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Patreon Exclusive: Amber Heard/JD Defamation trial
🕑 Added 2022-05-03 02:05:58 +0000 UTCSo, after getting a thoughtful response about my feelings about the AH/JD case, I decided to go through the case, the misinformation, and what I found out about DV. I originally presented this on Discord (link to Discord: https://discord.gg/5WzNdHsh ) It is the same audio with minor edits for clarity and I took out one section about my parents cause ... that's my business.
Here are my notes/sources:
TW: For Domestic Violence and image of the bruises and that ridiculous chart are in the voice-to-text channel on Discord. I hope this is helpful, and if in the comments there are anythings you want me to clarify, just lemme know.
~P
(1) Did Depp Lose Work Because of Op-Ed?
Timeline of events:
Heard filed for divorce from Depp in May 2016, and obtained a temporary restraining order against him, alleging in her court declaration that he had been verbally and physically abusive throughout their relationship, usually while under the influence of drugs or alcohol. Depp claimed that she was "attempting to secure a premature financial resolution". A settlement was reached in August 2016, and the divorce was finalized in January 2017.
This is important because, the allegations and photographic evidence was made very clear before 2018.
Statement shared after divorce:
“Our relationship was intensely passionate and at times volatile, but always bound by love,” said the statement 2017. “There was never an intent of physical or emotional harm. Neither party has made false accusations for financial gains.”
Op-Ed in question (2018): https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/ive-seen-how-institutions-protect-men-accused-of-abuse-heres-what-we-can-do/2018/12/18/71fd876a-02ed-11e9-b5df-5d3874f1ac36_story.html
It does not name Depp and the entire op-ed is about the response to her coming out speaking about the harm and vitriol that she faced for going against Depp.
"Then two years ago, I became a public figure representing domestic abuse, and I felt the full force of our culture’s wrath for women who speak out. Friends and advisers told me I would never again work as an actress — that I would be blacklisted. A movie I was attached to recast my role. I had just shot a two-year campaign as the face of a global fashion brand, and the company dropped me. Questions arose as to whether I would be able to keep my role of Mera in the movies “Justice League” and “Aquaman.” I had the rare vantage point of seeing, in real time, how institutions protect men accused of abuse.
Imagine a powerful man as a ship, like the Titanic. That ship is a huge enterprise. When it strikes an iceberg, there are a lot of people on board desperate to patch up holes — not because they believe in or even care about the ship, but because their own fates depend on the enterprise."
This entire thing reads more like an inditement of the culture around Depp, not even directly dealing with Depp's actions.
And to be clear, there has been a backlash against Amber Heard and doubt surrounding her allegations, including she was a gold-digger, since 2016. So she is completely within her right to say this.
We also, need the context that leading up to the divorce/allegations, Depp's career was spiraling down. He had a series of financial flops including:
The Lone Ranger (2013): causing Disney to take a US$190 million loss
Transcendence (2014), which was yet another commercial failure
Mortdecai (2016) a critically panned box office bomb
Alice Through the Looking Glass (2016) was also a box office bomb
Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales (2017) did fine, but also Depp got terrible reviews
Then he was in Fantastic Beasts (2016) as an ending cameo
Also, the op-ed came out December 18th 2018, before that, the Rolling Stone JUNE 21, 2018 article came out titled: "The Trouble With Johnny Depp: Multimillion-dollar lawsuits, a haze of booze and hash, a marriage gone very wrong and a lifestyle he can’t afford – inside the trials of Johnny Depp"
The article says, among other things:
"It’s estimated that Depp has made $650 million on films that netted $3.6 billion. Almost all of it is gone. He’s suing The Management Group, run by his longtime business manager, Joel Mandel, and his brother Robert for negligence, breach of fiduciary duty and fraud. The suit cites, among other things, that under TMG’s watch Depp’s sister Christi was given $7 million and his assistant, Nathan Holmes, $750,000, without his knowledge, and that he has paid the IRS more than $5.6 million in late fees. (Most of the ire is directed toward Joel, who had day-to-day responsibility for Depp’s account.) There are additional charges of conflict of interest, saying that TMG invested Depp’s money for its own purposes and returned it without profit. The suit seeks more than $25 million from TMG, accounting for “tens of millions” it claims TMG illegally took for its commission, plus any additional damages the court sees fit.
