February 8, 2025

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Heard Lawyer Says Juror in Depp Trial Wasn’t Who He Claimed to Be

Amber Heard’s authorized workforce has asked for that the verdict from her defamation circumstance towards Johnny Depp be overturned, or both sides return to court for a new demo.

In a 43-page memorandum submitted on Friday, the Aquaman star’s lawyers have argued that there had been a range of issues with the June 1 ruling, including excessive damages awarded to Depp and inadequate lawful reasoning.

One particular of the more unconventional elements raised in the Virginia courtroom filing by Heard’s guide attorney Elaine Bredehoft is an allegation that one particular juror is actually 25 a long time more youthful than he had in the beginning claimed to be.

Singling the juror out by their range, the submitting said that: “Juror 15 experienced a birth calendar year of 1945. Juror 15, on the other hand, was plainly born later on than 1945. Publicly obtainable info demonstrates that he appears to have been born in 1970.”

Amber Heard questions Depp trial juror's age
Amber Listened to, remaining, and Johnny Depp, inset, are pictured in Fairfax, Virginia, on Could 27, 2022. Attorneys for Read have filed a movement to have the verdict of their new defamation demo overturned.
STEVE HELBER/POOL/AFP by using Getty Visuals

“This discrepancy raises the concerns no matter if Juror 15 actually obtained a summons for jury duty and was properly vetted by the Court to provide on the jury,” the filing ongoing.

For every the movement, the courtroom clerk’s office environment is obligated to confirm the identity of jurors, nevertheless in this scenario, “it seems his identity could not have been verified.”

The memo went on: “To the extent that the personal who served as Juror 15 was not, in reality, the same individual on the venire [an entire panel from which a jury is drawn], or that the Court Clerk’s business office did not verify his id, Ms. Heard’s due system was compromised.

“The Virginia Code does not contemplate jury services by a person not on the venire, for superior reason… In any case, but specifically a higher-profile case such as this one particular, it is significant to assure no individual who is not on the venire is ready to serve on the jury, no matter whether by inadvertence or intention.

“Here, the details clearly show Juror 15 was a long time more youthful than the individual on the jury panel listing, raising thoughts as to whether or not they ended up the similar or different folks.

“Ms. Listened to thus requests that the Court docket look into whether or not Juror 15 was thoroughly portion of the venire and whether or not, prior to jury company, Juror 15 verified his info in the way prescribed by [Virginia Code].

“Ms. Listened to further more requests this Court to acquire proper action primarily based upon the effects of the investigation, together with if appropriate, buying a new trial.”

In April, Read embarked on a 6-7 days court battle with Depp, who had filed a $50 million lawsuit from her about a 2018 op-ed in The Washington Submit, in which she explained she was a domestic abuse survivor.

Amber Heard, Elaine Bredehoft, Benjamin Rottenborn
Amber Read, centre, is pictured with her attorneys Elaine Bredehoft, left, and Benjamin Rottenborn, suitable, in Fairfax, Virginia, on June 1, 2022. A jury observed Johnny Depp and Heard had both equally been defamed but sided much a lot more strongly with Depp following an powerful libel trial involving bitterly contested allegations of sexual violence and domestic abuse.
EVELYN HOCKSTEIN/POOL/AFP by way of Getty Visuals

Throughout proceedings, Heard and Depp hurled a sequence of accusations at just one yet another, which include allegations of domestic violence—claims that just about every star vehemently denied for the duration of their respective testimonies.

On June 1, the jury awarded Depp $10 million in compensatory damages and $5 million in punitive damages, immediately after acquiring Heard’s assert to be bogus and defamatory. The choose modified the punitive damages to $350,000, as Virginia law limits the benefit of punitive damages out there.

Heard, who experienced countersued for $100 million, was awarded $2 million just after it was observed that Depp’s former attorney, Adam Waldman, experienced built defamatory remarks about her.

The July 1 submitting on Heard’s behalf also questioned Depp’s claims towards his ex-wife “proceeded solely on a defamation by implication principle, abandoning any claims that Ms. Heard’s statements had been basically phony.”

Johnny Depp's attorneys Camille Vasquez, Ben Chew
Ben Chew, still left, and Camille Vasquez, ideal, lawyers for Johnny Depp, are pictured in Fairfax, Virginia, on June 1, 2022. Chew has shared a short assertion on the latest filing by Amber Heard’s authorized group.
NICHOLAS KAMM/AFP by way of Getty Photos

Bredehoft claimed that Depp’s lawful workforce explained that it would center on the time time period right after Heard’s 2018 op-ed for the Write-up was published, nevertheless, in actuality, it widened that window to include statements and events from 2016.

The filing concluded that Read “respectfully requests this Courtroom to established aside the jury verdict in favor of Mr. Depp and towards Ms. Read in its entirety, dismiss the Complaint, or in the substitute, purchase a new trial.

“Ms. Heard even more requests this Court docket to look into prospective improper juror assistance and get acceptable action warranted by the benefits of the investigation.”

Reacting to the filing, Ben Chew, who heads up Depp’s legal staff, explained to Courthouse Information Services in an electronic mail that Heard’s movement was “what we anticipated, just for a longer time, no extra substantive.”

Depp misplaced his 2020 libel case in opposition to British tabloid The Sun, which had labeled the actor a “spouse beater,” in reference to the domestic abuse allegations Heard experienced created versus him for the duration of their divorce proceedings in 2016.

While Depp frequently denied ever owning been violent to Listened to throughout the a few-7 days trial in London, the overseeing judge observed that the newspaper’s promises had been “considerably genuine.”