Law&Crime Sidebar - Top Moments of Johnny Depp's Testimony

Episode Date: May 11, 2022

Jesse Weber breaks down the biggest moments from Johnny Depp on the stand! Depp explains to the jury how he was physically abused by Amber Heard. He describes the grotesque "surprise" that was left in his bed that had everyone talking. Then there is the back and forth between Depp and Heard's attorney which had the courtroom break out laughing.  See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Wondery Plus subscribers can binge all episodes of this Law and Crimes series ad-free right now. Join Wondry Plus in the Wondery app Apple Podcasts or Spotify. Agent Nate Russo returns in Oracle 3, Murder at the Grandview, the latest installment of the gripping Audible Original series. When a reunion at an abandoned island hotel turns deadly, Russo must untangle accident from murder. But beware, something sinister lurks in the grand. View Shadows. Joshua Jackson delivers a bone-chilling performance in this supernatural thriller

that will keep you on the edge of your seat. Don't let your fears take hold of you as you dive into this addictive series. Love thrillers with a paranormal twist? The entire Oracle trilogy is available on Audible. Listen now on Audible. What was the photograph of Mr. Deb? It was a photograph of the bed, our bed. And on my side of the bed was human fecal matter. So I understood why it wasn't a good time to go down there. That's actor Johnny Depp explaining the surprise that was left in his bed, possibly by his ex-wife, Amber Hurd. You know, sometimes I just

can't believe the stuff that I have been seeing and hearing coming out of the case that everyone is talking about. Hey, everybody, welcome to Sidebar, presented by Law and Crime, where we recap the biggest moments in the day's biggest trials. I'm Jesse Weber. So we're talking the ongoing trial of Johnny Depp versus Amber Hurd out in Fairfax County, Virginia. Depp is suing his ex-wife for $50 million claiming defamation, namely that she falsely accused him of domestic violence in a 2018 Washington Post op-ed piece, and that that article ruined his life and his career. Now, she's actually countersuing him for $100 million, saying that he defamed her when he publicly called her a liar and that she created a hoax about him being an abuser. There's no court this

week. It's a pre-scheduled week where court is dark. They're going to be back Monday, May 16th, with Amber Hurd back on the stand. So we thought it would be a good opportunity to do something a little bit different. We thought, let's go over some of the key moments from Johnny Depp's testimony, where he is a plaintiff and counter-defendant in this case. And we're gonna start with the $50 million question.

Why is he suing Amber Hurd? What to your understanding is the status of Pirates Six? At this point? Yes. I believe it's in Dangle. mode. Mr. Depp, have you ever physically assaulted Ms. Hurd? Never.

Have you ever sexually assaulted Miss Hurd? Never. Certainly not. What have you lost as a result of Ms. Hurd making these allegations against you? Nothing less than everything. Nothing less than everything. When the allegations were made, when the allegations were rapidly circling the globe, telling people that I was a...

a drunken, cocaine-fueled menace who beat women suddenly in my 50s. It's over. You know, you're done. So what did it do to me? What effect did it have on me? I put it you this way. No matter the outcome of this trial, the second the allegations were made against me,

the accusations, the second that more and more of these things, as I said, metastasized and turned into fodder for the media. Once that happens, or once that happened, I lost then. It's fascinating watching Amber Hur just staring him down as he's saying this. And, you know, look, this is important

because for defamation cases, particularly when you're proving damages, it is critical to show how you were harmed. What did you lose? And what's interesting here is when he talks about, no matter the outcome of the trial, because Depp is fighting a battle in two courts. He's fighting in the court of law

and also the court of public opinion. He's trying to clear his name, obviously, with a successful judgment, but maybe more importantly than that, even if he were to lose the defamation case, he might win over public opinion. We're already seeing a very strong social media response towards Depp. Many argue watching him,

testify he comes off very well, trying to rehabilitate his image, his reputation. So he's hoping he can get a second chance after this trial. But there's something else to keep in mind here. There's an argument that Amber Hurd's accusations definitely harmed Johnny Depp. And if she lied about them, that is not good for her. But for this case, it is so specific. Johnny Depp has to show it was the 2018 Washington Post op-ed. Not anything before that. Not the 26th. allegations, not her seeking a temporary restraining order, not other news articles, that it was the Washington Post article, the very thing he's suing for, he has to show that that is what caused him harm, and that may be a little tough for him to ultimately prove. Depto has been trying to reframe the narrative about himself, and he's been doing that by saying, hey, I'm not the abuser, I'm the victim. I didn't attack Amber Heard. She physically attacked me and was verbally abusive towards me.

I would just walk away when there was a conflict. And in fact, Depp would explain these incidents by going through photos seemingly documenting these alleged injuries. Mr. Depp, what's reflected in these photographs? There were some scratches. Another altercation, and there were some... Miss Hurd had come up with her nails or hand scratch scratching at me. What is this a picture of?

That is, that's me in the emergency room. I see a detail that I forgot, I'd forgotten. which is the Missouri had pulled, taking my cigarette from the ashtray and stomped it out in my face here. You know, I will tell you, I was actually in the courtroom from when that was shown, and it was something to see.

Definitely something to see in person, very powerful. And then, of course, There was this bombshell, and this is when Depp was on the stand, an audio recording between him and Amber Hurd was played, where basically she admits that she hit him. I said to you, hey, tell Travis what just happened. Oh, you told me to do it. You told me to. You said, go do that. I said, no, tell him what just happened.

