JAKARTA, KOMPAS.com– Names of Pirates of the Caribbean star Johnny Depp and his ex-wife, Amber Heard continues to be in the spotlight since it was first held, April 11, 2022.
But what really happened between Amber Heard and Johnny Depp to get so much attention. Especially with the presence of many witnesses and famous names who were dragged into it. From Kate Moss who was present as a witness, DC president, Walter Hamada.
Even Elon Musk’s name was also mentioned in the trial as Amber Heard’s ex-girlfriend who was allegedly in a relationship when Amber was still married to Depp.
Read also: Johnny Depp Hugs Camille Vasquez After Giving Closing Arguments
The following is a summary of the cases that are soon to enter the final round of hearing the jury’s verdict from the Court of Fairfax, Virginia.
lawsuit
Depp sued his ex-wife, claiming Amber Heard had defamed him in a December 2018 op-ed published in The Washington Post in which she described herself as a “public figure representing domestic violence”.
Granted, Depp’s name is not mentioned in the article, but he claims that it falsely implies that he is a domestic abuser.
Depp claimed that the article had damaged his reputation and made him fight for roles in Hollywood.
He demanded ‘no less than’ 50 million US dollars (approximately Rp 730 billion).
Read also: 10 Most Shocking Testimonials During Johnny Depp and Amber Heard’s Trial
Back suit
Heard filed a $100 million counter lawsuit against Depp for interference and immunity from his charges.
He accused Depp of orchestrating a “dirty campaign” against him and described his lawsuit as a continuation of “torture and harassment”.
The counterclaim surrounds comments made by one of Depp’s attorneys at the time, Adam Waldman, to MailOnline.
Waldman, who did not represent Depp at the trial, accused Heard of lying about the domestic violence allegations, branding the allegations “false”, “sexual assault hoaxes” and “assault”.
He also leaked the audio recordings to the media.
Heard claims he missed out on a career opportunity because of Waldman’s remarks.
Op-ed Washington Post
The op-ed, published in December 2018, is titled “I speak out against sexual violence – and face the anger of our culture. That has to change.”
“Like many women, I was abused and sexually assaulted while I was in college. But I remained silent — I didn’t expect filing a complaint would bring justice. And I don’t see myself as a victim,” she wrote.
“Then two years ago, I became a public figure representing domestic violence, and I felt the pinnacle of power in our culture’s outrage against women who speak up.”
Johnny’s statement
Depp’s case centers on his claim that he never physically or sexually abused Heard.
Instead, he claims that Heard physically abused him.
Read also: DC president denies Amber Heard nearly lost her role in Aquaman 2 over Johnny Depp case
In one now-famous incident in Australia in 2015, Depp lost his fingertips.
He testified that his finger was severed by Heard throwing a glass bottle at him.
Amber’s Statement
When Heard testified for four days, he informed the court of several alleged incidents of harassment by Depp.
Heard testified that Depp gave him gifts in the early days but soon began to exhibit jealous, controlling behavior around his career and with whom he spent time.
He told the court that, at the start of the violence, Depp would throw something, destroy some items and call her name like a “slut”.
Heard claims that the first time Depp hit him was when he laughed at his “wino” tattoo.
During his testimony Heard also gave a very different story to Depp when he lost his fingertips in Australia in 2015.
Read also: Called Not Comparable to Johnny Depp, How Much Wealth Amber Heard?
She testified that her husband pinned her at the bar and sexually assaulted her with a glass liquor bottle.
Heard said he lay in fear that the glass bottle might have shattered inside him.
What will happen next?
Both parties have submitted closing statements to the jury on Friday (27/5/2022).
Seven jurors are currently deliberating the civil case and will reach a verdict on Depp’s lawsuit and Heard’s counterclaim.
The jury will have to reach a verdict on whether Heard defamed Depp in the op-ed or not.
The burden of proof is on Depp to prove that Heard’s opinion in the Washington Post was about Depp, slanderous and false and that the statements were made with malicious intent.
If the jury finds that Heard defamed Depp, he will be ordered to pay damages to him.
The jury will then determine the amount Heard must pay. They can recommend a full 50 million US dollars or more or less.
The jury will also have to make a decision on whether Waldman – while acting as Depp’s agent – defamed Heard in his statements to the media or not.
The burden of proof is on Heard to prove that Waldman’s comments about Heard were wrong and that the statements were made with malicious intent.
If the jury wins Heard, they will then determine the amount he will have to pay in damages by Depp. Again, this could be more or less than the $100 million he’s looking for.
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