Who is Beverly Leonard? Sea-Tac official testifies Amber Heard assaulted traveling companion
A last-minute witness who was summoned to the defamation trial between Johnny Depp and Amber Heard on Wednesday, May 25, testified in court that she witnessed the 'Aquaman' actress embroiled in a fight with another woman.
Seattle airport official Beverly R Leonard appeared in court via video link from her Arizona home and said she bore witness to a physical altercation involving the actress at Sea-Tac International Airport in 2009. The courtroom battle between the exes is expected to end on Friday, May 27. Depp, 58, is seeking more than $50 million in damages over a 2018 Washington Post op-ed in which Heard, 36, claimed to be a domestic abuse survivor. While the 'Pirates of the Caribbean' star was not mentioned in the article, his lawyers have argued the implications were obvious and damaged their client's career prospects. Heard has countersued for $100 million.
RELATED ARTICLES
What happens if Johnny Depp loses? Actor's 'victory' in court of public opinion could see star rise
Johnny Depp fans believe Amber Heard's lawyer SCREWED with text evidence after shocking discovery
"I was in the baggage claim area and observed her with a traveling companion, and they got into an altercation where Ms Heard had grabbed her traveling companion and pulled something from her neck," Leonard told Depp's attorney Camille Vasquez. "At that point, I got up and tried to break up what appeared to be a fight. And I summoned a colleague to help me. And I stepped in between them and separated them, stopping any further injuries or escalation."
Leonard said Heard was "aggressive towards her traveling companion" at the airport. "She had reached up and grabbed her arm and pulled a necklace off of her, and I observed her having it in her hand," the witness recalled. "She seemed to be not very steady on her feet, her eyes were blurry and watery, and I could smell alcohol."
Leonard said the female companion, who wasn't identified for legal reasons, "raised her hands in what appeared to be a defensive manner," adding, "but other than that she was pretty stoic, and didn't really respond much. Her stature was two or three inches taller than Ms Heard, so she didn't really need to have to defend herself."
The airport official said Heard was "somewhat dismissive" to her when she intervened. "'We're just having an argument, we're fine, we're fine,'" she quoted Heard, before explaining, "because I was asking if they were okay, is there anything wrong, what's going on." And when asked if there were any injuries, Leonard said the other woman had an abrasion to the side of her neck where the necklace had been, "like a rope burn from the chain as it was removed." But when Vasquez asked Leonard how she became involved in the trial, the latter offered a rather mysterious response. "I became aware of this situation, specifically this trial, because I was sent an email anonymously," she said. "I don't even know who it came from."
Later, when she was cross-examined by Heard's attorney Elaine Bredehoft, Leonard revealed she had contacted Depp's legal team the previous night. She confirmed that the airport incident occurred 13 years ago and insisted that she wasn't testifying in the trial for fame. "I had no desire to be on television," she responded to Bredehoft's challenge, TooFab reported.