Amber Heard Speaks Out After Johnny Depp Wins Defamation Case and Is Awarded $15 Million in Damages: “The disappointment I feel today is beyond words…I’m even more disappointed with what this verdict means for other women.”
After a very long performance, a jury finally reached a verdict in Johnny Depp’s defamation lawsuit against his ex-wife Amber Heard.
The televised trial finally came to an end this Wednesday after Amber Heard was found guilty of all three counts of defamation in the lawsuit brought by ex-husband over her 2018 op-ed about coming forward with domestic abuse allegations. As a result of her huge “L,” she’ll have to pay $15 million in damages. Although this is a devastating defeat for Amber Heard, she did win on one count. Amber Heard was awarded $2 million in compensatory damages and no punitive damages. According to WFLA, the jury also ruled in favor of Heard, who said she was defamed by Depp’s lawyer when he called her abuse allegations a hoax.
In a statement following her loss, Heard said, “The disappointment I feel today is beyond words. I’m heartbroken that the mountain
of evidence still was not enough to stand
up to the disproportionate power, influence, and sway of my ex-husband. I’m even more disappointed with what this verdict means for other women. It is a setback. It sets back the clock to a time when a woman who spoke up and spoke out could be publicly shamed and humiliated. It sets back the idea that
violence against women is to be taken seriously. I believe Johnny’s attorneys succeeded in getting the jury to overlook the key issue of Freedom of Speech and ignore evidence that was so conclusive that we
won in the UK.”
She added,
“I’m sad I lost this case. But I am sadder
still that I seem to have lost a right I
thought I had as an American – to speak
freely and openly.”
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Mr. Depp, who was not present for the reveal instead, watching from the U.K., also released a statement celebrating his victory.
“Six years ago, my life, the life of my children, the lives of those closest to me, and also, the lives of the people who for many, many years have supported and believed in me were forever changed. All in the blink of an eye,” the “Pirates of the Caribbean” star, 58, said in a statement to outlets.
“False, very serious and criminal allegations were levied at me via the media, which triggered an endless barrage of hateful content, although no charges were ever brought against me,” he continued. “It had already traveled around the world twice within a nanosecond and it had a seismic impact on my life and my career. “And six years later, the jury gave me my life back. I am truly humbled.”
Depp went on to explain, “My decision to pursue this case, knowing very well the height of the legal hurdles that I would be facing and the inevitable, worldwide spectacle into my life, was only made after considerable thought.” He said his “goal” all along “was to reveal the truth, regardless of the outcome,” adding that “speaking the truth.” Before concluding he said, “I feel at peace knowing I have finally accomplished that.”