JOHNNY DEPP WINS DEFAMATION CASE AGAINST EX-WIFE AMBER HEARD

After several weeks and three days of deliberations, the verdict is in, and actress Amber Heard has been found guilty on all three counts of the defamation lawsuit filed by her ex-husband, Johnny Depp.

Johnny Depp was seeking fifty million dollars when he slammed Amber Heard with a defamation lawsuit over a 2018 op-ed she wrote for The Washington Post. In the piece, she referred to herself as a public figure representing domestic abuse, following her split from the actor.

Johnny Depp and his legal team argued that while he was not named in Amber’s op-ed piece, he allegedly lost lucrative business deals and acting roles, including a long-standing deal with Disney.

Amber Heard then countersued Johnny Depp for one hundred million dollars, standing by her abuse allegations.

Reading the final verdict, the jury has now awarded Johnny Depp fifteen million dollars in damages, which is ten million dollars in compensatory damages and five million dollars in punitive damages.

The jury’s decision was also split, as they found out that one of the three statements at the centre of Amber Heard’s lawsuit, by one of Johnny Depp’s lawyers at the time, had been defamatory, so she was also awarded two million dollars in compensatory damages.

Reacting to the loss, Amber Heard issued a statement writing, “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. I’m even more disappointed with what this verdict means for other women. It is a setback. It sets back the clock to a time when a woman who spoke up and spoke out could be publicly shamed and humiliated. It sets back the idea that violence against women is to be taken seriously.”

The Aquaman star continued, “I believe Johnny’s attorneys succeeded in getting the jury to overlook the key issue of freedom of speech and ignore evidence that was so conclusive that we won in the UK. I’m sad I lost this case. But I am sadder still that I seem to have lost a right I thought I had as an American – to speak freely and openly.”

Reacting to his victory Johnny Deep wrote, “Six years ago, my life, the life of my children, the lives of those closest to me, and also, the lives of the people who for many, many years have supported and believed in me were forever changed. All in the blink of an eye. False, very serious and criminal allegations were levied at me via the media, which triggered an endless barrage of hateful content, although no charges were ever brought against me. It had already travelled around the world twice within a nanosecond and it had a seismic impact on my life and my career. And six years later, the jury gave me my life back. I am truly humbled.”

The Pirates of the Caribbean star went on to write that he only decided to pursue the case after careful thought, knowing very well the height of the legal hurdles that he would be facing and the inevitable, worldwide spectacle into my life.

He reiterated the testimony he delivered earlier in the trial, saying that his goal was always to reveal the truth, regardless of what the jury decided. “I feel at peace knowing I have finally accomplished that,” he said.

The actor also added that he’s overwhelmed by the support he’s received, and hopes that his quest to have the truth be told will have helped others, men or women, who have found themselves in his situation, and that those supporting them never give up.

Johnny Depp then thanked the court and its staff for sacrificing their own time to get to this point and thanked his diligent and unwavering lawyers for doing an extraordinary job in helping him to share the truth.

He then concluded by writing, “The best is yet to come and a new chapter has finally begun.”

Johnny Depp and Amber Heard got married in 2015 and called it quits in their relationship in 2017.