A jury in Virginia discovered this June 1 that Johnny Depp had been defamed by his ex-wife Amber Heard in an opinion piece by 2018, a verdict that gave the actor a victory in their long and complicated battle against accusations of domestic abuse.
Testimonies throughout the trial provided an ugly view of the couple’s apparently toxic relationship and captivated the public, with some fans even camping out and spending thousands of dollars for a chance to witness the court proceedings in person.
By unanimous decision, the seven jurors awarded Depp $15 million in punitive and compensatory damages, while Heard was awarded $2 million in damages.
The decision was made after a six-week trial and a deliberation of almost hours spread over three days in the Fairfax district court, but according to According to experts, there was a powerful cause that made Johnny succeed in his claim.
According to an interview published in the New York Post, Depp won his defamation case against Heard because the jury finally did not he believed she was telling the truth, especially during cross-examination.
“The case was going to rise and fall on its credibility more than on any nuanced legal issue. And he just didn’t survive the trial with his credibility intact,” former California judge Halim Dhanidina told the outlet.
“The fact that she came out of cross-examination essentially defeated with no credibility left, that was the crux of the case for me,” he said.
In turn, Mitra Ahouraian, an entertainment attorney for Beverly Hills, whose clients include actors, directors and writers, agreed and detailed what Amber did not favor doing when she took the stand.
“The jury found that she was inauthentic, exaggerated or did not deserve empathy. Many of Heard’s emotional cues on the witness stand did not match her testimony. She would get very passionate at odd moments or make awkward attempts to connect with the jury by speaking directly to them. Also, he was unable to keep his story clear during some points of the trial,” he said.
Depp sued Heard for defamation in Fairfax County Circuit Court over a December 2018 op-ed he wrote in The Washington Post describing herself as “a public figure representing domestic abuse.” His lawyers said he was defamed by the article even though his name was never mentioned.
Initially, Johnny sought $50 million in damages and Amber sued for $100 million saying that she was only violent with Depp in self-defense, since the actor assured that the real aggressor in their relationship had been her.