Johnny Depp wins $15m in libel trial: The moments that sealed Amber Heard's fate

After 12 hours of deliberation, the jury in the Johnny Depp v. Amber Heard trial reached a verdict- and Depp came out on top.

On Wednesday, Judge Penney Azcarate read the jury's final decision in which they found Heard defamed Depp on three counts pertaining to her 2018 Washington Post op-ed and Heard was defamed by Depp's lawyer.

Jurors award $15 million to Depp in punitive and compensatory damages while awarding Heard $2 million in compensatory damages.

The highly publicized case between Depp, 58, and Heard, 36 had gone on for six weeks with testimony, evidence, and rebuttals from both sides.

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Depp sued Heard for $50 million in 2019 regarding an op-ed Heard wrote for the Washington Post in which she wrote she was a survivor of domestic abuse. Although Depp was not named directly in the piece, the two were married from 2015 to 2016 leading both the public and media to assume Depp had abused his ex-wife.

In return, Depp's lawyer denied all allegations of abuse and claimed Heard was the abuser to The Daily Mail which Head denied and countersued Depp for $100 million.

Over the course of six weeks, various standout moments occurred between the two actors and their teams that ultimately led to the jury's decision.

Heard's former assistant testifies that Heard was verbally abusive

In the first week of the trial, Heard's former assistant, Kate James, testified that she experienced verbal abuse from Heard while working for her.

James described her time with Heard as "everything you could possibly do to ruin someone's life." She recounted a time when Heard allegedly spat in her face.

Heard admits to hitting Depp in audio recording

Perhaps one of the most memorable moments from the trial was when an audio recording of Heard played in which the Aquamanactress admitted to hitting Depp.

During week two of the trial, an audio recording was played for the jury in which Heard said, "I was hitting you it was not punching you."

In the recording, Heard told Depp "you're fine, I did not hurt you," and called him a "f***ing baby" for complaining.

Depp says he saw a photo of faeces on his bed days after fight with Heard

In week two of the trial, Depp told the jury that in the days following a fight with Heard he was told by his security to avoid visiting the penthouse where Heard was staying.

Depp said that he "received some news that was as absurd and grotesque and cruel, and then I was shown a picture of what the problem was".

The Pirates of the Caribbean actor testified, "our bed and on my side of the bed was human fecal matter, so I understood why it wasn’t a good time to go down there”.

Heard denied the fecal matter belonged to her when she took the stand.

Psychologist says Amber Heard has a personality disorder

Dr. Shannon Curry, a psychologist hired by Depp's team to analyze Heard said that after spending 12 hours with the actress she concluded she has borderline personality disorder and histrionic personality disorder.

Unlike previous psychologists, Dr. Curry said the actress did not have PTSD and "grossly exaggerated" symptoms. The psychologist also concluded that Heard has a lot of inner hostility and is self-righteous, judgmental, and full of rage.

"These aren't fact, but her scores were consistent with other people who had obtained these scores," Dr. Curry added.

Depp's friend testifies he never saw a bruise on Heard

Isaac "Ike" Baruch, a longtime friend of Depp's testified that Heard told him Depp had thrown his phone at her and hit her one night in May 2016.

"I say to Amber, 'He hit you?' And she says, 'Yeah, he threw a phone at me, and hit me.' And I go, 'Where?' And she puts her head out, to show me the right eye of her face ... I inspect her face ... I don't see anything," Baruch testified.

Psychologist hired by Heard's team gets into heated argument with Depp's lawyers

Psychiatrist Dr. David R. Spiegel was hired by Amber Heard and her lawyers to testify against Depp's mental state throughout Heard and Depp's relationship.

However, Dr. Spiegel's conclusions were drawn from depositions Depp gave and other materials shown in court because he never interviewed Depp directly.

This led some, including Depp's team, to claim Dr. Spiegel violated American Psychiatric Association’s Goldwater Rule which states doctors should not diagnose the mental state of a public figure if they have not personally evaluated them.

Fans of Depp eventually spammed Dr. Spiegel with one-star reviews on Google.

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If you or someone you know is experiencing domestic abuse, you can call the 24-hour National Domestic Abuse Helpline, run by Refuge, on 0808 2000 247, or visit their website here.

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