New Question From Jury 'A Positive Sign' For Johnny Depp, Says Legal Expert

A former L.A. district attorney has weighed in on a question raised by the jury amid the deliberations in the Amber Heard and Johnny Depp’s defamation trial, saying it’s a good sign for Depp’s camp. The jury panel finished the second day of deliberations Tuesday without reaching a verdict.

During the deliberations, the jury asked Judge Penney Azcarate to shed light on a question surrounding Heard’s op-ed piece in the Washington Post, which is at the center of the defamation case. The question raised was in reference to the statement in the op-ed that read, “I spoke up against sexual violence- and faced our culture’s wrath.”

In their query, the jurors asked Judge Azcarate whether they should find liability for the whole op-ed or just the headline. The judge told the court she would instruct the members of the jury to consider the headline and not the op-ed as a whole.

According to legal expert Emily D. Baker, the question is a “positive sign” for Johnny Depp’s camp. “This is a good question for Depp,” she said. “If I’m team Depp, I’m really really happy with that question.”

In her live YouTube stream, Baker said the jury might be very close to reaching the verdict, and Depp could have the upper hand. She also predicted that the recent question might leave Heard’s camp “anxious.”

“The fact they’re going to the finding instruction means that they might almost be done. Which means we are definitely on defcon verdict watch,” she said. “That is going to be the count- if he wins, that is going to be the count he wins on. Because I think if they find abuse in a broad form, which it can be, that is the count he can win on. That is what I think they are contemplating. That is my speculation based on this question. This is very much reading tea leaves.”

Baker explained that the jury asking whether to find liability for the whole op-ed or just the statement is crucial in the case. “This jury question means that if they’re looking at the finding instructions, maybe they’re ready to start rendering verdicts or at least start taking votes on verdicts now that they understand what they mean. That is a big deal,” she said, noting that defamation on the headline of Heard’s op-ed was “the strongest count for Depp.”

The defamation trial involving Depp and Heard closed last week after a six-week trial that started on April 11. The first full day of deliberations started on Tuesday and the verdict is expected to come out early this June.