Amber Heard’s former best friend was called to the stand on Wednesday as a witness for her defence in the multimillion-dollar libel suit brought on her former husband, Johnny Depp.
In a deposition recorded in January, Raquel “Rocky” Pennington testified that she saw several types of injuries on Heard’s face and body, and that she feared for her friend’s life.
“I was worried for her physical safety. I was worried that when he turned, he might accidentally do something that was worse than he ever intended,” Ms Pennington said.
When Ms Heard returned from Australia, Ms Pennington said that she saw “deep, long cuts on the backs of her forearms”.
Another friend, iO Tillett Wright, on Tuesday provided corroborating evidence to several of the alleged assaults.
“Then she showed me her feet – they were smaller cuts than the ones on her arms,” Ms Pennington said.
In earlier testimony, Heard said that while Depp was filming Pirates of the in Australia, he physically and sexually assaulted her in their rented home in which she sustain multiple injuries including cuts to her arms and feet.
Depp testified that he never struck Heard and that he suffered physical abuse at her hands.
He is suing Heard for libel in Virginia’s Fairfax County Circuit Court over a 2018 opinion piece she wrote in The Washington Post describing herself as “a public figure representing domestic abuse”.
Depp's lawyers say he was defamed by the article even though it never mentioned his name.
Ms Pennington, who briefly lived in one of the Eastern Standard penthouses along with Depp and Heard, said she was the first person to see her after a final fight between the couple in May 2016, which hastened her divorce filing and domestic violence restraining order.
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This photo was taken at the Los Angeles courthouse the day Heard filed her domestic violence restraining order against Johnny Depp. AP -
Evidence showing pictures of injuries to Heard appear on a screen. EPA -
Actor Johnny Depp is seen laying in a hospital after his finger was injured while he and his ex-wife Amber Heard were in Australia in March 2015. Photo: Johnny Depp Legal Team / Reuters -
Evidence presented by US actress Amber Heard showing a bald spot in her head. AFP -
Evidence showing US actress Amber Heard's hair she testified was pulled out by her ex-husband Johnny Depp. AFP -
Evidence showing pictures of US actress Amber Heard's injuries presented in court. AFP -
Evidence showing pictures of US actress Amber Heard appear on a screen during a defamation trial. AFP -
More evidence showing pictures of US actress Amber Heard. AFP -
Johnny Depp reportedly wrote messages in his own blood to his former wife Amber Heard. EPA -
Pictures of shattered glass presented as evidence by Amber Heard's defence team. EPA -
Photo presented as evidence by Amber Heard's defence team. EPA -
This is a photo of the ping pong table where Amber Heard testified she was sexually assaulted by her former husband Johnny Depp. EPA -
Johnny Depp's scribblings presented as evidence by Amber Heard's defence team. EPA -
Evidence appears on a monitor during the Depp vs Heard defamation trial. EPA -
Evidence appears on a monitor during the Depp vs Heard defamation trial. -
A photo of Johnny Depp that Amber Heard says she took of him whilst he was passed out. EPA -
Communications presented as evidence by Amber Heard's defence team. EPA -
Evidence appears on a monitor in the courtroom during the 50 million US dollar Depp vs Heard defamation trial at the Fairfax County Circuit Court in Fairfax, Virginia, EPA -
More evidence was shared in the courtroom in the US actor Johnny Depp/Amber Heard trial. EPA -
Johnny Depp's emails were submitted as evidence in today's trial. EPA -
An image taken by US actress Amber Heard of her former husband, Johnny Depp, passed out was submitted as trial evidence. EPA -
Johnny Depp testified that these pictures were taken during the period when he had 'fallen off the wagon'. EPA -
Evidence shown in today's proceedings. When asked if he would often drink whisky in the morning, Mr Depp replied: “Isn’t happy hour anytime?” -
US actress Amber Heard reacts as she listens to an audio recording of she and US actor Johhny Depp arguing. AFP -
US actor Johnny Depp testifies during the 50 million US dollar Depp vs Heard defamation trial at the Fairfax County Circuit Court in Fairfax, Virginia. EPA -
US actress Amber Heard during the trial at the Fairfax County Circuit Court in Fairfax, Virginia. EPA -
Images of Amber Heard admitted as evidence. AP -
Images of Amber Heard admitted as evidence. AP -
Images of Amber Heard admitted as evidence. AP
Ms Pennington testified that during a fight, she protected Heard with her own body on the floor and that Depp used a wine bottle to smash glasses, pictures and other items throughout the home.
