Johnny Depp Wins Defamation Case; The Jury Takes Sides What Amber Heard in a Counterclaim

(Updated with more details and announcements) Johnny Depp won a libel suit against Amber Heard, which was decided Wednesday by a Virginia jury.

After less than three days of deliberation, a seven-member council made a decision. water man The star insulted Depp in late 2018 Washington post Opinion article. In the article, Herd describes himself as the “public face of domestic violence” more than two years after accusing Depp of physical violence and receiving a restraining order against him.

Depp sought $50 million in damages, but the jury awarded him $15 million: $10 million in damages and $5 million in punitive damages. However, Judge Penny Azkarat quickly reduced the amount of punitive damages to $350,000, the maximum allowable in the state, bringing Depp’s total to about $10.4 million.

The five men and two women’s jury voted Herd Depp’s lawyer, Adam Waldman, in an interview with him and his friends, actor Depp. In May 2016, the night of the argument between a couple. The jury awarded Herd $2 million in damages and non-punitive damages.

Depp, who had toured England with his friend Jeff Beck until Tuesday evening, was not in court on Wednesday when the verdict was read. In a statement he said: “The jury gave me my life back. I am very humble”

Johnny Depp responds to Amber Heard’s trial: “The jury brought me back to life”

Representatives of the actor said today that he was watching from England as the verdict in the civil case was read. After the verdict was read and the jury left the hall, the legal team embraced.

“Today’s verdict confirms what we have been saying all along: The allegations against Johnny Depp are slanderous and there is no evidence to support them,” Kamil Vasquez, one of Depp’s lawyers, told reporters. Benjamin Chu, one of their lawyers, said they were “gratified that the trial has brought together so many people in society who value truth and justice.”

As he read the verdicts, Herd looked down in confusion, only up as the jury was questioned. After the jury left, she quickly left the courtroom with her lawyers. She made a statement shortly after.

“It’s heartbreaking that the sheer amount of evidence still isn’t enough to stand up to my ex-husband’s disproportionate power, influence, and influence,” she said.

Outside the Fairfax County courthouse, some Depp fans applauded the decision. The TV lawsuit became a sensation for streaming sites like Law & Crime, which covered the entire show and was often circulated on social media with helpful commentary from Depp.

Amber Heard said the decision was “heartbroken”: “The disappointment I feel today is beyond words”

Before sentencing, the judge had lawyers for both parties, taking into account the fact that the jurors did not initially specify compensation in the form of their sentences. The jury was sent out of the courtroom to score at least $1, the judge instructed them, so at that point the lawyers and Herd knew who had won.

An article compiled by the ACLU three and a half years ago in a powerful newspaper owned by Jeff Bezos made no mention of Depp’s name, but the actor insisted it was him. Depp also said that the 2018 article “destroyed” his career. The former Oscar nominee also claimed that he was actually uncomfortable with his relationship with the Herd, and not vice versa. The couple’s 2016 divorce settlement forbids the actor from suing Herd for his allegations.

The lawsuit was therefore filed in Virginia. Mail It was distributed in the state, but Depp did not name the publication as a defendant. At the time the case was filed, Virginia was considered somewhat more favorable to libel proceedings against the applicants.

Not repeatedly dismissing or transferring a complaint filed in March 2019 to another jurisdiction, Herdie Depp filed a $100 million lawsuit in the summer of 2020. The case was based on comments made by her ex-husband’s former lawyer and right-hand man, Waldman, describing Herd’s allegations of harassment as “untrue” and “untrue”, among other things. The move comes months before Depp slandered the Rupert Murdoch case in the UK. Inside. Magazine called it a “snow crash” and crashed dramatically in November 2020. The actor did not receive an appeal in his libel suit in England last year.

The jury was on Depp’s case in 2019 and Herd’s in 2020. The jury officially began deliberations on Friday after presenting their closing arguments, and on Tuesday asked the judge a question about how they wanted the title of the film. Herds article: “I talked about sexual assault. And it has faced the wrath of our culture. That has to change.”

Although the lawsuit contained defamation, the lawsuit filed for a second divorce for the divorced couple in Los Angeles in 2016. During the show, sensational details were thrown: drug tales, trips to the East. Wars on the express, private planes, and Depp’s private island: They often overshadowed First Amendment issues.

Shortly after the decision, an avalanche of comments, if any, emerged on the outcome of the decision. Lawyer Areva Martin told CNN that the decision “puts women down” and has a “deterrent effect” on women who want to make domestic violence allegations. But in the weeks before the trial, other commentators were warned not to read the case too much, causing the public to stare into the bizarre world of celebrities.

Some First Amendment experts were skeptical that the trial would have a significant impact on libel law.

Roy Gutterman, professor at Syracuse University’s Newhouse School and director of the Tula Center for Free Speech, said in a statement: “The two movie stars had an extremely volatile relationship.

It is unclear whether Herd intends to appeal the decision or seek other legal protections. It is clear that the names of the jurors will not be released by the state of Virginia for at least a year, by order of Azkarat. Jurors can still speak if they wish.