The trial resumed yesterday after a one-week-break.
After a one-week intermission, the Johnny Depp vs Amber Heard defamation suit resumed on Monday.
Depp is seeking $50 million in damages over an opinion piece Heard wrote for The Washington Post in 2018, in which she described being the victim of domestic violence, but did not mention Depp by name. Heard is countersuing for $100 million.
This trial is now in its fifth week. Lawyers for Depp have rested their case after finishing questioning of his witnesses. The remaining two weeks will now focus on Heard and her witnesses giving their side of the story.
Here are some highlights from the first day back.
Heard alleges Depp assaulted her on their honeymoon
Heard told jurors that her ex-husband slammed her against a wall and wrapped a shirt around her neck during their honeymoon on the Orient Express in 2015.
She said the couple had been arguing about whether Depp should drink or not during the trip. She said they had a good relationship at the time when Depp was sober, but he would often turn violent when under the influence of alcohol or drugs.
In a sleeping car on the train, she alleged that Depp slapped her across the face and repeatedly slammed her body up against a wall. She said he then proceeded to take his shirt off and wrap it around her neck.
“That’s how I woke up the next morning,” Heard said. “I woke up with it still around my neck and a giant knot on the back of my head.”
Heard’s team insists she carried makeup kit at all times to hide bruises
Several photographs of Heard’s face were shown in court on Monday, showing redness and swelling more clearly than earlier photos.
Heard described a make-up routine she would use to conceal bruises, as well as how she used ice to “take down the swelling”. She claimed she had a particular colour-correction makeup kit, which she called her “bruise kit” and kept with her “all the time”.
“I am typically photographed in LA when I leave the house, paparazzi types of photographs,” she said. “No woman wants to walk around with a bruise on her face.”
Earlier in the trial, jurors heard from police officers who responded to emergency calls on the night of the final fight between the couple. They said that while Heard’s face looked red from crying, they saw no visible bruises. More witnesses also testified that they didn’t see bruises on Heard’s face in the days after the fight.
Heard denies defecating in Depp’s bed
Heard vehemently denied defecating on Johnny Depp’s side of the bed. Instead, she said the bowel control issues of one of Depp’s teacup Yorkies was to blame. She said the dog, called Boo, had “eaten Johnny’s weed when she was a puppy and had bowel control issues for her entire life”.
When asked if she had done it a prank, she said: “Absolutely not. Absolutely not. First of all, I don’t think that’s funny.”
She said she had been packing her bags for Coachella music festival at the time and left the two Yorkies on the bed, but did not notice one of them had an accident.
Depp previously testified that he did not believe it could have been his dogs. “They’re teacup Yorkies,” he said. “They weigh about four pounds each. The photograph that I saw…. I lived with those dogs for many years. It was not the dogs.”
Heard admits she did not fulfil $7 million donation pledge to charities
When Depp and Heard reached a divorce settlement in 2016, Heard said she would donate her entire $7 million payout to charity. She claimed she was “never interested in Johnny’s money” and did not want to keep it for herself.
The money was to be split between two organisations: the American Civil Liberties Union and Children’s Hospital Los Angeles.
On Monday, a clip of Heard on Dutch talk show, RTL Late Night, was played in court. In the clip, she could be heard saying she had donated the money. “$7million in total was donated – I split it between the ACLU and the Children’s Hospital of Los Angeles,” she said. “I wanted nothing.”
However, she has now admitted that she did not donate the pledged amount to the charities, although she intends to do so in future. She said the reason she could not honour her obligation was because of Depp suing her.
The trial continues today.
If you have been affected by any of the issues raised you can contact Men’s Aid on 01-5543811 or Women’s Aid on 1800 341 900.
