By Mona Austin
A jury of 7 people decided that Amber Heard defamed her ex-husband Johnny Depp when she wrote an op-ed on domestic abuse in the Washington Post that implicated him. Depp's attorneys arued that the piece tanked his career.
"This jury gave me my life back," he said after the verdict was sealed on Wednesday.
In a Fairfax County court, Depp was awarded $10 million in compensatory damages and $5 million in punitive damages. The jury also awarded Heard $2 million in compensatory damages. She received notihing in punitive damages.
Circuit court Judge Penney Azcarate reduced the punitive damages to the legal statuatory limit of $350,000. His total damages were $10.4 million.
The Pirates of the Carribean actor sued for $50 million. The Aquaman actress countersued for double, $100 million.
Depp also won in the court of public opinion. Both online and at the court house fans cheered him on.
Heard was treated like a villain and called a liar online.
Can we say there was a "winner" when there is no gaurantee that either of them will work again after the toxicity that was spilled in court. Emotional trauma to both parties left actors professionally maimed, but Johnny legally won.
In a statement, Depp celebrated his victory in his defamation lawsuit against Heard:
"Six years ago, my life, the life of my children, the lives of those closest to me, and also, the lives of the people who for many, many years have supported and believed in me were forever changed.
All in the blink of an eye.
False, very serious and criminal allegations were levied at me via the media, which triggered an endless barrage of hateful content, although no charges were ever brought against me. It had already traveled around the world twice within a nanosecond and it had a seismic impact on my life and my career.
And six years later, the jury gave me my life back. I am truly humbled.
My decision to pursue this case, knowing very well the height of the legal hurdles that I would be facing and the inevitable, worldwide spectacle into my life, was only made after considerable thought.
From the very beginning, the goal of bringing this case was to reveal the truth, regardless of the outcome. Speaking the truth was something that I owed to my children and to all those who have remained steadfast in their support of me. I feel at peace knowing I have finally accomplished that.
I am, and have been, overwhelmed by the outpouring of love and the colossal support and kindness from around the world. I hope that my quest to have the truth be told will have helped others, men or women, who have found themselves in my situation, and that those supporting them never give up. I also hope that the position will now return to innocent until proven guilty, both within the courts and in the media.
I wish to acknowledge the noble work of the Judge, the jurors, the court staff and the Sheriffs who have sacrificed their own time to get to this point, and to my diligent and unwavering legal team who did an extraordinary job in helping me to share the truth.
The best is yet to come and a new chapter has finally begun.
Veritas numquam perit.
Truth never perishes."
In her statement Heard said that the verdict makes it appear that violence against women is acceptable:
"The disappointment I feel today is beyond words. I'm heartbroken that the mountain of evidence still was not enough to stand up to the disproportionate power, influence, and sway of my ex-husband. I'm even more disappointed with what this verdict means for other women. It is a setback. It sets back the clock to a time when a woman who spoke up and spoke out could be publicly shamed and humiliated. It sets back the idea that violence against women is to be taken seriously. I believe Johnny's attorneys succeeded in getting the jury to overlook the key issue of Freedom of Speech and ignore evidence that was so conclusive that we won in the UK. I'm sad I lost this case. But I am sadder still that I seem to have lost a right I thought I had as an American -- to speak freely and openly."