The Mandels categorically deny all wrongdoing and are countersuing, alleging that Depp breached his oral contract with the company. The suit suggests that Depp has a $2-million-a-month compulsory-spending disorder, offering bons mots like “Wine is not an investment if you drink it as soon as you buy it.” Depp was continuing to “concoct malicious and false allegations” against the company, according to TMG’s countersuit, because TMG had filed a private foreclosure notice on one of Depp’s properties, claiming Depp owes TMG $4.2 million in unpaid loans.
Over the past 18 months, there has been little but bad news for Depp. In addition to the financial woes, there were reports he couldn’t remember his lines and had to have them fed to him through an earpiece. He had split from his longtime lawyer and agent. And he was alone. His tabloid-scarred divorce from actress Heard is complete, but not before there were persuasive allegations of physical abuse that Depp vehemently denies. Depp’s inner circle had begged him to not wed Heard or to at least obtain a prenup. Depp ignored his loved ones’ advice. And there were whispers that Depp’s recreational drug and alcohol use were crippling him.
During my London visit, Depp is alternately hilarious, sly and incoherent. The days begin after dark and run until first light. There is a scared, hunted look about him."
Finally, we need to talk about why he lost his role as Grindelwald. Rowling defending the casting and supported in in the 2018 film "Crimes of Grindelwald."
In April 2018, The Sun, published by NGN, ran an article headlined "GONE POTTY How Can J K Rowling be "genuinely happy" casting wife beater Johnny Depp in the new Fantastic Beasts film?", written by the paper's executive editor, Dan Wootton. Depp sued Wootton and NGN for libel, stating that he wanted to clear his name and alleging that Heard had lied about the abuse and had in fact abused him. In their defence, NGN and Wootton presented fourteen incidents of alleged domestic abuse committed by Depp. During the highly publicised three-week trial in London in July 2020, both Heard and Depp testified in person.
This is, again, before Amber wrote anything and following his own co-statement that, and I quote,: "Neither party has made false accusations for financial gains."
Something important to note is that, Depp sues The Sun 1 June 2018, before the op-ed came out and it was the first time, I could find, that Depp claimed that Amber had also abused him.
So post the 2017 settlement, the only time Amber Heard did anything to support herself and address her DV status in a public way, was in December 2018 after a Rolling Stone article came out, after The Sun, and after Depp has sued The Sun, claiming that Heard lied. And even then, she did not mention him by name.
I would also like to remind everyone that during San Deigo Comic Con, Depp surprised appeared on stage, in costume as Grindelwald to cheers in July of 2018. Who was also at Comic Con that year? Amber Heard and she had to appear, in the same hall, soon after this.
All of this to say, not only do I not think Depp has a case concerning this lawsuit, but I also believe that it can be seen that he is the one, who is attempting to drag this out and has not taken responsibility for his actions.
(2) Things to Debunk
- Amber has a history of DV
- "In 2009, Heard was arrested in Washington state for misdemeanor domestic violence, after allegedly grabbing Van Ree and hitting her arm, but was never charged. The arrest only became public knowledge during Heard's divorce proceedings from actor Johnny Depp in 2016, after which Van Ree issued a statement that Heard had been "wrongfully" accused and that the incident had been "misinterpreted and over-sensationalized." That's all we know and Van Ree has been consistent about this since then, you can either believe Van Ree or believe the cop. If Van Ree came out and said something different, I would believe her, but as of now, that hasn't been the case.
- Poop-gate
- A longtime employee of Johnny Depp's says Amber Heard once told him that defecating in the former couple's once-shared bed was "a horrible practical joke gone wrong."
- "Then he showed me a photograph on his telephone of … it was a photograph of our bed, and on my side of the bed, was human fecal matter," Depp testified.
- Amber said it was the dogs and so did the UK
- Amber stole someone else's abuse story
- Kate James said Heard stole her story of sexual abuse during the UK Libel trial, despite the fact that AH’s testimony was behind closed doors and fully confidential so there was no way of knowing what she said. It should also be noted that accusation was nowhere to be found in this deposition.
- James states that she’s spoken to Adam Waldman, Depp's former lawyer who was dismissed due to leaking information to the press and who has openly slandered Amber on social media, around 10 times. But "nothing about the case…. just banter."
- - It should also be noted that in the UK Libel case, Laura Divenere (Their interior designer) said that Adam Waldman forced her to sign a statement that said Amber was verbally abusive to Kate James - Laura testified that in reality, she only saw Heard yell at her once, and it was because James had made a mistake at the time "and made many mistakes."
