Amber Heard & Johnny Depp....Your thoughts? THREAD 2!

[Whatdoyouthinkaboutthisone]

Hi everyone,

I’ve started a second thread for anyone who wants to continue the debate!

Link to thread 1:-
www.mumsnet.com/Talk/_chat/3962491-Amber-Heard-Johnny-Depp-Your-thoughts

Has anyone got a link to the details of exactly which claims were found to be true?

The Deppheads on these threads have all fallen silent

The case was about Johnny Depp's behaviour and he had to prove falsehood and presumably also that his reputation was damaged. Even if he had only assaulted or ill-treated Amber Heard once, it seems that would be enough for The Sun not to have libelled him. Even given that other wives/partners of his may have never been badly treated by him.

The case was not about Amber Heard's character. Amber Heard may be a deeply unpleasant person for all we know and someone we would not wish to have anything to do with, but it was about Johnny Depp's behaviour.

@nosswith

The case was about Johnny Depp's behaviour and he had to prove falsehood and presumably also that his reputation was damaged. Even if he had only assaulted or ill-treated Amber Heard once, it seems that would be enough for The Sun not to have libelled him. Even given that other wives/partners of his may have never been badly treated by him.

The case was not about Amber Heard's character. Amber Heard may be a deeply unpleasant person for all we know and someone we would not wish to have anything to do with, but it was about Johnny Depp's behaviour.

I found it very odd indeed that behaviour to ex partners was considered relevant. Any more so than in a case of rape.

The court case was a foolish and ill advised thing for Depp to do.
It worked very well for Heard as Depp has essentially now been proven as a domestic abuser without having a criminal domestic abuse trial - which she may not have won based on the evidence of her also attacking him.
The counter evidence that she abused him was irrelevant to this trial. All her/The Suns lawyers had to do was prove he had attacked her, thus making the headline true.

UK law means the Hollywood star had to prove he had suffered "serious harm" to his reputation through the publication of the article, while NGN had to prove what they reported was true on the balance of probabilities

@studychick81

Has anyone got a link to the details of exactly which claims were found to be true?

www.judiciary.uk/judgments/depp-v-news-group-newspapers-ltd/

Pdf link there.

I can't really see how the judge could have found any other way. I like Depp a lot as an actor but I was horrified by what this case revealed about the way he lives and his idea of acceptable behaviour to other people. I don't think I would have been able to reach a different conclusion on the evidence even if I did think that there was an opportunistic element to AH.

You can “think” all you like but the reality is he’s a wife beater.

I don't think @Carterbeatsthedevil was saying she disbelieved it. She was saying that in spite of believing that other things were potentially true, Depp is proven to be someone who lives a horrible way of life and is foul in his behaviour.

That's perfectly fair.

If the Sun had alleged that the relationship was a one sided case of abuse, they would have failed. They didn't - they ONLY made claims about Depp. Which were true, even if not the whole torrid story.

The case was about Johnny Depp's behaviour and he had to prove falsehood and presumably also that his reputation was damaged.

It was accepted that his reputation was damaged.

For clarity, he did not have to prove that the Sun's statements were false. The Sun had to prove they were true. He simply had to do enough to stop them from proving they were true.

I don’t actually think his reputation would have been damaged had he not dragged this through the courts. He’s just embarrassed himself really.

I don't disbelieve it. I think I would have reached the same decision as the judge did.

@thecatsthecats exactly - thank you

I don’t actually think his reputation would have been damaged had he not dragged this through the courts

Depp's career hit a dry patch after Heard made her accusations. His reputation has been damaged and this was accepted by the judge (and, I believe, by the Sun).

Depp is appealing. His lawyers have branded the judge's decision perverse and bewildering. They suggest (with some justification from my skim through the judgement, although I'm not absolutely saying they are right) that the judge has relied entirely on Heard's testimony and has ignored documentary evidence, evidence from police officers, medical practitioners, her own former assistant and other unchallenged witnesses (their words, not mine).

Doesn't look good for his USA case now. It was embarrassing for both parties and should have been left alone.

thecatsthecats It was used by Johnny Depp I think to try to say he was of good character. My view is that just because he had never been abusive before does not mean he could not have been abusive to one woman. It's a bit like the person who makes a racist comment and then mentions they have friends who are black.

@DustyLoafer
On the back of this its assumed the US case will have the same outcome.......it would be interesting if it was found in his favour this time.......especially if he appeals the UK verdict too.

The details of the trail are disgusting and both of them are vile but if the US trial goes his way which one do we believe to be true?

I only say that as she seems a nasty person so its not like you could easily believe everything she says without questioning it at all, IYSWIM.

I honestly don’t think either of them came off well. She didn’t come across as a helpless victim at all, she shit in his bed ffs. He isn’t entirely innocent either. Completely toxic relationship. I don’t think Depp is short a penny so maybe better to go quiet for a few years then resurface in a Burton film or something... The court case was utterly humiliating for both parties.

PH, how on earth could the judge have to spent all this time on the judgment, and not considered both sides... Surely he must mention those testaments in his statement?

The judge did consider both sides, Depp's and NGN's and has ruled that The Sun didn't libel Depp when they referred to him as a "Wifebeater".🤷‍♀️

PH, how on earth could the judge have to spent all this time on the judgment, and not considered both sides... Surely he must mention those testaments in his statement?

I'm not giving a personal opinion, just reporting what Depp's lawyers say. The police officers are mentioned and the judge acknowledges that his conclusions on the incident in question are contrary to the evidence of those officers. His justification for ignoring their evidence is primarily that the officers didn't make any notes at the time and their evidence as to how long they were in the apartment is contradicted by the timer on the CCTV. If I recollect correctly, there was also evidence from a nurse who examined Heard a day or two after this alleged incident and did not observe the claimed injuries. There is no mention of this evidence in the judgement.

I am sure the judge has considered both sides. The question is whether, in allowing for the fact that domestic abuse takes place in private, he has gone too far in accepting Heard's account and ignoring contrary evidence.

'she shit in his bed ffs'

That would be an awful thing to have done, but the judge has found that to be an untrue allegation.

The same with her 'cutting off his finger'.

Why must a DV sufferer be a helpless victim??
There's many a feisty woman that's walked into a trap.
Johnny being delightful while sober, for a period of months in the early days appears to have been Amber's trap.

To clarify a little, the judge says that the first account given by the police officers was when they gave their depositions two months after the incident. He also notes that the police officers thought they had been in the apartment for 30-60 minutes. The time stamp on the CCTV in the lift used to access the apartment showed they were there for 15 minutes. The judge notes that there was no evidence as to the accuracy of the timer on the CCTV but says that would not affect the interval.

I’ve only read about half the judgment but it seems quite one sided which I’m surprised by. The judge says multiple times that he accepts AH’s evidence and rarely says that he accepts JD’s. From the transcripts at the time she did not come over as a reliable witness to me but maybe it was different in person. I thought the judgment would be much closer but it doesn’t appear to be the case.