Johnny Depp-Amber Heard trial: Jury to return Wednesday for ongoing deliberations

FALLS CHURCH, Va. - A Virginia jury will return on Wednesday in Johnny Depp’s $50 million libel trial against his ex-wife Amber Heard after two days of deliberations over the couple’s volatile marriage.The seven-person civil jury heard closing arguments on Friday and deliberated for about two hours before leaving for the long Memorial Day weekend.

Jurors then deliberated another seven hours on Tuesday. They are scheduled to resume deliberations Wednesday in Fairfax County Circuit Court.Testimony throughout the six-week trial provided an ugly glimpse into Depp and Heard's seemingly toxic relationship and captivated the public, garnering millions of livestream viewers each day.

Some fans even camped out and spent tens of thousands of dollars for a chance to witness the court proceedings in person.Depp sued Heard for libel over a December 2018 op-ed she wrote in The Washington Post describing herself as "a public figure representing domestic abuse." The article never even mentions Depp by name, but his lawyers say he was defamed nonetheless.

Most of the article discusses public policy as it relates to domestic violence, and Heard's lawyers say she has a First Amendment right to weigh in.In the first passage, Heard wrote that "two years ago, I became a public figure representing domestic abuse, and I felt the full force of our culture’s wrath." Depp’s lawyers called it a clear reference to Depp, given that Heard publicly accused Depp of domestic violence in 2016 — two years before she wrote the article.In a second passage, she stated, "I had the rare vantage point of seeing, in real-time, how institutions protect men accused of abuse." Depp's lawyers are also seeking damages over a headline that appeared above the online.