The ongoing legal battle between Johnny Depp and the UK paper The Sun over a charge of libel has always had Depp's ex-wife Amber Heard at its center. Heard's claims of abuse at the hands of Depp led The Sun to refer to the actor as a "wife beater" in a story, which then led to Depp filing the suit. The actor has also claimed that he had to deal with abuse at the hands of the actress, and Amber Heard has now testified herself in the trial, and in doing so, she has admitted to hitting Johnny Depp on one occasion, though she claims she only did so in the defense of her sister.
Yesterday, Amber Heard was asked about an incident that allegedly took place in March of 2015 that was referred to as the "stairs incident." Johnny Depp 's barrister accused the actress of punching Depp in the face according to Deadline. Amber Heard admitted to having done so, but claims that she did so because she feared the actor was going to push her sister, Whitney Henriquez, down the stairs. She says the fear came due to a rumor that the actor had done that to somebody else previously. Heard stated...
I did strike Johnny that day in defense of my sister. He was about to push her down the stairs and, the moment before that happened, I remembered information I had heard (that) he pushed a former girlfriend – I believe it was Kate Moss – down the stairs. I had heard this rumor from two people and it was fresh in my mind.
Amber Heard admitted to punching Depp with a closed fist, though she denied spitting on him or throwing a can at him which Depp's side claimed happened at the same time. Heard also stated that Depp had hit both her and her sister during the same altercation. Heard made it clear this was the first time she ever hit Johnny Depp, though she claims she'd been dealing with his abuse for some time prior.
While Amber Heard isn't the defendant in this case, her testimony is crucial to the defense of The Sun, as the paper's defense to the charge of libel is simply that the statement that Depp was a "wife beater" is that the claim is true.
Heard will be dealing directly with a Johnny Depp lawsuit soon. Next month, a trial is set to begin that will see Amber Heard respond to a charge of defamation in response to a Washington Post editorial written by Heard where she revealed dealing with years of abuse. While Johnny Depp was not mentioned by name, many believed the editorial referred to him, and Depp claims he lost out on acting jobs as a result.
