03062022-LSTL-01.qxd 6/2/2022 11:35 PM Page 1 c m y b TRIBUNE Hate message Life LUDHIANA | FRIDAY | 3 JUNE 2022 Depp Heard it right! Johnny Depp and Amber Heard during good times Jury sides with Johnny Depp in libel case, awards him $10.35 M; Amber Heard to get $2M Here’s how it all unfolded… 2009: Depp and Heard met on the sets of Rum Diary 2012: Their courtship began after Depp split from her partner for 14 years, Vanessa Paradis, and Heard broke up with Tasya Van Ree. 2014: Depp and Amber Heard got engaged. Feb, 2015: Got married at a private ceremony in Los Angeles, followed by a grand event at Depp’s private island in Bahamas. July, 2015: Heard charged with smuggling their two dogs, Pistol and Boo, into Australia and pleaded guilty of making a false declaration to customs’ officials. They later apologised in a video. May, 2016: Heard filed for divorce citing irreconcilable differences. Rapper Badshah received a hate message after condoling the demise of singer KK. Badshah wrote on Instagram, “Why.” And a user replied: “Tu kab marega … (When you will die).” IANS 2017: Amber won and court ordered $7 million as part of their divorce settlement, which she said would be donated for charity. June, 2018: Depp sued The Sun in UK as the newspaper called him a wife-beater in an article of April, 2018. The same year in December, Heard wrote an op-ed which did not have Depp’s name, but talked in detail about the domestic abuse. 2019: Depp filed a defamation suit against Heard in 2019 in US for the op-ed she had written. Heard counter-sued Depp calling herself a ‘public figure representing domestic abuse.’ 2020: Depp lost the suit against The Sun. 2022: Depp won the defamation suit and awarded more than 15 million dollars as compensation while Heard awarded 2 million dollars in a counter-suit. Final scene In early May 2022, Amber Heard took the stand in the defamation trial and spoke about the physical abuse she allegedly suffered at the hands of Depp. Amber recalled the first violent incident that took place between the couple and revealed the time when Depp allegedly slapped her for the first time. As a part of the case, several audio and video clips were presented as evidence which captured Johnny and Amber’s altercations. In one recording presented in court, Heard seemingly admits to having ‘hit’ Depp while also denying that she punched him. In another recording, Heard also seemingly told Johnny to announce to the world that he had suffered domestic violence and see if anyone believes him. As for Depp, a video of the actor smashing kitchen cabinets was presented in court as well as his texts — JOHNNY DEPP with friend Paul Bettany, consisting of crude language used against Heard, were read aloud in court. The closing arguments were presented by attorneys for both sides on May 27, 2022. And on June 1, 2022, the final verdict in the case was announced by the jury in favour of Johnny Depp. The jury gave back my life. I hope my quest for truth will have helped others, men or women, who have found themselves in my situation, and that those supporting them never give up. Let peace be Jada Pinkett Smith speaks on slapgate incident Jada Pinkett Smith wants her husband Will Smith and comic artiste Chris Rock to reconcile after the infamous slapgate incident that happened during the 94th Academy Awards. The actress-talk show host spoke about the two of them in detail on the June 1 episode of her Facebook series Red Table Talk. Addressing the incident, she said, “About Oscar night, my deepest hope is that these two intelligent, capable men have an opportunity to heal, talk this out and reconcile…” — IANS T HE jury sided with Johnny Depp in his libel lawsuit against exwife Amber Heard on Wednesday, awarding the Pirates of the Caribbean actor $ 10 million and vindicating his allegations that Heard lied about Depp abusing her before and during their brief marriage. But in a split decision, the jury also found that Heard was defamed by one of Depp’s lawyers, who accused her of creating a detailed hoax that included roughing up the couple’s apartment to look worse for the police. The jury awarded her $ 2 million. Depp was not in attendance at the Virginia courthouse when the verdict was read. The actor is currently in the UK. Amber Heard leaves Fairfax County Circuit Courthouse in Virginia, US I’m even more disappointed with what this verdict means for other women... It sets back the idea that violence against women is to be taken seriously. — AMBER HEARD PHOTOS: REUTERS AMBER HEARTBROKEN Heard, who was stoic in the courtroom as the verdict was read, said she was heartbroken. “I’m even more disappointed with what this verdict means for other women... It sets back the idea that violence against women is to be taken seriously,” she said in a statement posted on her Twitter account. On his part, Depp posted on Instagram: “The jury gave back my life. I hope my quest for truth will have helped others, men or women, who have found themselves in my situation, and that those supporting them never give up.” Depp sued Heard for libel in Fairfax County Circuit Court over a December 2018 op-ed she wrote in The Washington Post describing herself as “a public figure representing domestic abuse.” His lawyers said he was defamed by the article even though it never mentioned his name. The jury found in Depp’s favour on all three of his claims relating to specific statements in the 2018 piece. Throughout the proceedings, fans who were overwhelmingly on Depp’s side lined up overnight for coveted courtroom seats. Spectators who couldn’t get in gathered on the street to cheer Depp and jeer Heard whenever they appeared outside. A crowd of close to 200 people cheered when Depp’s lawyers came out after the verdict. The jury found Depp should receive $10 million in compensatory damages and $ 5 million in punitive damages, KATE MOSS AT DEPP’S CONCERT Days after testifying in Hollywood star Johnny Depp’s defamation trial against Amber Heard, the