Amber Heard files appeal against Johnny Depp libel trial verdict

Published

1 year ago

December 5, 2022

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Amber Heard has filed an appeal against her ex-husband Johnny Depp’s US libel lawsuit win.

Following a trial lasting several weeks earlier in the year, a jury in Virginia found in favour of Depp, ruling that a 2018 Washington Post article written by Heard was defamatory.

The actor was awarded $15m (£12m) by the court – comprising $10m (£8m) compensatory damages and a further $5m (£4m) in punitive damages – but the judge capped the punitive damages in accordance with legal limits, resulting in a total of $10.35m (around £8.5m).

Depp’s case was that Heard defamed him in the article, in which she described herself as a victim of domestic abuse.

While she did not mention the 59-year-old by name, he argued that the implication was clear – and denied allegations of abuse.

The Court of Appeals of Virginia received an opening brief for Heard’s appeal on 23 November and US media outlet Deadline has shared details of the 68-page report. It comes after the Aquaman actress filed an official notice that she would appeal earlier in the summer.

Heard, 36, is calling for the original verdict to be dismissed, or for a new trial to be held, according to the document.

Lawyers for the actress argue that Depp and the case have “no meaningful connection” to Virginia and that it was “wholly inconvenient” for him to sue there rather than California – where “both parties lived and where Depp claimed to have suffered reputational harm”.

They said Fairfax County Court, where the trial took place, was “mistaken” in its conclusion that Depp’s claims arose in the state because the Washington Post’s servers are located there.

They have also argued that the case should not have gone to trial at all in the US following the verdict in Depp’s separate case against The Sun in the UK in 2020, which he lost – the judge in that case ruled an article published by the newspaper about abuse allegations against Depp was “substantially true”.

Heard’s lawyers also say that there were “evidentiary errors that severely prejudiced” the actress during the US trial.

The US trial verdict

After six weeks of testimony, the Depp v Heard court case came to an end on 1 June, with the jury finding that a 2018 article Heard wrote for the Washington Post, about her alleged experiences as a survivor of domestic abuse, was defamatory towards Depp.

Heard won on one count of her counter-suit, successfully arguing that one of Depp’s attorneys defamed her by claiming her allegations were “an abuse hoax” aimed at capitalising on the #MeToo movement.

The jury awarded her $2m (£1.5m) in damages.

Following the US trial verdict, Depp has been throwing himself into his music career, performing with Jeff Beck and announcing a tour for his rock supergroup Hollywood Vampires in 2023.

He also made a surprise cameo at the 2022 MTV Video Music Awards – joking with the audience he “needed the work” as he was projected on stage dressed as an astronaut.

Sky News has contacted representatives for Depp and Heard for comment.

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Oregon: Woman crushed by grand piano shows ‘amazing spirit’ after being told she will never walk again

Published

12 hours ago

May 22, 2024

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Oregon: Woman crushed by grand piano shows 'amazing spirit' after being told she will never walk again

A woman has been left unable to walk after a piano slipped and dropped on her while she was helping a friend move the instrument.

Danielle Drummond, 28, who had recently relocated from Cleveland, Ohio, to Oregon for a fresh start, is now hoping for a scientific breakthrough after the ordeal left her needing both a wheelchair and a carer.

She told Cleveland-based broadcaster 19 News she had tried to stabilise the piano when offering to help last month, but her friend lost her grip.

“She dropped like a whole upright grand piano on me, and it severed my spinal cord,” Ms Drummond said.

“Now, I’m paralysed from the waist down.”

Ms Drummond has no family in Eugene, the city in Oregon where she lives, and also needs to find a permanent home, having been living in a van with her dog, Lotus.

Compounding her problems, she does not know how she would begin to move back to her family in Cleveland and transfer all her belongings and medical equipment.

Her sister has set up a fundraising page to “support future medical needs”, with the aim of raising $10,000 (£7,850).

“Our family thanks you for all your support, consideration, thoughts, love and prayers,” her sister Rosie Hayne wrote, describing Ms Drummond as “strong”, “wise”, and “down to earth”.

In an update on the GoFundMe page, Ms Hayne added: “She wants to make it clear that she is not expecting to ever walk again.

