Johnny Depp v Amber Heard: 42 questions stand between jury and verdict
The jury in Johnny Depp and Amber Heard's trial ended their second day of deliberations on Tuesday, May 31, without a verdict. The seven-person panel is set to return to court on Wednesday, June 1, at 9 am. The jurors asked their first question during Tuesday’s deliberations as they decide whether Heard defamed Depp in her 2018 op-ed.
Confusion arose among the jury over the headline of the Washington Post op-ed, that said, 'I spoke up against sexual violence — and faced our culture’s wrath.' Judge Penney Azcarate said jurors had asked whether they were to consider the entire op-ed or just the headline while deciding if Heard made a false statement. “The statement is the headline and not the entire op-ed,” the judge instructed the jury.
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The Daily Mail revealed that the ongoing case is so complicated that the verdict sheet has 42 questions the jury must answer before a verdict is delivered. There are reportedly 24 questions for Depp's claims and 18 for Heard's counterclaim. The jury's decision on the case will be made using a verdict form. Known as a ''Special Verdict Form', the verdict sheet asks the jury eight questions about each of the three statements at issue in the op-ed Heard wrote.
After the closing arguments concluded, the jurors began weighing the defamation components. Both suits must be decided on by the jury concurrently, which means it can find both Depp and Heard guilty, only one of them guilty or both not guilty.
Depp and Heard are squaring off over a 2018 op-ed Heard wrote for the Washington Post, where she called herself a domestic violence survivor. Depp has claimed that he was booted from the 'Pirates of the Caribbean' franchise because Heard's op-ed clearly implicated that he was the abuser. The article, however, did not mention Depp by name. The actor sued for $50 million and Heard countersued for $100 million, claiming Depp ran a smear campaign for years in an attempt to silence her and destroy her acting career.
In Depp's lawyer Camile Vasquez's closing argument, she told the jury, "Either you believe all of it, or you believe none of it," Vasquez said. "Either she's telling the truth, including in her most extreme allegations, or she's lying. Either she was raped by a bottle, or she's the sort of person who would get on the stand in this courtroom and lie to you and the world about it. You can't find that Mr. Depp hit her once. Either he hit her countless times. Or you can't believe a single word that comes out of her mouth."
Heard's lawyer, on the other hand, said a ruling against the actress would send a terrible message to domestic violence victims. "A ruling against Amber sends a message that no matter what you do as an abuse victim, you always have to do more," Ben Rottenborn said. "Don't send that message." "This trial is about so much more than Johnny Depp versus Amber Heard. It's about the freedom of speech, and stand up, protect it and reject Mr. Depp's claims against Amber," Rottenborn added.