actor’s ex-girlfriend and model Kate Moss was spotted leaving his performance at London’s Royal Albert Hall. The supermodel was spotted leaving the venue on May 31 after Depp took the stage with rock guitarist Jeff Beck. The UK performance marked Depp’s third consecutive show of the week with Beck. Prior to attending his concert at Royal Albert Hall, Moss, who dated the Pirates of the Caribbean actor from 1994 to 1998, testified during his defamation trial against Amber Heard on May 25. MEME FESTIVAL As the highly publicised Johnny Depp-Amber Heard defamation trial came to an end, Twitterati burst into a meme festival. Right from Depp dancing to Malhari to ‘the day you will always remember as when you almost caught Captain Jack Sparrow’, memes flooded the social media. From the poop instance to the case being decided within six weeks, barbs were flying all over. IANS Members of Johnny Depp’s legal team hug after the verdict; Amber Heard hugs her lawyer Elaine Bredehoft Camille Vasquez MEET THE NEW ‘WONDER WOMAN’ Depp-Heard case has an unlikely star. Camille Vasquez is one of the nine attorneys’ team that won the Pirates of the Caribbean star the defamation case against his ex-wife Amber Heard. Along with attorney Benjamin Chew, Camille Vasquez’s strong, professional stance through the highly published case won Depp’s team some admirers. Soon after the verdict, Camille is being hailed as the true ‘wonder woman’ by Twitterati. It’s not just the professional acumen that has made her an internet sensation. Camille-Johnny’s affectionate ways— holding hands, arm on shoulder or the winning hug— hasn’t been lost on the fans, who have minutely been observing the court proceedings gavel to gavel. Their dating rumours have sparked the internet. When asked to clarify her stance, the 38-year-old’s Camille laughed on camera. but the judge said state law caps punitive damages at $ 350,000, meaning Depp was awarded $ 10.35 million. KNOTTY AFFAIR While the case was ostensibly about libel, most of the testimony focused on whether Amber Heard had been physically and sexually abused, as she claimed. Heard enumerated more than a dozen alleged assaults, including a fight in Australia — where Johnny Depp was shooting a Pirates of the Caribbean sequel — in which Depp lost the tip of his middle finger and Heard said she was sexually assaulted with a liquor bottle. Depp said he never hit Heard and that she was the abuser, though Heard’s attorneys highlighted years-old text messages Depp sent apologising to Heard for his behaviour as well as profane texts he sent to a friend in which Depp said he wanted to kill Heard and defile her dead body. In some ways, the trial was a replay of a lawsuit Depp filed in the United Kingdom against a British tabloid after he was described as a “wife beater.” The judge in that case ruled in the newspaper’s favour after finding that Heard was telling the truth in her descriptions of abuse. In the Virginia case, Depp had to prove not only that he never assaulted Heard, but that Heard’s article — which focused primarily on public policy related to domestic violence — defamed him. He also had to prove that Heard wrote the article with actual malice. And to claim damages, he had to prove that her article caused the damage to his CONTRASTING MOODS Hollywood star Johnny Depp issued a lengthy statement celebrating the verdict: “From the very beginning, the goal of bringing this case was to reveal the truth, regardless of the outcome. Speaking the truth was something that I owed to my children and to all those who have remained steadfast in their support of me. I feel at peace knowing I have finally accomplished that.” However, Heard slammed the decision in her own statement: “The disappointment I feel today is beyond words...” — IANS A PINT, FISH AND CHIPS Hollywood star Johnny Depp enjoyed a British meal of fish and chips, and a pint, in a pub to celebrate his victory. Photographs and video footage of the Hollywood star at The Bridge Tavern on the Quayside in Newcastle circulated on social media, with Geordie Sam, 28, sharing a snap with the Black Mass actor and Jeff Beck, who Depp has been performing with on his tour across the UK since the trial ended last week. IANS On World Bicycle Day, avid cyclists from the city share why they love the experience and also their favourite routes Love for two wheels Sheetal Apart from Salman Khan being the biggest promoter of cycling, recently, husband and wife, Ayushmann Khurrana and Tahira Kashyap, also showed the masses how it’s done as they rode bicycles in Chandigarh. On World Bicycle Day, we bring celebs from the city who adopted cycles as their favourite mode of transport. GREAT INITIATIVE I think e-bikes is a great initiative for people who are into fitness like me. Personally I don’t like to go to the gym; cycling allows you to soak in nature and fresh air. It’s safer for cyclists here because traffic rules are better implemented as compared to other cities. — Hashneen Chauhan, actress SINCE CHILDHOOD Cycling was always a fun activity since childhood and I still take time out from my busy schedule. It not only saves fuel, but is also a full-body workout. I enjoy riding in the newly built underpass that joins Sector 17 to Rose Garden. — Kanwalpreet Singh, actor CLOSE TO NATURE One of the best things about City Beautiful is that it’s a planned city and there is space for everybody, including cyclists. Cycling connects you to nature. It makes you a better observer of the real world. I haven’t tried e-bike in Chandigarh yet, but did ride one in Canada. Every city should have a system to support cyclists. – Nikkesha, actress FAVOURITE ACTIVITY I prefer a non-gear bike and whenever I have the time, I like to ride my cycle. My favourite route is from the Terrace Garden to the Sukhna Lake. It feels great to be living at a place where there are cycle paths. I would like to see this facility someday in Amritsar for its heritage value. — Janjot Singh, director c m y b