By Canadian Press

Amber Heard denies fabricating injuries in Depp libel trial

Jul 21, 2020 | 5:07 AM

LONDON — Amber Heard denied Tuesday that she fabricated injuries to show that her then-husband Johnny Depp had been violent toward her as she took to the witness box for her second day giving evidence in Depp’s libel case against a British tabloid over allegations of domestic violence.

On Monday, during her first day of testimony at Britain’s High Court in London, she accused her ex-husband of abusing her both physically and verbally while he was allegedly bingeing on alcohol and drugs, claiming that at various times during their tempestuous relationship she feared for her life.

Depp’s lawyer, Eleanor Laws, sought to show via a series of video clips from an elevator at the couple’s Los Angeles apartment building that Heard fabricated injuries in the days after an incident on May 21, 2016. Heard has alleged that Depp, 57, threw a phone at her “like he was a baseball pitcher” that evening, hitting her on the right cheek and eye.

Heard, 34, denied allegations that she was making things up.

“Of course I had an injury,” she said.

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Heard also denied that she had had an “illicit relationship” with anyone during her time with Depp, specifically with either Tesla CEO Elon Musk or actor James Franco.

“Not that that matters much,” Heard said.

Depp and Heard met on the set of the comedy “The Rum Diary,” released in 2011, and officially became a couple a year later. They married in Los Angeles in February 2015. Heard filed for divorce the following year, and it was finalized in 2017.

In written testimony released to the court, Heard said that at various times during their relationship she endured “punching, slapping, kicking, head-butting and choking.” She said “some incidents were so severe that I was afraid he was going to kill me, either intentionally or just by losing control and going too far.”

According to Heard, Depp “explicitly threatened to kill me many times, especially later in our relationship.” She said he blamed his actions on “a self-created third party” that he referred to as “the monster.”

Heard told the court that she loved Depp when he was himself but that she was “terrified of the monster.”

The court is examining Depp’s libel suit against The Sun newspaper over an April 2018 article that labelled him a “wife beater” for allegedly abusing Heard. Depp, 57, is suing The Sun’s publisher, News Group Newspapers, and the paper’s executive editor, Dan Wootton, over the article. The Hollywood star strongly denies abusing Heard and was at the court to hear his ex-wife.

In the first nine days of testimony at the High Court, judge Andrew Nicol heard from Depp and from several current or former employees who have backed his version of events.

Heard’s testimony is expected to last for four days, through Thursday.

Pan Pylas, The Associated Press