Johnny Depp is suing The Sun’s publishers, News Group Newspaper, and its excutive director. The trial was held at the High Court in London over an article pulished in 2018, describing Depp as a ‘wife-beater’.
Depp’s legal team made their closing argument ending the trial in the High Court on Tuesday. The lawyers claimed Amber Heard is a compulsive liar and she is a wholly unrelliable witness. They also pointed out that Depp lost everything because of the allegations placed by Heard of him being violent.
Depp received a warm welcome by a number of fans waiting outside the court as he arrived. His fans gave him flowers as he signed various autographs. They also held banners for Depp saying ‘Justice for Johnny’ and ‘Abuse has no gender. Men can be victims too.’
Depp also returned back the support by giving his fans an envelope. It consisted of a bandana along with a letter written and signed by Depp thanking his fans for the support.
Depp and his lawyers claim that he was the one abused and denied all allegations made against him by Heard. However, Judge Justice Nicol is expected to announce his verdict by September. This case will pay a huge part in the US hearing and could be settled even before it comes to court.
A source revealed from the High Court that if Depp loses in London, he’s unlikely to pursue the US case. If Heard loses, she’s going to try and settle the US case out of court. However, Depp has made it provately clear to his lawyers that he will be determined to further vindicate his name in the US, if he wins the libel hearing against The Sun.
Depp Was The Victim, Lawyers Claim
Depp’s lawyers on their closing argument pointed out that Heard’s evidence has been filled with inconsistencies. David Sherborne, Depp’s barrister was the one giving his final submission to the court. He asked the judge to consider five key points that proved Heard is not the victim, Depp is.
Sherborne said firstly that Heard had lied about incidents; second, she added further details about the incident which were not mentioned in her initial statements. Thirdly, she created incidents based on text messages and fourth that she responded to difficult evidence by blaming others and Depp. And lastly, Sherborne said Heard refused to admit to not being truthful when confronted by it.
The court then heard a recording, previously played about Heard admitting that she hit Depp. Sherborne said Heard’s physical violence towards Depp, makes her the domestic abuser, not him. The judge was further asked to consider the professional and personal damage done to Depp’s reputation.
The barrister added that it was accepted by the defendants that Depp had never been accused of violence by another woman. He explained that was the reason why Winona Ryder and Vanessa Paradis were never called for giving evidence.
In a hard-hitting closing speech, Sherborne questioned the credibility of Heard, claiming that her evidence was ‘shifting’ and ‘inconsistent’. He brought up the testimony by Heard about her punching Depp in 2015 in defense of her sister. Heard claimed she did it because she heard a rumor about him pushing ex Kate Moss down the stairs. Sherborne noted that Heard had not mentioned this in her statement and that it was ‘unscripted malevolence’.
Amber Leaves Court to Give a Speech
However, while Depp’s barrister was making their closing argument, Heard left with her lawyers to move outside the court to give a final statement. She gave a little speech about how difficult it was to relive the experience and that she stands by her testimony among other things. Depp’s fans were not happy as she came in between Depp’s closing argument. His fans screamed Justice for Johnny, Johnny is innocent,’ and ‘It takes two to Tango,’ as Heard spoke of the pain of the end of her marriage to Depp. She was returned with boos as she went back inside.
Sherborne continued that the story about Kate Moss was invented reference. He said, “If you want to see the credibility of the witness that this case is so heavily dependent on, that tells you a lot. This invention shows that Miss Heard’s evidence just can’t be relied upon.”
Sherborne clarified that Depp is a generous, warm, and gentle individual. He is a peaceful man and he’s not the man that Heard and the defendants have constantly sought to portray.
The court was played another recording where Heard admits to hitting Depp but not punching him or decking him. Sherborne said if it was a man saying what Heard said in the audio clip, can they imagine the consternation there would be? He said Depp was the victim and it was the other way around all along.
The verdict for this high profile trial case has kept fans on edge. We have seen a lot of support for Johnny Depp as the days of the trial passed by. Justice Nicol is expected to make a decision by September.
Also Read : News Highlights From July 2020
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