Johnny Depp v Amber Heard trial aftermath news summary: Saturday 17 July 2022
Depp v Heard aftermath: Sunday 17 July 2022
Johnny Depp is reported to have made donations of around $800,000 to various charitable organizations, most notably several children's hospitals, during and after the trial, with the publicity raised over supposed donation pledges that were never honored by Amber Heard. If true, it would look like Johnny is making good on the pledges while rubbing his ex-wife's face in it more than a little bit at the same time.
ICYMI: Hollywood Vampires set for European tour
A reminder that the Hollywood Vampires, the supergroup Depp formed in 2015 with Alice Cooper and Joe Perry, are to go on a European tour next summer. Between 20 June and 1 July 2023, they have lined up dates in Germany, Luxembourg and Austria.
AS USA's Will Gittins looks at the fortune Johnny Depp has amassed during a career spanning nearly 40 years.
AS USA's Jen Bubel takes a look back over some of the pivotal moments in the six-week trial in Fairfax.
Depp, Beck to play at Umbria Jazz on Sunday
The next stop on Johnny Depp and Jeff Beck's European tour takes the pair to Perugia, Italy, where they are to perform at the Umbria Jazz festival on Sunday.
After Perugia, Depp and Beck are then due to travel north to Gardone Riviera, near Brescia, where they will continue their tour with a concert on Monday.
AS USA's Will Gittins has put together this look back over the some of the more unusual moments in the Depp v Heard trial in Virginia.
"A Marriage on Trial": new documentary about Depp v Heard
NBC News has released a short documentary about the Depp v Heard trial, examining in its show notes that the programme "examines how the case evolved into 'the TikTok trial0 and what the verdict means for victims of domestic abuse".
Watch the documentary:
Why did Depp settle 'Rocky' Brooks lawsuit?
Johnny Depp this week opted to settle an assault lawsuit filed against by Gregg 'Rocky' Brooks, a location manager who claims the 59-year-old punched him on the set of the 2018 film City of Lies.
Depp has settled despite witnesses indicating he didn’t assault Brooks, whose suit was due to go to trial later in July.
According to legal expert Mitra Ahouraian, Depp’s decision most likely comes down to a desire to avoid another drawn-out courtroom battle.
“Maybe at this point Johnny Depp is like, ‘Let’s just clean the slate and let’s just settle this and move on from all of it. Fine, we’ll pay you something,’” Ahouraian told Law & Crime's Sidebar podcast.
"I think it’s, ‘Do I want to sit in another trial after coming of this massive trial of a lifetime?’”
Ahouraian added: “Sometimes settling cases, or oftentimes settling cases, is probably the smarter choice just in terms of time, energy and resources. I cannot imagine that Johnny Depp wants to spend any more energy on a dispute like this.”
"No evidence of fraud or wrongdoing"
In case you missed it, Judge Azcarate wrote in her rejection of Heard's post-trial motions - the actor's lawyers also filed a motion to set the verdict aside earlier this month - that due process "was guaranteed and provided" in the six-week defamation trial in Virginia.
Azarate was responding to claims by Heard's legal team that alleged confusion over the identity of 'Juror 15' was grounds for a new trial to be declared. According to Heard's lawyer Elaine Bredehoft, the man who reported for jury service as 'Juror 15' is aged 52, born in 1970, and therefore could not be the same person originally summoned in April, who is 77.
“The Summons issues to Juror Fifteen listed his legal name and address and no birth date was noted," Azcarate said. "The Court has pulled Juror Fifteen’s Jury Questionnaire […]. Juror Fifteen completed the Jury Questionnaire as himself filling in his proper birth date. The information presented on the Jury Questionnaire matches the information Juror Fifteen provided to the Court. Juror Fifteen was vetted by the Court on the record and met the statutory requirements for service.
“The parties also questioned the jury panel for a full day and informed the Court that the jury panel was acceptable. Therefore, Due Process was guaranteed and provided to all parties in this litigation. Voir dire was conducted in a fair and impartial manner, with the Court and both parties examining the potential jurors. There is no evidence of fraud or wrongdoing.”
Depp v Heard aftermath, live updates: welcome
Good morning! Welcome to our latest daily live blog on the fallout from the Depp v Heard defamation case. It's Sunday 17 July 2022, and it's the end of a week in which Amber Heard's motion for a mistrial was dismissed by Faifax County Court Judge Penney Azcarate.