- Milani and the concealer bs
- Amber's lawyer "Bredehoft held up a makeup set known as a correcting kit and said, “This is what Amber carried in her purse for the entire relationship with Johnny Depp.”
- One Depp fan posted a video edit of the trial where they pointed out that the item Bredehoft was holding appeared to be by Milani Cosmetics.
- Milani then took a chunk from that video and created its own trending content. In it, someone marches to the sound of a viral Backyardigans song while showing that the brand’s correcting kit was released in 2017, while Heard and Depp’s relationship ended in 2016. Depp fans took this as proof that Heard must be lying, since that specific product did not exist at the time and she couldn’t have used it to cover her alleged bruises.
- This ignores that Bredehoft at no point said Milani Cosmetics’ name. Instead, she was explaining that Heard had learned the different colors to use to cover bruises depending on their appearance. Not that she used that exact makeup kit.
- ACLU payments and "ad"
- So in the settlement, Amber Heard got $7 milion (which is not ... a lot of money) and she "announced she would split her $7 million divorce settlement evenly between two charities: the American Civil Liberties Union, for their efforts to combat violence against women, and the Children’s Hospital Los Angeles."
- “Amber has already been responsible for seven figures in donations to charitable causes and intends to continue to contribute and eventually fulfill her pledge,” the Reston located Bredehoft added. “However, Amber has been delayed in that goal because Mr. Depp filed a lawsuit against her, and consequently, she has been forced to spend millions of dollars defending Mr. Depp’s false accusations against her.”
- As per Yahoo, Heard was paid $5 million for 2018’s Aquaman. Meanwhile, she was paid $10 million for 2023’s Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom.
- Amber Heard’s net worth is $8 million
- In 2021, Depp asked the court to show evidence the Heard donated her settlement to the ACLU and Children’s Hospital Los Angeles. Heard attorneys responded by stating that she had done “nothing dishonest” with her donations to both the ACLU and the Children’s Hospital of Los Angeles and that she “pledged to pay over 10 years,” which was “understood” by the charities.
- Depp is suing her for $50million
- An executive from the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), Terence Dougherty said: “These are further communications among employees, staff members in the development department, regarding the placement of Amber’s ad and the finalization of the op-ed piece. Not ad, I’m sorry.”
- The article was pitched with the query, “[We’re] wondering if we might interest you in a piece by Amber Heard (who, as you may recall, was beaten up during her brief marriage to Johnny Depp), on what the incoming Congress can do to help protect women in similar situations.”
- ALCU timed the pitch to coincide with the release of Aquaman and capitalize on its publicity.
- According to Dougherty, the last payment was made in 2018, and when the ACLU reached out to Heard in 2019 about the next installment, Dougherty said, “We learned she was having financial difficulties.”
- What happened in 2019—She was sued, by Depp for defamation and has been fighting all of that ever since.
- Was the UK judgement biased?
- NGN presented the following 14 incidents where they alleged that Depp had been violent towards Heard:[61]
- Incidents #1 and #2, early 2013:[45][59] Depp, under the influence of alcohol and drugs, hit and shoved Heard on at least two occasions at her home.
- Incident #3, June 2013:[62] During a weekend trip, an inebriated Depp had an altercation with a woman whom he thought had made a sexual advance towards Heard, who is bisexual. After this, Depp and Heard returned to their rented trailer, where he threw glass at Heard and ripped her dress, as well as caused extensive damage to the trailer. Heard also made further claims which were heard in closed court due to their nature and have not been publicly disclosed.
- Incident #4, May 2014:[63] An inebriated Depp verbally insulted, threw objects at and kicked Heard during a private plane flight.
- Incident #5, August 2014:[64] Depp shoved and hit Heard during his detox from opioids on his private island in the Bahamas.
- Incident #6, December 2014:[65] NGN claimed Depp had been violent but did not present further details.
- Incident #7, January 2015:[66] At a hotel in Tokyo, an intoxicated Depp hit Heard, grabbed her by her hair, and shoved her to the floor, not allowing her to get back up.
