Johnny Depp has been wrapped up in legal situations for quite some time now. Most recently, the Pirates of the Caribbean star was entangled in a (televised) six-week defamation case with his ex-wife, Amber Heard. Ultimately, the jury’s verdict fell in Depp’s favor, as Heard was found guilty on three counts of defamation and now must pay her ex millions of dollars. While Depp has apparently closed the book on that situation, he’s now facing an assault-related lawsuit from a former colleague. And the accuser’s lawyer is speaking out ahead of the trial.
The plaintiff in this legal case is Gregg “Rocky” Brooks, who worked as a location manager on Johnny Depp’s Tupac-centric crime drama, City of Lies. Brooks filed suit back in 2018, alleging that the star punched him twice in the rib cage. The crew member claims that by committing the purported act, Depp was “inflicting emotional distress” on him. Brooks also stated that after the star supposedly punched him, he proceeded to taunt him, before Depp allegedly offered the manager $100,000 to punch him in the face.
To say that this latest trial comes at an interesting time would be a serious understatement. Given its close proximity to the defamation case involving Amber Heard, The Sun asked Gregg Brooks’ lawyer, Pat Harris, for his thoughts on the verdict in that situation. Harris, however, doesn’t seem to believe that that court decision means anything in regard to his client’s situation:
Brooks’ case is not about two Hollywood celebrities involved in a toxic relationship. It is about the assault of a hard-working film crew member by the star of the production.Mr. Brooks looks forward to his day in court.
Gregg Brooks’ lawsuit further claims that after the reported incident, Johnny Depp continued to rant before being removed from the area by his bodyguards, while also asserting that his breath smelled of alcohol. After the 2018 filing, Depp responded to the suit, saying that Brooks “provoked” the actions that caused his injuries and that they were sustained as a result of “self-defense/defense of others.” Depp also claimed that the location manager made him feel unsafe. At this time, the damages that Brooks is suing for have not been publicly specified.
The damages that the Oscar winner received from the recent defamation case have been, however. Per the jury, the actor is to be awarded a compensatory $10 million dollars as well as an additional $5 million in punitive damages. Though Amber Heard was also awarded $2 million in compensatory damage. In her response to the verdict, Heard expressed “disappointment,” while her former husband stated that he felt “at peace.”
Pat Harris does make a fair point in saying that these are two different situations so, right now, one can’t currently say for sure how the jury might rule in this case. Johnny Depp and Gregg Brooks’ assault trial is currently set to begin on July 25th.