11 ore 30 min, 18 lugl 2020 anni - GUARDIAN Johnny Depp's past lovers know only their truth

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Johnny Depp’s past lovers know only their truth

By Barbara Ellen

Are exes ever truly useful as character witnesses? In the end, Vanessa Paradis and Winona Ryder were not called upon to give video evidence in court for Johnny Depp’s libel case against the publishers of the Sun. Nevertheless, their statements were read and both former partners say Depp had never been violent during their relationships.

I had conflicting thoughts on this. If you listen to a former partner saying someone was violent and abusive, then equal attention and respect should be paid to others who say the opposite. I also understand the impulse to come forward to defend someone, especially if you feel they’re being unjustly vilified.

However, it has to be acknowledged that these were essentially character witness statements that, crucially (as touched on by Ryder), only related to their own relationships with Depp. Which, in Ryder’s case, ended 27 years ago.

A potential problem with this is that, while proving nothing of direct relevance to the case, it could cast the other party as a troublemaker (as in, “Oh look, he never did it before”). The question is not whether Depp behaved like this with every woman, in all his relationships, but whether he did so during his time with Amber Heard.

A legal judgment has yet to be reached. However, different relationships have different pressures and, therefore, at least the potential for markedly different behaviour. In or out of a courtroom, it cannot be said: “It didn’t happen with me, so it didn’t happen at all.” As I say, I understand Paradis and Ryder’s desire to come forward but, as with all exes, the fact remains that they were not in that relationship.

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