Johnny Depp’s lawyers denounce the ‘devastating’ effect of Amber Heard’s accusations – Yahoo News

The American actor and his ex-wife have been in court since Monday to accuse each other of defamation. The accusations of domestic violence brought against Johnny Depp by his ex-wife Amber Heard have had a “devastating” effect for the career of the American actor, his lawyer said on Tuesday in court in the United States, where the former couple accuses each other of defamation. This trial, which is taking place near Washington, stems from a column published in the Washington Post in 2018, in which Amber Heard described herself as a “victim of domestic violence” bullied by society after coming out of silence two years earlier. “This case shows how devastating words can be when they are wrong and publicly pronounced,” said the actor’s lawyer, Benjamin Chew, at the opening of the proceedings. “Amber Heard forever changed the life and reputation of Mr. Depp and you will hear him recount the terrible impact that it took over his life” , he said, addressing the jurors. two years later, “in the wake of the MeToo movement” denouncing sexual violence “just before the release of the film Aquaman” in which she played, Amber Heard “chose to remind the world of these venomous allegations in a world-renowned newspaper”, assured the actor’s lawyer. In his forum, the 35-year-old actress did not mention Johnny Depp, 58, whom she had met in 2009 and married in 2015. The following year, she had applied for a restraining order to keep him away, claiming he had been punched by the actor. But she had renounced her charges as part of their divorce, concluded with a bang in 2017. Read more Complaint for defamation filed a defamation suit against Amber Heard, claiming $50 million in damages. imposed on him during their marriage. The actor filed his lawsuit in the state of Virginia, where the Washington Post is printed and where the legal framework is more favorable to complaints of defamation than in California, where the two actors reside. The trial thus takes place in a court in Fairfax, a small town in the state of Virginia near the American capital. This case is above all “on the First Amendment” of the Constitution which gave Amber Heard “the right to say the words she said,” Amber Heard’s attorney Ben Rottenborn replied, asking jurors “to uphold and protect” that right. “If Amber had intended to use this article to detail the abuse she suffered (…) this article would have been very, very different, he explained. “You will see the real Johnny Depp, beyond the red carpets, the notoriety and the money from pirate costumes”, added the lawyer, referring to a man made violent by the abuse of alcohol and drugs, addictions which destroyed his career. A trial broadcast live on television The two former spouses attend the trial, broadcast live on television and which should be very well attended. It should last several weeks and the list of witnesses is worthy of the great Hollywood films, with billionaire Elon Musk, actors James Franco and Paul Bettany, and actress Ellen Barkin. This scenario resembles the one that played out in 2020 in London. At the time, the star of the Pirates of the Caribbean films sued the publishing company of the daily newspaper The Sun after an article presenting him as an abusive husband. Called as a witness, his ex-wife described a dozen assaults committed , according to her, by a husband transformed into a “monster” by his excessive use of drugs. Johnny Depp had admitted to consuming too many drugs and alcohol, but claimed to have never raised his hand on a woman. He had received the support of his ex-companions Vanessa Paradis and Winona Ryder. British justice had finally ruled in favor of the tabloid, considering that “the vast majority of the alleged attacks had been proven”. After this setback, the actor’s career plunged and he was ousted from several projects, including the 6th opus of Pirates of the Caribbean.Original article published on BFMTV.comVIDEO – Johnny Depp against Amber Heard: Act II begins in UNITED STATES