Actress Amber Heard has filed a lawsuit against comedian Doug Stanhope for defamation. The complaint is based on Stanhope’s accusation that Heard, who is divorcing Johnny Depp for alleged domestic abuse, is blackmailing Depp and lying about the abuse.
Heard’s lawyers have claimed this is all part of a larger plot and point the finger at Stanhope after, he wrote a guest column on TheWrap titled, “Johnny Depp Is Being Blackmailed by Amber Heard – Here’s How I Know,” just days after Heard was granted a temporary restraining order against Depp. In the article he claims Heard is manipulating and lying about Depp to the media.
The official court filing against Stanhope reads:
“Stanhope orchestrated a plot to write an article, which falsely accuses plaintiff Amber Heard of ‘blackmail’ and other criminal behavior towards her husband, Johnny Depp, from whom she is seeking a divorce.”
Via TheWrap.com
Heard has stated the claims are “completely false and defamatory” and have resulted in “tremendous harm.” Heard’s lawyer, Charles J. Harder, made a statement to PEOPLE, saying the team was after the “maximum possibly jury award” and will donate any winnings from the case to a domestic violence charity in Arizona.
“The Complaint alleges that Stanhope is a close friend of Johnny Depp and, as part of a coordinated effort, wrote a highly defamatory article about Ms. Heard, filled with completely false, highly defamatory and very hurtful statements. Ms. Heard seeks the maximum possible jury award.”
Charles J. Harder
The court documents also outline more details of the alleged abuse by Depp, which included an incident where he “nearly suffocated her.” The report also states: “Depp has hit and kicked Heard on numerous occasions, has thrown objects at her, at one point suffocated her to the point where she feared for her life.”
It also details that Heard stayed “hoping optimistically that the man she married would change his behavior” but that “within months, the cycle of substance abuse and violence repeated. His drug and alcohol abuse has increased dramatically in recent years, as has his violent behavior.”
There has been no official statement from Depp or Stanhope’s team as yet.
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