A photo has surfaced online showing Amber Heard with her lip bleeding. According to her own statement, she previously injured ex-husband Johnny Depp with a backhand punch. The image is evidence Judge Penney Azcarate dismissed in the Heard-Depp libel trial.
Johnny Depp’s lawyers objected
The celebrity portal “TMZ” received the photo, to which Heard relies. It shows Heard with a cut lip and a note that says “I’ll be back xxx”.
The image refers to an alleged attack by Depp on Heard, which the actress’ lawyers tried to prove with this image. Heard testified that the hit happened during an argument in 2012. However, Johnny Depp’s lawyers objected. Ultimately, the judge dismissed the evidence. The reason? The photo was not part of the investigation phase of the defamation case and therefore could not be produced.
“Johnny Depp wears a lot of rings. We were in his downtown loft and we were in the eat-in kitchen when I hit a backhand punch,” Heard said. “I remember feeling like my lip was going between my teeth and there was a little bit of blood on the wall,” she added.
Contradiction or lapse?
This isn’t the first time Heard and Depp have met in court. Already in 2020 they led a process in Great Britain. And this creates inconsistencies in Heard’s statements afterwards. The photo’s metadata confirmed the image was from 2012 – but in the previous Johnny Depp defamation trial, a witness for Amber Heard claimed the first violent incident happened in 2013.