Jury reaches verdict in Johnny Depp/Amber Heard trial

A jury has reached a verdict in the trial of dueling defamation lawsuits between celebrities and ex-spouses, Amber Heard and Johnny Depp.

While the verdict itself has been reached, the results of that verdict won’t be publicly announced until 2pm CT, Law & Crime Network reported.

Jurors reached their decision Wednesday after 13 hours of deliberations this week following a trial that stretched on for six weeks, concluded last week, and became a public spectacle due to television cameras broadcasting each and every moment.

Judge Penney Azcarate stated neither Depp nor Heard is required to be in the courthouse when the verdict is actually read aloud. Depp has been in the U.K. the last few nights as a guest musician for a Jeff Beck concert, and as such a spokesperson for the actor just informed Law & Crime Network correspondent Angenette Levy that he won’t be able to attend in person, but will be watching the results in the U.K.

Depp had sued Heard for $50 million for defamation for domestic abuse claims she made against him that he says are false and hurt his career. Heard counter-sued, also for defamation, for $100 million.

Depp’s lawsuit centers around an op-ed Heard wrote in 2018 for the Washington Post in which she describes herself as a “public figure representing domestic abuse.” Depp wasn’t named in the piece, but he claims the article references a past — and allegedly false — domestic abuse allegation she made against him via filing a restraining order against him. 

While Heard maintains she was abused by Depp, Depp claims just the opposite: he was abused by her and not the other way around.

Closing arguments wrapped up Friday, with jurors’ deliberations on the verdict commencing shortly thereafter.

This is a developing story.