Amidst the verdict that was reached by a jury Wednesday amid a trial of dueling defamation lawsuits between celebrities and ex-spouses, Johnny Depp and Amber Heard, the judge handed back the incomplete verdict form to jurors.
According to Law & Crime Network’s coverage of the trial, the judge was supposed to read the results of the verdict at 2pm CT. But that did not happen due to the “compensatory damages” portion of the form not being filled out. That indicates there is indeed one winner in the trial, as both parties have sued for a nominal amount of money.
The trial is now in recess until the jurors complete filling out the form.
Heard was present in the courtroom while Depp is still in the U.K. amidst a series of guest musician gigs he attended alongside rocker Jeff Beck.
Depp is suing Heard for $50 million for defamation for allegedly false domestic abuse claims she made against him. Heard is counter-suing Depp, also for defamation, for $100 million.
The trial centers around a 2018 op-ed Heard penned for the Washington Post in which she describes herself as a “public figure representing domestic abuse.” Though Depp isn’t named in the piece, he claims he is implied as an abuser — an allegation he says is false.
While Heard maintains she was abused by Depp, Depp says just the opposite: he was abused by her and not the other way around.
The publicly broadcasted trial, which stretched on for six weeks, concluded arguments last week.
The official verdict — in its entirety — is expected to be read aloud any minute now.
This is a developing story.
Published: Jun 1, 2022 02:19 pm