Johnny Depp Stans Rushed to Fork Over Cash for Unsealed Court Docs. Did It Backfire?

 

Fans of the actor raised thousands of dollars to see unsealed court documents containing multiple and embarrassing allegations against the former couple.

As AMBER HARD and Johnny Depp prepare to appeal the verdict in their defamation case, a newly discovered document dump has reignited the high-profile lawsuit.

The chaos surrounding the six-week trial, which Depp specifically asked to be televised, is almost unprecedented, even given the natural interest in the two famous actors to air their dirty laundry. Even before the sentencing, Depp had already won the court of public opinion, with fans lining up outside a Virginia courthouse in hopes of supporting the Pirates of the Caribbean cast. But two months after the trial, Depp fans and curious minds are still eager to consume everything related to the case. 

So much so that last weekend they helped raise more than $10,000 in a matter of hours to fund the $3,300 cost of the newly sealed court documents. While initial analysis of the document dump (more than 6,600 pages) appears to have done

 Depp no ​​favors, four legal experts told Rolling Stone that what people are seeing are all the explosive and potentially embarrassing allegations, Depp's lawyers said. rule it out of court.

"It was definitely worse for Johnny," said New York family attorney Brett Ward. "Johnny Depp's team has won some important pre-trial legal decisions. Overall, because he has the better decision in the earlier stages of the case, what he turns down hurts him more. For him, the material in general looks even worse. "

Legal analyst Emily Baker said: "I think if anyone thinks that all these moves are just for Johnny Depp and Amber Heard, that's great. Naive." "I've always thought both sides would blame each other because it's a pre-emptive move."

"After this trial, people made up their minds for both of them," added entertainment and media attorney Dan Rozanski. "Based on what I've seen so far, I don't know what kind of things can really change public perception."

Washington Attorney General Andrea Burkhart, who has amassed 50,000 YouTube subscribers through content devoted mostly to trial reporting, raised money by inviting her Twitter followers to participate so she could buy them. (Burckhardt said in a statement to Rolling Stone that she donated the remaining $7,000 to Children's Hospital Los Angeles and Elysian Arts.)

Judge Penny Azkarat last month ordered all previously sealed documents 

unsealed, effectively opening the floodgates to all the explosive charges both sides sought to include in the lawsuit. “In this case, two plaintiffs sued each other, opening the door to a public forum for jury trials. 

Court records are public information,” Azkarat wrote.
In most of the documents, which were mostly motions for pretrial discovery, the two sides argued over what was admissible at trial, with Depp winning several key arguments, including not disclosing information about his friendship with shock rocker Marilyn Manson. In addition to allegedly using drugs with Manson, Heard's team tried to extract text messages from several men Manson referred to as "Amber 2.0," according to the documents. 

Depp's team had hoped not to name Manson in the case, citing serious allegations of physical and sexual abuse against the musician and claiming that Heard was trying to "discredit Mr. Depp on the theory of conformity."

Even before the studio axed him from Pirates of the Caribbean 6 in 2018, court documents shed more light on Depp's strained relationship with Disney. His former agent, Tracy Jacobs, testified in a statement that when Depp allegedly appeared on television, a Disney executive called him "drunk and stoned" and asked, "What the hell happened to your client?"

Jacobs eventually testified about Depp's actions, as did his ex-girlfriend Ellen Barkin, who told the court about Depp's alleged drug use during their relationship in the late 1990s. But claims in his 2019 statement that Depp allegedly gave her Quaalude during their first sexual encounter were never brought

 to trial, according to the unsealed documents. "He came up to me in the living room of my house and pulled me into his lap and said, 'Oh, come on, Elena, or whatever," Barkin said in his testimony. "I protested a little bit, so not that much. That is all. He later added: "He gave me Quaalude and asked me if I wanted to fuck." "

The documents show that Depp's team had tried to get the judge to approve the use of nude photos of Heard and highlight her past as an exotic dancer, while Heard tried to mention Depp's drugs to suggest he had erectile dysfunction.
Beckham, who has been closely following the trial on his YouTube channel, is surprised to learn of Depp's alleged drug use, as Judge Azkarat has kept both parties' personal information, including their medical histories, private. Los Angeles attorney Ryan Baker said Depp's team appears to have the upper hand because of his deft use of the law, such as when Depp's team strongly objected to a pretrial psychiatric exam that Heard 

did.

"Amber Heard made emotional distress or post-traumatic stress an issue in the case, and because she raised that issue, she should have had a psychiatric evaluation," he said, referring to testimony from a clinical psychologist who diagnosed Heard with borderline personality disorder. Illness. "It's ugly. Then you wait for the other person to stand up and say about Johnny Depp, but Johnny Depp was never appreciated because he never presented himself, because he didn't allow emotional stress or post-traumatic stress to be a case of problems."

Heard's team also accused Depp of "editing" photos of his bruises and providing chopped-up audio clips. During the trial, the court heard how the actress allegedly edited photos of her injuries, but claims Depp did the same without receiving the same attention. Texts by Heard and Depp's former assistant Stephen Duters that Depp "smashed" Heard in 2014 are inadmissible in court, despite Depp's defamation lawsuit against British tabloid The Sun. This exchange is used in case of failure. 

Each of these victories has played a role in how Depp's team has successfully built a case in their favor in the months leading up to trial. "A lot of litigation is usually about the quality of legal representation," Ward said. "I think they both have good reputations, but I think some of the earlier versions are Johnny Depp's way and that helps him."



Baker said Heard's team had won some big victories by keeping out of court news of much more damaging testimony and statements, including those of Jennifer Howell and Heard's sister Whitney, calling those details "strictly and strictly limited."

All attorneys agree that the battle between Heard and Depp will continue, as both have told the court they plan to appeal their respective convictions and that Heard can use some of her pretrial findings that are not the basis of her appeal. did not go to court.

Heard has complained that she has "several years of notes from the beginning of my relationship up until 2011 from my doctor who I reported the abuse to," which were reviewed in the lawsuit. are unacceptable. "How could they come to a verdict, how could they not come to that conclusion," Hurd said of the jury's decision.

Both parties have until September 5 to file a formal appeal and stop paying compensation until they know whether their appeal will continue. Heard, who made it clear she could not pay Depp $10 million in damages, recently sold her California home.

Delighted at his redemption, Depp joined TikTok and toured with Jeff Baker to promote their new joint album, 18. However, Depp has yet to make an official comeback when it comes to acting. "It may not be over in the court of public opinion, more importantly in the perspective of [Depp's] employer," Rozanski said.

SOURCE : ROLLING STONE