Johnny Depp’s $ 50 million libel trial against Amber Heard’s chosen jury; Opening arguments Start Tmrw – Refresh

2nd update, 12:25 pm: A jury in Virginia filed a $ 50 million libel suit against Amber Heard in a libel suit against Amber Heard this afternoon following a fairly swift selection process.

Eleven members have been selected for the trial, which is expected to last six weeks. In the end, seven members are considered, with four randomly selected members taking turns at the end of the testimony and concluding discussion.

In court with Depp and Herd, potential jurors at the Fairfax District Court were questioned this morning about their previous acquaintance with a high-profile former partner, Herd’s sexuality, and other similar topics. After selecting the jurors, Judge Penny Azkarat instructed voters to make observations or rely on their memory. She warned jurors that they would not be allowed to read the testimony records during the hearing.

After she was first accused of defaming Depp in March 2019, in the Washington Post’s late-2018 article on domestic violence, Herd sued her ex-husband for $ 100 million in the summer of 2020, after. having lost several attempts to unseat the original case.

The trial in Virginia ended today, but the trial will run Monday through Thursday and end on Friday. There will also be a hiatus from May 9-12 when Judge Azkart attends a previously scheduled judicial conference.

First update, 9:42 am: Johnny Depp and Amber Heard looked, but didn’t appear to have eye contact, as their lawyers questioned potential jurors.

The problem is pre-trial publicity in the media and, in some cases, potential jurors who have heard strong views on the case.

While the judge and lawyers questioned potential jurors who had heard about the case, one man shared that he sent his wife a letter this morning about bringing Depp-Hurd to trial. During the interrogation, the man read his wife’s response: “Amber is psychotic. If a man says a woman has been beaten, they will never believe him.

When Herd’s lawyers were asked if he could be impartial despite what his wife had said, the man said yes. “He tends to exaggerate”. The man was also asked if her wife would be offended by him if she supported Depp. “He’s always mad at me,” he said. But he said his wife would understand if she explained the circumstances of the case, after all.

He stayed in the pool.

A potential juror was fired after he said he heard general details that Depp was “beating and lying to him about something”. When asked if he could keep an open mind, he said, “I’ll try.”

Several potential jurors said they found information on the case in the past few days because they wondered why it was happening in Fairfax, where they live. One woman said her staff were talking about her trial, but because she knew she had a jury position, she left. “Then it occurred to us. They kept it in the pool.

Previously, 5:15 am: Over the next six weeks, Johnny Depp’s $ 50 million libel suit against Amber Heard, which begins today, could become the most important role in the former couple’s career.

At the end of the day, with the intention of choosing a jury and opening arguments in front of Virginia judge Penny Azkarat tomorrow, the already well-handled case will be appealed almost quickly, regardless of who wins this long-delayed round. as fired fantastic beasts Star Depp tries to turn his November 2020 UK defeat into libel against tabloid Rupert Murdoch UP.Herd also has a $ 100 million lawsuit.

Among the long and somewhat stellar list of witnesses filed at Fairfax District Court, both Depp and Herd are expected to testify. Pirates of the Caribbean The actor is likely to go first. Both Depp and Heard, wearing suits and boots, entered the Fairfax District Court building this morning.

Even today in the courtroom, about twenty spectators, mostly Depp fans, lined up to take one of the seats to watch the trial.

Among them was Jacintia Gillespie, 52, who said she arrived last night after leaving her home in Brisbane, Australia. She said she booked AirBnB and plans to stay for a month.

“I took leave to be by John’s side, mostly after the British farce, because I was really surprised by this result,” he told Depp to The Sun. “I went through all the evidence I had and it was obvious to me what had happened in this situation, but the judge simply ignored all his evidence and I felt it was disgusting. “

He added: “I think Johnny Depp is a pure soul and I think he always speaks the truth. That’s why I’m here to support him, because I don’t think anyone’s reputation should be tarnished by what I think Amber Heard did. “

Tiffany Lunn of St. Mary County, a doctor, held up a pink neon sign that read, “I wish, never understand!” Some onlookers raised small skull-and-bone crossbones for support.

Cindy Lewis, 59, said she was traveling from Sioux Falls, SD. He said: “It is very unfortunate that he had to endure what he did for her. And he has to pay for what he did, for what he said. ᲧEverything. Angry. She never deserved it. not a thing. “

The bailiff’s deputies at the court have talked a little about the presence of incoming celebrities. “Johnny Depp – Hi, Jack Sparrow!” I told a colleague in advance. The country meticulously prepared for a possible large crowd, with the media separated by the postmodern courthouse entrance across the street.

This fierce battle between Depp and Herd, who divorced in 2016, began amid restraining orders and media outrage when the former sued the latter in March 2019 at the former estate in late 2018. Washington Post Opinion article On Domestic Violence and the Consequences to which the Victim May Be Exposed. The ACLU ambassador’s article on women’s rights never mentioned Depp by name, but in a subsequent nomination for the Oscar-nominated actress she claimed that her job cost her lucrative roles and she has ” ruined “her career. Claiming that he is actually a violent party, Depp claimed Herd’s allegations against him were “part of a subtle fraud to gain positive publicity for Ms. Herd and advance her career.”

After the Spring 2019 lawsuit, in which the defendant was initially WaPo, owned by JeP Bezos, both sides fought tooth and nail, which has become very evident in the courts and tribunals of public opinion. . Herd tried to dismiss the US case on the basis of a UK libel case. Herd was not a party in the UK libel case that Depp was unable to appeal. However, he testified in British actions and received praise for his character from a judge in a British case.

Earlier, when the lawsuit moved to California or was dismissed, Herd sued Depp in 2020. As part of the lawsuit, Herd’s attorneys said that her ex-husband’s close associate and former lawyer, Adam Waldman , defamed her in statements to the press. There is also the problem of personal communications such as Depp’s lyrics. the Avengers Alma and potential witness Paul Bethany, expressing a desire to “strangle” and “burn” Herd. “Then I’ll bury his burnt body to make sure he’s dead,” Depp added to Herd, his sometimes depraved friend. These texts were read aloud with varying degrees of reaction in the UK case.

“He has threatened career ruin and global humiliation and after losing to the UK, this is his latest attempt,” a source familiar with Heard before today’s trial told Deadline. “The jury’s verdict against John will send a message to millions of women who suffer daily violence from intimate partners that they can continue to live safely. And this will also allow Ember to move. “

Although Herd’s legal team, Elaine Charlson Bradhoff, also argues that the UK case is related to the Virginia case, the Fairfax District Court Judge Azkart followed the precedent and ruled out still presenting much of it in between. the public. The jury, at least, so far. Of course, under US law, Depp bears the heavy burden of fully determining that Herd slandered and offended him with his article; It is not an easy task.

“He’s not trying to punish him or humiliate him,” said Brown Ruddick, a source close to DeLP. “He just wants the truth revealed. He wants to clear his name of him and this is the forum that he chose to do so, the court that he is a part of and in the UK he was not involved in that.