience after that abuse was made public.
Benjamin Rottenborn, one of Heard's attorneys, said Depp's team has baselessly claimed that her photo evidence is fake and that they are engaging in victim-blaming.
“The facts are absolutely overwhelming of abuse. One time, that’s all you have to remember,” Rottenborn said. “Mr. Depp simply cannot prove to you that he never once abused Amber. ... A ruling against Amber here sends a message that no matter what you do as an abuse victim, you always have to do more.”
The jury did not reach a unanimous verdict by end of business Friday and has been dismissed. It will resume deliberations Tuesday morning, following the Memorial Day holiday.
Jury goes home for holiday weekend
The jury did not reach a unanimous verdict by end of business Friday and has been dismissed.
It will resume deliberations Tuesday morning, following the Memorial Day holiday.
Analysis: The importance of the First Amendment argument from Heard's legal team
Jury deliberations begin
The defamation claims were turned over to the jury to begin its deliberations Friday afternoon.
If the jury cannot come to a unanimous decision by the end of the day, it will not return until Tuesday due to the holiday weekend.
Seven jurors are tasked with coming to a decision, while two others are designated as alternates.
'Stand up for victims,' Heard attorney says in closing
Benjamin Rottenborn, Heard's attorney, urged the jury to "give Amber Heard her voice back" in their decision.
"We ask, ladies and gentlemen, that you hold Mr. Depp accountable for his actions," Rottenborn said. "Stand up for victims of domestic abuse everywhere who are suffering in silence. Stand up for freedom of speech."
Depp promised to bring Heard "global humiliation," Rottenborn said, and once Depp's former attorney Adam Waldman became involved, that promise turned into a forest fire, he argued.
The allegations that Heard created an “abuse hoax,” as Waldman said in the Daily Mail in 2020, are vicious and vile, Rottenborn said.
Heard has lost opportunities since the comments, despite the support of her co-stars and the fact that she tested well among audiences, he added.
"Give Amber Heard her voice back," Rottenborn told the jury. "Give Amber Heard her life back."
Heard's attorney pushes back on claim that 'no one showed up for her'
Heard's attorney Benjamin Rottenborn responded to Depp's attorney's argument that Heard's witnesses, except for her sister, didn't show up for her.
"They say that no one showed up for her," Rottenborn said. "No one showed up for her, but then they say that these people aren't friends anymore. If they're not friends anymore, then why would they be doing what they [Depp's attorneys] would suggest are lying for her? Why would they be corroborating everything that she says?"
Depp's attorneys listed their own witnesses, who were on Depp's payroll, but claimed Heard's only evidence is fake, Rottenborn said.
"The evidence shows she was abused exactly not only how she but her witnesses supporting her claims say that she was," Rottenborn said.
Depp's language and 'dark sense of humor' are not evidence of abuse, his attorney tells jury
Text messages in which Depp used violent and derogatory language do not prove him to be an abuser, Depp's attorney Camille Vasquez told the jury.
Vasquez referred to the text messages as evidence that Depp has a "dark sense of humor."
"Mr. Depp owns text messages; he acknowledges that he said those things and said things he shouldn't have," Vasquez said. "But using bad language and colorful humor does not mean that you are a violent abuser."
Heard's statements caught on audio recording where she admitted to hitting Depp, however, are evidence of abuse, Vasquez said.
"The evidence overwhelmingly shows that Ms. Heard is an abuser and that she is a liar," Vasquez said. "She lied about Mr. Depp and took on the role of a lifetime as a public figure representing abuse."
Heard attempted to make herself the representative for abuse, but she "does not deserve" that role, Vasquez said.
"While you deliberate, ask yourselves why Mr. Depp would put himself through this," Vasquez said. "Exposing every embarrassing detail of his life on national television if he was guilty of anything, anything, that Ms. Heard accuses him of."
Heard's damages claim doesn't hold up, Depp attorney says
Heard can't prove she suffered damages after Depp's former attorney Adam Waldman in the Daily Mail in 2020 accused Heard of orchestrating an "abuse hoax," Camille Vasquez, Depp's attorney, argued.
Waldman's statements cannot be connected to the bad press Heard has received, Vasquez said. She went on to say that the damages Heard's legal team calculated by using other famous actors, such as Jason Momoa or Zendaya, make no sense.
"Ms. Heard has presented no evidence, none, of any film or other projects that she has lost because of the statements," Vasquez said.
'The First Amendment doesn't protect lies,' Depp attorney tells jury
Depp's attorney Camille Vasquez pushed back against Heard's legal team invoking Heard's First Amendment right to publish her 2018 opinion-editorial.
"But the First Amendment doesn't protect lies that hurt and defame people," Vasquez said. "And there's a difference. Ms. Heard has no right to tell the world that Mr. Depp physically or sexually assaulted her when that isn't true."
Vasquez went on to characterize the jury's duty to decide the truth.
"It is a core value of American society that you're innocent until proven guilty," Vasquez said. "There is a presumption of innocence in this country. A person's life cannot and should not be destroyed by a baseless charge and no opportunity to defend yourself."
Depp's attorney picks up rebuttal closing as court resumes
Depp's attorney Camille Vasquez took up rebuttal closing arguments once court returned from lunch, accusing Heard's legal team of mischaracterizing witness statements.
Heard lied, Vasquez said.
"She has come too far; she can't back down," Vasquez said. "She's lied too many times to too many people."
Vasquez accused Heard of changing her story as time goes on, saying the allegations don't hold up.
"Mr. Depp owns his mistake. ... But in this trial, Ms. Heard has been confronted with her lies and the damage she has caused," Vasquez said. "And she cannot take any responsibility for what she has done."
Court adjourns for lunch ahead of rebuttal closing
Circuit Judge Penney Azcarate dismissed the jury for an hourlong lunch break.
When court resumes, each side will be allowed to offer rebuttal closing arguments. Depp's team has 39 minutes remaining, and Heard's team has six minutes.
