During the first full day of deliberations, the jurors had a question regarding the title of Heard's op-ed.
Jury deliberations continued in the Johnny Depp/Amber Heard trial on Tuesday, but not before one question was raised. During deliberations, the seven jurors who have listened to weeks of testimony posed a question about how they should interpret the headline from Heard’s 2018 Washington Post op-ed.
The headline for the piece, which is the center of Depp’s $50 million deformation suit, read “I Spoke Up Against Sexual Violence – And Faced Our Culture’s Wrath. That Has to Change.” Heard did not name Depp in the op-ed or in the headline.
“The question is does question number 3, the statement is false, pertain to the headline ‘I Spoke Up Against Sexual Violence – And Faced Our Culture’s Wrath'... or does it pertain to the content, everything written in the op-ed?," Judge Penny Aczarate read into the record to Depp and Heard's legal teams who were in the courtroom.
Judge Penny went on to explain the jury's confusion. “I think the confusion came in this particular one because the statement in question is the title of the op-ed, so I think they are confused as to whether it is the whole op-ed or the title is the statement,” she said. “It is clear that the title is the statement.”
Judge Penny continued, “So, I was just going to answer to say that the title is the statement in question for number 3, does that seem appropriate to everybody?”
Judge Penny and the attorneys concluded that she would respond to the jurors that “The statement is the headline not the entire op-ed.”
The question is one of three that the jury must answer to determine the ruling for Depp. The jurors must also evaluate the statement, "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.” And, "I had the rare vantage point of seeing, in real time, how institutions protect men accused of abuse.” In addition, the jurors have to decide if statements in the op-ed are defamatory.
The jury in Fairfax, Virginia -- who brought their lunch -- deliberated for a total of nine hours, marking their first full day of deliberations. Deliberations began last Friday, ahead of the Memorial Day holiday.
The defamation lawsuit, which was first filed in 2019, kicked off on April 11, with opening statements the following day that set the tone for the tumultuous courtroom battle that was about to commence.
Depp's lawyers alleged that Heard was fabricating claims to cast her ex-husband in a bad light, and Heard's lawyers accused Depp of sexual violence during their marriage -- among other claims.
RELATED CONTENT:
