Actor Amber Heard took the position on Wednesday afternoon after cross-examining the first witness called by her lawyers. She is on trial by her ex-husband and Hollywood star Johnny Depp, who spent four days in court earlier in the defamation lawsuit.
Hurd told jurors how difficult it was for her to relive her troubled marriage to Depp as part of a defamation lawsuit he filed against her.
“I’m trying to find the words to describe how painful this is,” she said at the beginning of her testimony. “It’s awful for me to sit here for weeks and experience everything again.”
Amber Heard testified in Fairfax County Court in a defamation case against her by her ex-husband Johnny Depp in Fairfax, Virginia, May 4, 2022. ELIZABETH FRANC / REUTERS
Psychologist Dawn Hughes testified on Tuesday that Hurd suffered from post-traumatic stress disorder from violence, which she suffered at the hands of Depp, including numerous acts of sexual violence.
Depp said he never physically attacked Hurd and that she was the aggressor who routinely hit him and threw things at him in the course of their relationship. Depp is suing Hurd for $ 50 million in Fairfax County Court after Hurd wrote a December 2018 article in The Washington Post describing himself as a “public figure representing domestic violence.” The article never mentions Depp by name, but Depp’s lawyers say he was defamatory nonetheless because it is a clear reference to Hurd’s allegations of abuse in 2016, in the midst of the couple’s divorce proceedings.
Actor Johnny Depp waves his hand as he arrives at the Fairfax County Courthouse in Fairfax, Virginia, Wednesday, May 4, 2022. Depp is suing his ex-wife Amber Heard for defamation in Fairfax County Court after she wrote report an article in The Washington Post in 2018, which refers to itself as a “public figure representing domestic violence.” (Elizabeth Franz / Photo of the pool via AP) Elizabeth Franz / AP
Hughes’ testimony contradicts that of a psychologist hired by Depp’s lawyers, who said Hurd simulated the symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder and suffered from borderline and histrionic personality disorders. Hughes argued that Hurd was suffering from a personality disorder.
Hughes testified that Hurd admits that she sometimes pushed and pushed Depp, called him names and insulted his parents. Hughes said he based his testimony on 29 hours of interviews with Hurd, as well as interviews with her therapists and a review of court documents.
During Wednesday’s cross-examination, Hughes admitted that she had not made actual decisions that Depp had attacked Hurd in specific cases. But she testified that Hurd’s account of her experiences was consistent with those of those who had experienced domestic violence.
Hughes testified that the sexual assault involved forcing Depp to have oral sex. However, in a cross-examination, Depp’s lawyers noted that Hurd denied that he had been forced to have oral sex during a psychological test conducted as part of Hughes’ assessment.
Hughes said Hurd originally described the meetings as consensus, but “angry sex.”
“She didn’t see them as physical force,” Hughes said.
The process, which is now in its fourth week, continues to attract public attention. More than 100 people, mostly Depp supporters and fans, lined up on Wednesday before 7am in front of the courthouse for the 100 seats provided in the courtroom.
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