Editor’s note: Some testimony contains graphic language and descriptions of sexual and physical assault.
Actor Amber Heard is expected to resume her testimony Monday, after a weeklong break in the trial of the libel lawsuit filed by her ex-husband, actor Johnny Depp.
When she last took the stand in the $50 million civil trial, Heard tearfully told jurors that Depp sexually assaulted her with a liquor bottle in an alcohol-fueled rage. The graphic description of the sexual assault left Heard fighting for her composure as she described it to jurors.
Depp is suing Heard over a December 2018 op-ed in The Washington Post she wrote describing herself as “a public figure representing domestic abuse.” His lawyers say he was defamed by the article even though it never mentioned his name.
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Much of the trial testimony has been repetitive of a civil suit Depp filed against a British newspaper. A judge there ruled against Depp in 2020, finding that Heard had in fact been assaulted multiple times by Depp. But the sexual assault allegations described by Heard on the stand were not publicly aired in the U.K trial.
Heard has testified that she was physically and sexually assaulted on multiple occasions by Depp, typically when he was drunk or high on drugs. Depp has denied ever striking Heard and claimed she was the one who was frequently violent. But Heard’s lawyers have said his denials lack credibility in part because he can’t remember what he’s done when he blacks out.
Depp has said Heard greatly exaggerates his drinking, and that he tolerates his liquor well. Friends, family and employees of Depp have taken the stand and backed up his contention.
But Heard said Depp has a team around him that cleans him up when he gets sick, and enables him to go about his business without acknowledging the consequences of his drinking.
Depp, a three-time Oscar nominee, and Heard met in 2009 on the set of “The Rum Diary” and were married in February 2015. Their divorce was finalized two years later.
Testimony is expected to resume at 9 a.m. ET on Monday in Fairfax County Circuit Court.