- Incident #8, March 2015:[67] Depp caused Heard "injuries including a broken lip, swollen nose, and cuts all over her body", and damaged a rented house they were staying in while he was filming the fifth installment of Pirates of the Caribbean in Australia. The incident took place over three days, during which Depp was high on drugs, and accidentally severed one of his fingers. He then used the stub to write insults about Heard to the house's walls. Heard also stated that he put out a burning cigarette on his own cheek. Heard also made further claims which were heard in closed court due to their nature and have not been publicly disclosed.
- Incident #9, March 2015:[68] At their Los Angeles home, Depp began to destroy Heard's possessions and hit her. When Heard's sister, Whitney Henriquez, intervened, Depp tried to attack her, which led Heard to hit him.
- Incident #10, July 2015:[69] Depp hit, pushed and choked Heard during a train trip in south-east Asia.
- Incident #11, November 2015:[70] Depp, who had been using drugs, pushed Heard and threw items at her.
- Incident #12, December 2015:[71] Depp assaulted Heard by hitting, shoving, head-butting, dragging her around their apartment by her hair, suffocating her with a pillow, and threatening to kill her. The next day, Heard was to appear in The Late Late Show with James Corden.
- Incident #13, April 2016:[72] An inebriated Depp threw objects at Heard and pushed her at their LA apartment.
- Incident #14, May 2016:[73] At their LA apartment, an inebriated Depp hit Heard, threw her phone at her face and dragged her by her hair, as well as broke items. Their neighbours and friends Elizabeth Marz, Raquel Pennington and Joshua Drew were present next door and intervened, with iO Tillett Wright, who had been on the phone with Heard during the incident, calling 911.
- Dumb chart: Doughty Street Chambers is literally just a barristers' chambers. Barristers can't own or work for law firms, so they band together in chambers for office space, sharing expenses, etc. Andrew Nicol wasn't employed by them, he worked out of them as a barrister and left to become a High Court judge...in 2008. I can't find any evidence that Sasha Wass QC has ever worked out of there or been connected to them: she works out of 6KBW and has since before DSC was formed.
(3) Mutual Abuse, Power Dynamics, Men as Abuse Victims
Testimony of the pair's marriage counsellor, Laurel Anderson.
- "He had served, no closed fist. She hits back and now starts it for pride because father hit her." The counsellor goes on to clarify that 'no closed fist' means an open handed slap, and that Amber admitted to hitting Johnny back and eventually beginning to hit him first, due to her history of being "violated by her father physically" and "needing to stand up for herself."
- Anderson says that Depp was "controlled for 20 - 30 years" but Amber triggered him. She does not clarify how.
- In a phone session in December 15th 2015, Heard said that "she did not want to get a divorce, but that she “wanted to want to” get a divorce." That same session, they talk about a strategy of getting out of the marriage.
- - Two days later, Heard came to Anderson's office and showed her bruises under her eyes.
- - In June 2016, after the divorce was filed, Depp says in a one on one session that Heard "gave as good as she got."
- Ruth Glenn, president and CEO of the National Coalition Against Domestic Violence (NCADV), disputes the existence of "mutual abuse." In every incident between two people, she said, there's a "primary aggressor."
- "I don't believe in mutual abuse. I don't believe that two parties decide to meet in the kitchen and box it out," Glenn said. "It just doesn't sound right, reactive abuse. I'm going to abuse you as a reaction? No, I'm going to defend myself as a reaction."
- I don't believe in mutual abuse. I don't believe that two parties decide to meet in the kitchen and box it out.
- RUTH GLENN, PRESIDENT AND CEO OF THE NATIONAL COALITION AGAINST DOMESTIC VIOLENCE
- Glenn added that self-defense against a primary aggressor can "look like abuse," but it's a not the same as an abuser exerting control over a victim.
- Reacting to abuse in self-defense can include name-calling, physically pushing back, and other emotional outbursts, according to psychologist Betsy Usher, who specializes in treating abuse and trauma. In a 2021 blog post, Usher wrote that abusers may shift the blame to their victims and accuse them of being the abuser if they react in self-defense.
- Two texts are presented during the deposition that has been shown before in the UK Libel Case, where Johnny Depp admits to cutting the top of his own finger off in Australia despite claiming in recent years that it was Heard who threw a bottle at him and did it.