And I lied. And that you punched me in the thing. You figured it up. And you said, no, fuck it. I didn't. What the f*** talking about? and I watched you lie. I didn't punch you, by the way.

I'm sorry that I didn't hit you across the face in a proper slap, but I was hitting you. It was not punching you. Babe, you're not punched. Don't tell me what it feels like to be punched. You know, even a lot of fights. You've been around a long time. No.

You didn't get punched. You got hit. I'm sorry I hit you like this. But I did not punch you. I did not fucking deck you. I was hitting you. I don't know. what the motion of my actual hand was but you're fine I did not hurt you I did not

punch you I was hitting you mr. Depp could you please explain to the jury what they just heard on those audio recordings um what was just played on the audio recordings was very much the tone and the aggression and the attitude and the need for a fight from his herd. And I should also tell you that Amber Hurd in that recording also seemed to acknowledge that when this was happening, Depp would walk away. That's the very thing he said he would do. So this was arguably some of the strongest testimony for Johnny Depp because it really makes him look like the one who was abused. It makes it look like he was telling the truth about everything that happened. I mean, this is so much a he said, she said case because Amber Heard

is saying the complete opposite. She said she only hit Depp or said nasty things to him to defend herself. And let's not forget, this is important. The jury could believe that Amber Hurd physically attacked Johnny Depp and he could still lose this case. If the jury believes that he hit her or psychologically abused her in any way, then what Amber Hurd felt about all of this is subjective. This isn't about whether or not Johnny Depp committed a crime. It's whether Amber Hurd lied about being a victim of domestic abuse, which is a very broad term. If she didn't lie about what she felt happen, then he most likely will not win. Stay with us here at Sidebar after these words from our friends at the Court Junkie podcast. Imagine spending 16 years in prison for a crime you didn't

commit. Or imagine being on the jury at a trial where you have to decide whether a father murdered a family or whether it was a cartel hit. This is Jillian from Court Junkie, a podcast that examines criminal cases and trials. Each week, I give you the facts of a new case and let you decide if you agree with the outcome. Make sure to subscribe to court junkie on Apple, Spotify, or any of your favorite podcast apps. We can't talk about Johnny Depp on the stand

without talking about him being questioned by Heard's attorney Jay Benjamin Rottenborn on cross-examination. This was highly entertaining. This was entertaining back and forth because as much as Rottenborn tried to show that Depp was an erratic and dangerous substance abuser who was a threat to Amber Heard,

the more Johnny Depp played with him. Let's take a lesson. The only reason we go for the throat is love. Did I read that right? You did. And then she writes, my throat is yours. You're going to be the death of me,

but I don't care. And then you write, I have other uses for your throat which do not include injury. I have other uses for your throat which do not include injury. Sorry, could you read that again? Your words, sir, right? I read that right, correct? You did. You can take that down. And you know, look, that could make Johnny Depp likable. The jury might like that. We talked about the court of public opinion. People might like that. They might think, oh, look, Rottenborn looks like the bully here.

Johnny Depp is getting one over on him. But I want to go to this. This is when Rottenborn plays a video of Johnny Depp trashing his house, smashing things. Again, showing he was a danger, showing that look who Amber Hurd was around. Of course she's a victim of domestic abuse. But then look how Depp responds.

I did assault a couple of cabins, but I did not touch Ms. Hurd. As you can see, I think. And you may have been, you may have been drunk in that video, correct? There's a possibility of that, yes, sir. You poured yourself a megapint of red wine, correct? A megapint. Yeah.

I poured myself a large glass of wine. Right. I thought it necessary. That moment actually went a bit viral, the megapite instance. But look, what he says is, I didn't hit her. I was having a bad time. I needed to deal with my own stuff that I was going through. This is an abuse, but that does leave me with one final point.

You know, we talk so much about the alleged physical abuse in this case, but what about the verbal? Eat salad with your equine, A.D. Bovine, Yerbs. And thanks for the support. Have a great shoot. You sicken me. Leave me, F.B., Officer Squarehead. Your display of guilt and matronliness as a lesbian. camp counselor was plenty. Your future is on display. Best of luck. Best if look. Thank you for the correction. Best if luck. You're welcome. And thanks for the tunes. Bye, J.D. Don't call again. I will begin to feel embarrassed for you. Go away, coach. Hup. Done. Do I read that right?

No. Go away, coach, done. Hop. Done. Done. Thank you. Otherwise, did I read that right? Sure. You agree that referring to Amber as a lesbian camp counselor is a highly offensive reference to make, correct? What's the date here? 2013.

It wasn't as considered as egregious. There was a bit more understanding about terms. Amber also called herself a lesbian camp counselor many times, so I don't think I'm the first to say that. Here's the thing. Depp is taking ownership of these remarks, but he's trying to explain them away.

But if Amber Heard really felt them offensive, if the jury sees this as a form of verbal abuse, which can be a form of domestic abuse, then Depp once again might lose his case because the jury could say, hey, she didn't lie. She honestly and truly believe she was being abused by the actor. Fascinating stuff from the Pirates of the Caribbean Star. Thanks for joining us here on Sidebar.

Make sure to subscribe on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, YouTube, or wherever you get your podcast. I'm Jesse Weber. Speak to you next time. You can binge all episodes of this law and crime series ad free right now on Wondery Plus. Join Wondery Plus in the Wondery app, Apple Podcasts, or Spotify.