“She has accepted the reality of her situation. But she has an amazing spirit and an overall positive outlook, focusing on what she can do.”

Ms Drummond told 19 News she hopes people going through similar circumstances “don’t give up”.

Meanwhile, her wish remains for a new development in treatment.

“It definitely is a game change for me,” she said. “I try to stay hopeful.”

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Iowa town flattened as tornadoes cause fatalities and devastation in US Midwest

Published

13 hours ago

May 22, 2024

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Iowa town flattened as tornadoes cause fatalities and devastation in US Midwest

An unknown number of people have died after a powerful tornado ripped through a small town in Iowa.

Dramatic pictures showed the destruction left behind in Greenfield, with police confirming there had been fatalities and at least a dozen injuries, without being able to provide specific figures.

The devastation came as multiple tornadoes rolled through the US Midwest.

At least three 250-foot-high wind turbines were toppled by an apparent tornado in southwest Iowa.

One turbine was in flames, with black smoke pouring from the bent structure.

Officials said most of Greenfield, with a population of about 2,000 people, had been destroyed, with rescue efforts continuing in an attempt to find survivors.

Buildings, including homes and businesses, were flattened, trees shredded, and vehicles thrown down the streets which were left strewn with piles of debris.

Sgt Alex Dinkla, a spokesperson for the Iowa State Patrol, said: “This tornado has devastated a good portion of this town.

“Sadly, we can confirm that there have been fatalities. We’re still counting at this time.”

He said Greenfield’s hospital was among the buildings that were damaged, which meant at least a dozen people who were hurt had to be taken to facilities elsewhere.

Residents helped each other salvage their belongings as they tried to come to terms with what had happened.

Rogue Paxton said he sheltered in the basement of his home when the storm moved through.

He told WOI-TV he thought his family was lucky not to lose their house.

“But everyone else is not so much, like my brother Cody, his house just got wiped,” he said.

“Then you see all these people out here helping each other.

“Everything’s going to be fine because we have each other, but it’s just going to be really, really rough. It is a mess.”

The storms followed days of extreme weather which has ravaged much of the middle section of the US.

Strong winds, large hail and tornadoes swept across parts of Oklahoma and Kansas late Sunday, damaging homes and injuring two people.

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Ex-model accuses Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs of sexually assaulting her at his studio in 2003

Published

17 hours ago

May 22, 2024

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Ex-model accuses Sean 'Diddy' Combs of sexually assaulting her at his studio in 2003

A former model has accused Sean “Diddy” Combs of sexually assaulting her at his New York City recording studio in 2003 in a lawsuit filed on Tuesday.

Crystal McKinney’s allegations are just the latest in a series of accusations made against the rapper and producer.

McKinney says she was a successful 22-year-old model when she met Combs at a restaurant during Men’s Fashion Week in Manhattan.

The music mogul invited her to his recording studio later that night, according to the federal complaint filed in New York City.

The lawsuit states McKinney arrived and found Combs drinking and smoking cannabis with several other men.

She smoked some marijuana, which she “later came to understand” was laced with another narcotic or intoxicating substance, the lawsuit claims.

McKinney says she felt as though she was floating, then Combs led her to the bathroom, where he sexually assaulted her, according to the lawsuit.

Combs then led her back to the studio where she lost consciousness, later waking in a taxi where she realised what had happened.

Combs is yet to respond to these latest allegations.

The lawsuit comes just days after CNN aired security video that showed Combs attacking singer Cassie in a Los Angeles hotel hallway in 2016.

Cassie, an R&B singer whose legal name is Cassandra Ventura, was his protege and girlfriend at the time.

On Sunday, the 54-year-old, released a video saying he was “truly sorry” and his actions were “inexcusable”.

He is not in danger of being criminally prosecuted for the beating because of the statute of limitations.

Combs, whose homes in Los Angeles and Miami were raided by Homeland Security Investigations agents in March, has faced a series of public allegations of physical and sexual violence as well as sex trafficking.

A lawsuit filed by Cassie in November alleging beatings and abuse was settled a day after it was filed.

The claim on Tuesday was filed under a New York City law that allows accusers to file civil litigation during a limited window, even if the events allegedly happened long ago.