The 'Alice in Wonderland' actor makes the plea during furious closing arguments in the defamation trial against Amber Heard before the jury begins deliberation.
- May 28, 2022
AceShowbiz - Johnny Depp has begged jurors to "give him his life back." Having claimed that his life was ruined by Amber Heard's allegations of domestic abuse, the "Pirates of the Caribbean" actor made the plea during furious closing arguments in the former couple's blockbuster defamation trial on Friday morning, May 27.
Depp's attorney Camille Vasquez told jurors evidence in the trial showed 36-year-old Heard was the real "abuser" and the 58-year-old actor was the "abused" during their stormy relationship. The $100 million case was also branded "MeToo without any MeToo" after Vasquez forensically tore apart what she claimed were a string of "lies upon lies" by Heard.
Vasquez additionally claimed that Heard had put on a "performance" in the witness box that matched her on-set behavior when trying to get into character. The lawyer told Fairfax County Courthouse in Virginia, "There is an abuser in this courtroom but it is not Mr Depp. And there is a victim of domestic abuse in this courtroom but it is not Ms Heard."
During the couple's relationship, Vasquez said Depp suffered "persistent verbal, physical and emotional abuse" at the hands of Ms. Heard. She added, "Six years ago today Miss Heard filed a false report of domestic violence against her husband of 15 months, Johnny Depp. It was a set up, she tipped off the paparazzi so they would be waiting."
Vasquez also stressed Heard never gave away all of her $7 million divorce settlement from Depp to the American Civil Liberties Union and the Children's Hospital in Los Angeles as she claimed. It was branded a "blatant lie" and she had only herself given under $1 million from to the ACLU and $250,000 to the Los Angeles Children's Hospital. Vasquez said, "When you catch Miss Heard in a lie she covers it up with more lies."
Referring to the tortured faces pulled by Heard in the witness box, Vasquez stressed, "Miss Heard's acting coach said Miss Heard has difficulty crying when she's acting. You saw it, sobbing without tears while spinning elaborate, fantastic accounts of abuse. It was a performance."
The celebrity lawyer added, "She told you what she thinks you need to hear to convict this man as a domestic abuser and a rapist. She wants you to believe she was abused countless times over the entire course of their relationship. The evidence does not bear that out."
Vasquez also walked the jury through a number of the incidents in which Heard claims she was beaten up. They included a December 2015 incident where she claims Depp headbutted her, leaving her with two black eyes, a broken nose and clumps of hair missing. The jury were shown a photo of Heard appearing on James Corden's chat show the next day smiling and larking around for the camera.
Depp is suing his ex-wife for defamation over a 2018 op-ed she penned for The Washington Post where she described herself as a "a public figure representing domestic abuse." The Hollywood star claimed it falsely implied that he is a domestic abuser, which he strongly denies, and that it has left him struggling to land roles in Hollywood.
Depp is suing for $50 million, while Heard is countersuing for $100 million, accusing Mr Depp of orchestrating a "smear campaign" against her and describing his lawsuit as a continuation of "abuse and harassment."
Depp's other attorney Benjamin Chew continued closing statements and said Heard used the op-ed as a means of "trading on her accusations against Mr. Depp" because she had the movie "Aquaman" to promote. He added, "We implore you to give him his name back. This is MeToo without any MeToo."
It came after testimony ended Thursday, May 26 in the blockbuster case, with Heard telling jurors that she suffers minute-by-minute harassment, including death threats and daily trauma requiring special "rules" in her life to prevent anxiety attacks.