On Thanksgiving, Pennington testified, a group of friends and family gathered at the Eastern Standard penthouses for dinner.
It was attended by Depp and Heard, his son Jack, his friend Marilyn Manson, Heard’s father, Heard’s make-up artist Melanie Inglessis and Josh Hurd, who was engaged to Ms Pennington at the time, she said.
According to the recorded deposition by Ms Inglessis, Depp and Manson left the table for “a very long time”, which upset Heard and caused another argument between the couple.
“It was a very intimate and weird dinner,” she recalled.
Ms Inglessis also testified that she was responsible for covering cuts and bruises on Heard’s face before an appearance on The Late Late Show with James Corden in December 2015.
In her sworn testimony, she said that when she met Heard, it “looked like someone had head-butted her”.
“I did make-up, just a little heavier," Ms Inglessis said. "We covered the discoloration and the bruises with slightly heavier concealer.”
“We had no other option that night … than to use a really red lipstick that night to cover up the injuries on her lip.”
She said that she also noticed a patch of hair that was missing from the top of Heard's head.
Heard's sister, Whitney Henriquez, was also called to stand where she testified that she often saw contentious and loving moments between Heard and Depp.
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A mutual friend said that Johnny Depp and his wife Amber Heard were very in love yet often 'vicious' towards one another. -
Johnny Depp leaves court after jury selection in his $50 million defamation lawsuit against former wife Heard. EPA -
US actress Amber Heard leaves the Fairfax County Circuit Court in Virginia on April 11. AFP -
Depp filed a defamation lawsuit against Amber Heard, after she wrote an opinion piece in 'The Washington Post' in 2018 that, without naming him, accused him of domestic abuse. Reuters -
Jury selection began on April 11 in the defamation case involving allegations of spousal abuse between Depp and Heard. AFP -
Depp fan David Laman holds a poster outside the Fairfax County Circuit Courthouse as jury selection progressed. Reuters -
Tiffany Lunn, a supporter of Depp, outside the court in Fairfax, Virginia. AP -
Johnny Depp fans at the courthouse. AP -
The defamation case brought by Depp against former wife Heard is expected to last between five and six week. Reuters -
Depp leaves the High Court in London, England, on July 22, 2020, during the libel case there. Reuters -
Heard arrives at the High Court in London. Reuters -
Depp and Heard at the 72nd Venice Film Festival in northern Italy, 2015. Reuters
“When he was sober, he was wonderful,” said Ms Henriquez. “When he wasn't sober, they were terrible.”
Ms Henriquez also testified that she saw Depp inebriated on many occasions and once found herself in the crossfire of an altercation.
She told jurors that Depp once blamed Heard for forcing him into the extramarital encounter and charged up a staircase to confront her.
When she tried to stop him from reaching her sister, Ms Henriquez said she was struck in the back, and Heard became enraged and “landed one” on Depp, with Henriquez stuck between the two.
“We all thought that we would see Johnny on the other end of this, because again, when he was sober, things were wonderful … we all thought that he was just going to get better,” she said.
Less than two years ago, Depp lost a libel case against The Sun after the British tabloid referred to him a “wife beater”.
A London High Court judge ruled that he had repeatedly assaulted Heard.
Closing arguments are scheduled for May 27.
