Amber Heard’s legal team alleges wrong juror was seated in Depp trial, says mistrial should be declared

The legal team for Amber Heard is asking for a mistrial to be declared in the defamation lawsuit involving Johnny Depp, alleging that a wrong juror was seated on the jury.

Heard’s legal team made the filing on Friday afternoon, arguing that juror number 15 was not actually the individual who was summoned by the court, and “could not have properly served on the jury at this trial.”

According to the filing, included in the “Jury Panel List” was an individual who had a date of birth in 1945, meaning the individual would have been 77 years old during the trial. However, an individual who is 52 years old and lives at the same address as the 77-year-old was the person who appeared for jury duty and sat on the jury, the filing alleges.

“The individual who appeared for jury duty with this name was obviously the younger one. Thus, the 52-year-old- sitting on the jury for six weeks was never summoned for jury duty on April 11,” the filing states.

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Because of this alleged error, the legal team states that Heard’s due process was “compromised” and a mistrial “should be declared.”

“Ms. Heard’s due process was therefore compromised. Under these circumstances, a mistrial should be declared, and a new trial ordered,” the filing states.

The filing states that the “safeguards” apparently didn’t work in this instance and the correct identity of the juror wasn’t verified.

Former U.S. Attorney Neama Rahmani told Fox News Digital that the allegation made by Heard’s legal team is “not grounds for a mistrial or for the verdict to be overturned.”

Rahmani said that the juror mix-up could have been “an innocent mistake, in which case Heard’s argument will fail.”

“Even if it was intentional, her lawyers will have to prove that the juror misconduct would have resulted in a challenge for cause.  That means the wrong juror could not have been fair and impartial.  That’s a tough hurdle for them to overcome,” Rahmani said.

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Actor Johnny Depp smiles at fans following a break on the final day of his defamation trial against Amber Heard in Fairfax, Virginia, U.S., May 27, 2022. 
(Reuters/Evelyn Hockstein/File Photo)

“Fairfax County’s Juror Questionnaire webpage furthers this goal by requiring all County residents to login using their 7-digit Juror number, Zip code, and ‘Birth Date’… Those safeguards are in place and relied upon by the parties to verify the identity of the correct juror, to ensure due process and a fair trial for all litigants,” the filing states.

The new filing comes just a week after Heard’s legal team asked a judge to toss out the $10.35 million judgment made in favor of Johnny Depp, arguing that it wasn’t supported by the evidence.

“The verdict is excessive as a matter of law in light of the evidence and law, and should be set aside,” they wrote. 

The Virginia jury awarded the $10.35 million judgment to Depp on June 1, finding that Heard, his ex-wife, defamed him and caused him to miss out on business opportunities because of a Washington Post op-ed written by her, in which she described herself as a “public figure representing domestic abuse.” 

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The American Civil Liberties Union helped actress Amber Heard draft the op-ed at the center of Johnny Depp’s defamation lawsuit. 
(Michael Reynolds/pool via Reuters)

Depp made claims that there were three defamatory statements made in the op-ed, which include the heading calling Heard a survivor of sexual assault.

Heard succeeded in a countersuit against Depp, winning $2 million on a claim alleging that a statement made by Depp’s attorney, Adam Waldman, to the media calling the allegations she made a “hoax” was libelous.