A psychologist hired by the legal team of Heard testified Tuesday that she believes Heard has post-traumatic stress disorder from the intimate partner violence she experienced during her marriage to Johnny Depp.
Dawn Hughes, a forensic psychologist who conducted an evaluation of Heard after spending about 29 hours with her, told the court that she did not believe Heard had a personality disorder. She said that she believed Heard had experienced intimate partner violence from Depp and that she showed very clear psychological, traumatic effects.
Heard is being sued by her ex- husband for defamation, after she wrote an op-ed for the Washington Post in which she said she was the victim of domestic violence. He testified that the implication that he abused Heard hurt his career. The judge denied Heard's team's request to throw out the case because they didn't have enough evidence.
Heard reported several acts of physical violence from Depp, including him pushing her, shoving her, hitting her, and kicking her. Heard reported vaginal pain from sexual assaults. Hughes said there were many instances of Depp trying to control Heard's career. He criticized Heard for her ambition and said that he didn't want her to act with certain actors because of his jealousy. Hughes said that almost every male and female actor worked with Heard.
She never felt safe to be an actress in these films or productions because she would have to come home and endure his anger at her for doing something or not doing something, according to Hughes.
The actor testified that he reacted to conflict in the marriage by leaving the room at times. The fight would always come back because of his obsessiveness.
Heard reported sexual violence to Bonnie Jacobs, her therapist, from October 2011 to August 2014, according to Hughes. He had sex with Heard when he was drunk and high. He forced her to have sex with him.
Hughes said that these were angry moments. He tried to get control over her.
In one instance, Hughes said, Depp ripped off Heard's gown and stuck his fingers up her vagina, looking for cocaine. Heard was penetrated with a bottle during a trip to Australia. Heard told Hughes that she was only thinking that it was not the broken one, and that she was dissociated during the alleged incident.
Heard and Hughes had a psychological abuse in their marriage. Heard said that she called the actor "horrible names" and that he called her a "slut" and a "lesbian camp counselor".
Hughes was asked by Heard's attorney how she had been able to corroborate the reported incidents, and she offered an example of the alleged attack on Heard by Johnny Depp. Heard told several friends about the event. In a previous UK defamation trial, he testified that he tapped Heard in the back. She only had one example that she could think of.
Hughes disagreed with the method used in the assessment and she did not find that Heard was exaggerating any of her symptoms.
There was a high degree of violence between Heard and Depp, according to Hughes' evaluation. Heard engaged inmild acts while Depp engaged in more severe acts of psychological aggression. Heard reported that she was subjected to sexual violence, but Hughes said that she was not subjected to any.
Heard was abused by her father and her mother was abused by her father.
She had learned from a very early age how to take care of a parent that is passed out and how to live in a chaotic situation.
She learned that people who hurt her can love her.
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