Although Johnny Depp and Amber Heard’s trial is on a brief pause, the statements both parties have made during their stand at the Virginia Court are still resonating and will continue in the next days with a cross-examination, which means that as of right now, there is still no verdict since there are plenty of proofs and testimonies from both sides to examine.
Johnny Depp sued Amber Heard in 2019 after the actress published an op-ed in the Washington Post claiming she was a victim of domestic violence, despite never naming him explicitly.
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When Amber took the stand to testify against the “Pirates of the Caribbean” actor, she narrated the many violent episodes lived by both in their Australian place while Depp was filming the fifth installment of the Disney franchise, amongst other things.
These are some of the claims Amber Heard did in the Virginia court that can help the jury understand why she was in an abusive relationship, according to Halim Dhanidina, a former Los Angeles judge specializing in domestic violence cases, and who spoke with Insider.
“One thing we see in the courtroom is that arguments tend to resonate a little bit stronger with jurors if the jurors themselves can relate to them,” Dhanidina told Insider.
These are some of Heard’s claims that will play a decisive role when the jury makes a verdict in the next weeks.
Physical violence against her
Amber described many violent episodes she lived while married to Johnny Depp, such as hitting and slapping her and later having to work to cover the bruises because she had public events to attend as part of her career.
A nurse to control her
According to Amber’s testimony, Depp appointed her a doctor who at the same time, assigned her a nurse to help with addiction issues.
Amber claims that this nurse reported every move she made to Depp directly.
He denigrated and diminished her choices
Amber said that it was impossible for her to keep attending her therapist because Johnny demanded much of her time. She also explained that she often felt denigrated by her choice of clothing and the projects she chose to work on.
“It was like, ‘Oh, really? That’s what you’re wearing? No wonder you get cast in those roles,’” Heard said, quoting Depp.
He controlled her roles
Amber testified that Johnny himself and some of his closest employees always found a way to get copies of the scripts she read and how the wardrobe she would be given was to be sure she was not involved in nude scenes or hype sexualized characters, just like what happened with her work with James Franco.
Emotional blackmail
Heard claimed that Johnny Depp was kind to her parents and the actor himself agreed to have lent rent-free and for long periods of time several of his residences to some of Amber’s closest friends; however according to the experts, on the surface, this looks contradictory to the claims that Depp was trying to isolate and control her, but it can go the other way since Heard’s legal team can claim that Depp tried to manipulate the actress by showing kindness to those close to her and, in return, expect obedience and submissiveness.
It is important to note that some of Depp’s testimonies also included graphic details of violent events and how he felt diminished by the actress’s sayings and actions.
Now it’s time for cross-examination from the legal teams that will let the jury have a final verdict.
