Johnny Depp has evidence which he believes will disprove the domestic abuse allegations against him, put forward by ex-wife Amber Heard.
Heard and the Pirates of the Caribbean star married in February 2015, but divorced less than two years later in January 2017.
The actress accused Depp of domestic abuse, with claims of physical abuse coming forward during the couple’s divorce case. Heard also claimed the actor had thrown a mobile phone at her face during their relationship.
But now E! News reports that Depp has new evidence to prove he didn’t beat Heard, which he intends to use in his libel case against The Sun. The paper allegedly referred to him as a ‘wife-beater’ in an article they ran in April last year.
The actor’s attorney, Adam Waldman, revealed in a statement to E! News that he had filed the evidence in question yesterday (January 22).
He said:
Today we filed a partial list of evidence that we will use to disprove the fraudulent underlying allegations against Mr Depp.
Waldman went on to say that ‘dozens of video security tapes’ were included in the evidence, as well as many more items which could disprove the domestic abuse allegations against Depp.
He said the following were included in the filing:
… eyewitness statements, newly discovered sworn affidavits and deposition transcripts from 2016, and text messages between the Sun and their #metoo source.
The lawyer also implied the case was nowhere near finishing, as he explained: ‘We continue to take profound witness statements in this matter.’
The Aquaman star made her claims against Depp in a 471-page deposition, the details of which have only just been made public in a story by The Hollywood Reporter.
Heard describes the events of the night on May 21, 2016, in the transcript, claiming Depp had thrown the phone at her ‘as hard as he could’ and it hit her in the face.
She claimed the actor then grabbed her by the hair – causing her to scream for help – and ‘broke a lot of glass things that left glass on the floor’.
Along with the deposition transcript, statements from Heard’s close friend Raquel Pennington were also obtained, as well as statements from the Los Angeles Police Department officers who responded after the altercation.
Whereas Pennington claimed the Edward Scissorhands actor was ‘swinging around’ a magnum bottle of wine and knocking things off the counter with it, LAPD officer Melissa Saenz testified that she didn’t see any marks, bruises, swelling or signs of injury to Heard’s face.
The officer, who attended the scene, also said she inspected the apartment and saw no signs of shattered glass or broken items.
The new evidence will be used against The Sun in the defamation lawsuit, which was filed by Depp after the prior-mentioned article was published in April 2018.
The actor is also seeking an injunction that will prohibit the paper from ‘continuing to publish’ allegations of spousal abuse.
If you have been affected by any of the issues in this article and wish to speak to someone in confidence contact the women’s National Domestic Violence Freephone Helpline on 0808 2000 247 or the Men’s Advice Line on 0808 801 0327.
A Broadcast Journalism Masters graduate who went on to achieve an NCTJ level 3 Diploma in Journalism, Lucy has done stints at ITV, BBC Inside Out and Key 103. While working as a journalist for UNILAD, Lucy has reported on breaking news stories while also writing features about mental health, cervical screening awareness, and Little Mix (who she is unapologetically obsessed with).