- One text reads: "Hi. Fuck, man. Had another one. She is as full of shit as a Christmas Goose. I’m done. NO MORE!!! The constant insults, the demeaning, belittling… most heartbreaking smew [?] that is only released from a malicious, evil and vindictive cunt!!!!! But you know what?? Far more hurtful than her venomous and degrading ‘educational’ ranting… ??? It is her hideously and purposely hurtful tirades and her goddamn shocking treatment of the man she was meant to love above all… here’s the real deal mate… her obsession with herself?? is far more important, she is SO FUCKING AMBITIOUS!!! She’s so desperate for success and fame. It’s probably why I was acquired mate…!! Although the she has hammered me with what a sad old man has-been I am… cowan [?] has done me the most cruel favours - I’m so very sad... I cut the top of my middle finger off… what should I do!?? except of course go to a hospital… I’m so embarrassed for jumping into anything with her..."
- The doctor went to their house after the incident, and said the few rooms he saw were a mess - he says that things looked like they had been thrown, and it looked like there was blood on the walls. This fits with images we've seen in the past of the mess at the house, including messages that Depp wrote on the wall with his own blood accusing Amber of sleeping with Billy Bob Thornton.
- Sometime after this incident, Depp texts Kipper "By the way... Amber and I have been perfect for three fucking months solid!!! I have locked my monster child in a cage within and it has fucking worked!!!! We are goddamn best friends now!!!". There have been multiple texts from Depp referring to this 'monster', and a transcript of a conversation between Johnny and Amber where they talk about it as well. According to Amber in the UK Libel case "He would blame all his actions on a self-created third party instead of himself, which he often called 'The Monster'. I was not afraid of Johnny. I was terrified of the monster."
Comments
TheRealMima
This is why I became a Patron too and have continued to be one since. I'm forever grateful and I get waaay too emotional about it so it's hard to express myself. Even 2 years late commenting, the tears starts streaming thinking about this whole thing.
Nick
Hi! I literally just joined Patreon to give you a dollar for your amazing YouTube video. Thank you for your bravery and thank you for your effort. This trial has been a sobering time but I am finding comfort in articles and videos like yours.
Princess Weekes
I don't, but I will make one.
Princess Weekes
Anytime!
Princess Weekes
That means so much to me and I'm so sorry you have been dealing with that <3
JANINE DAVIS
Your take on this nonsense finally pushed me to become a Patron. It was so brave to speak out with his fans being so ridiculous and toxic and it honestly meant so much to me. I'm a DV survivor and as someone who wasn't the "perfect victim" this whole trial has been so triggering.
Maggie Block
Thank you so much for this? Do you have a sources cited list? I wanna put together a lesson plan about patriarchy and fake news
Jonathan McIntosh
Thanks for this, it's very helpful
Hermione
Thank you for this! I have been searching the internet for another take on this case because the comments I see online casting Heard as the aggressor and Depp as the helpless victim, from the little I heard of their relationship before the case, just don't sit right with me. There are so many clips making fun of Amber and her lawyer and showing all of Johnny's friends coming to his defence, I was suspicious. It seems like people have completely flipped the real power dynamic of this relationship. Thank you for doing the research and presenting the facts, and especially for sharing your own personal experience with this issue. Incredibly well done!
Camille Montano
Thank you for this episode, it's been hard finding info on this case from a source I trust. Honestly, what's weirded me out is the public treatment of Amber Heard especially of those who support Johnny Depp. Just uncritical berating and cruelty towards Heard, like they are allowed not to like her but that doesn't mean it's ok to be so volatile towards her in this extremely messing situation.
Brittany Fuller
Thank you for summing everything up so well. It is really sad how many people are choosing to ignore these facts and playing right into the goal of the trial.
Nixon665
Thank you. Thank you so much. I have been mad for weeks... seeing people who I love and trust have this completely 'upside down'... and you doing this work is - this is real labor. Thank you.
Princess Weekes
♥️ same friend
Tobasco da Gama
I figured from the start that all the Heard stories were nonsense attempts to counter her very credible accusations by targeting her credibility. Social media repost accounts are ALL OVER this stuff, you can't go five minutes without tripping over a half-dozen accounts all sharing identical pro-Depp sympathy posts. Thanks for collecting all this in one spot, it's a really helpful resource.
Juli No Fooly
This is helpful because I have no idea what's up with that case and honestly think none of it's my business but people are going off on both sides.
Anya
I know you’ve struggled with weighing in on this before but your take on it has always meant a lot to me. It’s easy to feel drowned out by really toxic takes and as a bi femme survivor of abuse your words have been really affirming. Thank you. ♥️
