Justice: Johnny Depp Wins as Jury finds Amber Heard Guilty of Defamation
The jury deliberating the high-profile defamation trial and claims between Hollywood actor, Johnny Depp and ex-wife and fellow actor, Amber Heard has finally reached its long-awaited verdict on Wednesday, ruling in favour of Depp, who claimed Heard defamed him when she referred to herself as a survivor of domestic violence in a 2018 article.
As the verdict was delivered at the courtroom in Fairfax, Virginia, Heard cast her head down and appeared to be struggling to hold back tears.
Depp, 58, sued Heard, 36, for $50 million, accusing her of libeling him with a 2018 op-ed she wrote for the Washington Post in which she described herself as “a public figure representing domestic abuse.” The three-time Oscar nominee claimed her article ruined his career and led to a series of cancelled film projects, including a sixth Pirates of the Caribbean instalment.
Heard struck back with her own $100 million counterclaim after the star’s former lawyer Adam Waldman called her allegations a hoax. Both accused one another of ruining their respective careers.
In its verdict, the jury awarded Depp $15 million in damages.
Depp was awarded $10 million in compensatory damages and $5 million in punitive damages in his defamation suit. However, the jury also awarded Heard $2 million in compensatory damages, finding that Waldman defamed her in one of three counts in her countersuit.
After the jury ruled in his favour, Depp issued a statement to his Instagram page: “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 … And six years later, the jury gave me my life back. I am truly humbled.”
He added, “Speaking the truth was something that I owed by children and to all those who have remained steadfast in their support of me. I feel at peace knowing I have finally accomplished that.”
