Amber Heard’s lawyer reveals the evidence to support her claims that the jury ‘didn’t see’

Amber Heard’s lawyer has revealed the crucial evidence against Johnny Depp that the jury in their defamation trial wasn’t allowed to hear or see.

Amber Heard’s lawyer says there was “so much evidence” the jury in her defamation trial didn’t see, including a text message from Johnny Depp’s assistant saying her ex-husband was sorry he “kicked” her.

In an interview with NBC’s TODAY, Elaine Bredehoft said there were medical records and text messages that supported Heard’s claims that she was physically abused by her Hollywood star ex-husband but that they had been suppressed by the court in Fairfax County, Virginia.

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“(Depp’s legal team was) able to suppress the medical records, which were very, very significant because they showed a pattern going all the way back to 2012 of Amber reporting this to her therapist, for example,” Ms Bredehoft told the program.

“We had significant amount of texts, including from Mr. Depp’s assistants, saying when I told him, he kicked you, he cried, he is so sorry. That didn’t come in.”

Ms Bredehoft said Heard’s case was also impacted by the fact they “weren’t allowed to tell” the jury that a UK court had previously found that Depp “committed at least 12 acts of domestic violence – including sexual violence” against Heard. Depp, who sued The Sun tabloid in London in 2020 for calling him a “wife-beater”, lost that case.

“We weren’t allowed to tell them about the UK judgment,” Ms Bredehoft said.

“So the damages is completely skewed … there are no damages.”

Amber Heard’s lawyer reveals the evidence to support her claims that the jury ‘didn’t see’.

Ms Bredehoft said Depp’s legal team worked to “demonise” Heard and suppressed crucial evidence in the trial, preventing the jurors from examining evidence of the actor’s alleged abuse.

“Well, you know, really what happened here is it’s a tale of two trials. Johnny Depp brought a suit in the UK for the same case,” Ms Bredehoft told TODAY.

“The burden of proof was easier for him there, The Sun had to actually prove that it was true. “And the court found there — and we weren’t allowed to tell the jury this — but the court found that Mr. Depp had committed at least 12 acts of domestic violence, including sexual violence against Amber.

“So what did Depp’s team learn from this? Demonise Amber and suppress the evidence. We had an enormous amount of evidence that was suppressed in this case that was in the UK case. In the UK case when it came in, Amber won and Mr. Depp lost.”

Depp, 58, filed the suit against Heard, 36, over an op-ed she wrote for The Washington Post in December 2018 in which she described herself as a “public figure representing domestic abuse”.

Johnny Depp gestures to fans during a recess outside court but did not attend to hear the verdict. Picture: Cliff Owen/Consolidated News Pictures/Getty Images.

During his four days on the witness stand, the Pirates of the Caribbean star denied ever physically assaulting Heard and claimed she was the one who was frequently violent.

Heard, who had a starring role in Aquaman, did not name Depp in the article, but he sued her for implying he was a domestic abuser and sought $US50m ($A72m) in damages.

On Wednesday, the jury found that Heard defamed Depp in the op-ed, which they agreed was false, defamatory and with malice, on all counts, and awarded him US$15 million damages, comprised of $10m compensatory and a further $5m punitive – later reduced to $350,000 because of a cap.

Heard won one of her three defamation counterclaims against Depp and was awarded $2 million in damages. The jury found that Depp’s lawyer Adam Waldman defamed her when he told the Daily Mail she set up Depp in a hoax when the police came to their apartment in May 2016.

Depp celebrated the split verdict in the case as a victory and released a statement saying “the jury gave me my life back”.

“I am truly humbled,” he continued.

A US jury found Johnny Depp and Amber Heard defamed each other, but sided far more strongly with the Pirates of the Caribbean star following an intense libel trial. Picture: Giuseppe Cacace/ AFP.

“Six years ago, my life, the life of my children, the lives of those closest to me, and also, the lives of the people who for many, many years have supported and believed in me were forever changed.

“False, very serious and criminal allegations were levied at me via the media, which triggered an endless barrage of hateful content, although no charges were ever brought against me.

“It had already travelled around the world twice within a nanosecond and it had a seismic impact on my life and my career.”

In a statement to News Corp Australia following the verdict, Heard said she was disappointed “beyond words”.

“I’m heartbroken that the mountain of evidence still was not enough to stand up to the disproportionate power, influence, and sway of my ex-husband,” Heard said.

“I’m even more disappointed with what this verdict means for other women. It is a setback. It sets back the clock to a time when a woman who spoke up and spoke out could be publicly shamed and humiliated. It sets back the idea that violence against women is to be taken seriously.

“I believe Johnny’s attorneys succeeded in getting the jury to overlook the key issue of Freedom of Speech and ignore evidence that was so conclusive that we won in the UK.

“I’m sad I lost this case. But I am sadder still that I seem to have lost a right I thought I had as an American – to speak freely and openly.”

Originally published as Amber Heard’s lawyer reveals the evidence to support her claims that the jury ‘didn’t see’