A jury selection process in Johnny Depp’s suit against Amber Heard whom he accuses of falsely portraying him as a domestic abuser, began on Monday.
According to the report, the eleven members were selected for the Johnny Depp’s suit which is expected to last six weeks. Seven members ultimately will deliberate, with four members selected at random to serve as alternates at the end of testimony and closing arguments, Deadline revealed.
The report by Deadline stated that with Depp and Heard in the courtroom, potential jurors were asked on Monday morning in the Fairfax County Courthouse about their prior knowledge of the high profile former couple, Heard’s sexuality and other such topics by lawyers from both sides. Once a jury was selected, Judge Penney Azcarate instructed those chosen to take notes or rely on their memory.
She cautioned jurors that testimony transcripts will not be allowed to be read back to them during their deliberations.
Proceedings in Virginia have concluded for the day, but the trial will take place from Monday to Thursday and will be off on Fridays. There also will be a break from May 9-12 as Judge Azcarate attends a previously scheduled judicial conference.
Johnny Depp and Amber Heard watched but didn’t appear to make eye contact — as their attorneys questioned potential jurors.
An issue is the pre-trial media publicity and, in some instances, potential jurors who have heard strong opinions about the case.
As the judge and attorneys queried potential jurors who had heard about the case, one man shared that this morning that he had texted his wife about the chance that he might be assigned to the Depp-Heard trial.
Under questioning, the man read his wife’s response: “Amber is psychotic. If a man says a woman beat him, they never believe him.”
As Heard’s attorneys asked him if he could still be impartial, despite what his wife said, the man said that he could. “She tends to exaggerate.” The man also was asked whether his wife would be upset with him if he sided with Depp. “She gets mad at me all the time,” he said. But he said that his wife would understand if he explained the circumstances of the case after it is all over.
He was left in the pool.
One potential juror was dismissed after he said that he had heard general details that Depp “was beating her and lying about things.” When asked if he could keep an open mind, he said, “I’ll try to.”
Several potential jurors said that they had sought out information about the case in recent days because they were curious why it was taking place in Fairfax, near where they live. One woman said her co-workers were talking about the trial but, knowing that she had jury duty, she walked away. “It was just more of the excitement of a Hollywood trial.” She was kept in the pool.
Depp sued Heard over an op-ed piece she wrote in The Washington Post in 2018 in which Heard refers to herself as a “public figure representing domestic abuse.” The article doesn’t mention Depp by name, but he says it clearly refers to allegations Heard made in other forums that she suffered physical abuse at his hands. Depp denies the accusations.
The Johnny Depp’s suit brought a little bit of Hollywood to a courthouse that has a long history of dealing with high-profile crimes, just not those involving movie stars, AP reports.
According to the report by AP, more than a dozen women, some waving signs saying “Justice for Johnny,” joined other fans who waved pirate flags in recognition of Depp’s signature role in the “Pirates of the Caribbean” movies, waited outside the courthouse an hour before the hearing.
The courtroom in the city of Fairfax was closed to the public Monday, with limited closed-circuit access in an overflow courtroom. People lined up before 7 a.m. for the wristbands granting access.
The judge overseeing the Johnny Depp’s suit, Penney Azcarate, has imposed a series of access rules to try to maintain decorum in the courthouse. Most significantly, neither Depp nor Heard are permitted to pose for photos or sign autographs in the courthouse or on the courthouse grounds.
Depp’s fans have been vocal in their support, saying he has been falsely accused. Raylyn Otie, a Depp fan from Bluefield, Virginia, drove five hours to see the movie star. She was disappointed when Depp did not greet fans personally, as sheriff’s deputies carefully limited fan access.
“I’m so disappointed. I came to give him flowers to show some support,” she said, bouquet in hand.
In a separate lawsuit Depp filed against a British newspaper, a judge dismissed the case, finding that Depp assaulted Heard on a dozen occasions and put her in fear for her life on multiple occasions.
Heard has filed a countersuit against Depp that accuses his lawyers of defaming her at his direction.
Heard’s lawyers tried unsuccessfully to have the case moved to California, where the actors reside. A Fairfax judge ruled that Depp was within his rights to bring the case here because the Post’s online editions are published through servers located in Fairfax County. Depp’s lawyers have said they brought the case in Virginia in part because the laws here are more favorable to their case.
The trial is expected to last more than a month.