As you know, Amber Heard went to court on Friday seeking a restraining order against Johnny Depp as part of her divorce petition. The restraining order was granted, although she was denied her request for $50,000 a month in spousal support because both sides have yet to come to an agreement over finances, which is as clear a message as any that in our world MONEY > SAFETY. Like, you believe she could be harmed insofar as issuing a legal decree for her protection but getting her access to some cash is where you draw the line?
Anyway, as expected, people started poring over the court documents from Amber’s filing immediately. If you don’t want to read through every single page, click here for a pretty thorough breakdown of the major points. In short, Amber is alleging that Johnny was violent with her the entire time they were together. That in addition to what went down last Saturday at their apartment – which is when he threw the cell phone at her face – he also attacked her after her birthday party last month. There was also an incident last December in which she feared for her life. And he has a serious problem with drugs and alcohol, contributing to his paranoia, delusions, and anger issues.
Amber is also backing her claims up with witness statements from friends who confirm her account of what happened last week and that she’d been the victim of ongoing abuse. She also pre-emptively points out that Johnny is protected by an entourage of enablers, including security personnel, who are paid to make sure he can be a dickhead but not have to pay for it, at one point describing how she tried to appeal to his bodyguard “Judge Jerry” for help when Johnny was hitting her but all “Jerry” could do was manage a weak “Boss, please” to his employer without interfering.
And we find out in the Amber Papers why she filed for divorce so soon after Johnny’s ma passed away and that she tried, initially, to keep this a private matter, producing emails from her lawyer to his entertainment lawyer, Jason Bloom, insisting that they resolve the issue undercover so to avoid public awareness. It was only after Johnny’s rep, Robin Baum, issued a statement about the “brevity” of their marriage, and repeated how “short” it was that Amber decided she’d blow sh-t up in his face.
Amber stepped out on Saturday after a meeting with her legal team – click here to see the photos. That’s the expression of someone who’s outplayed her abusive husband. And it’s the expression of a woman who’s challenging what we expect a woman to look like when she’s been abused by her abusive husband. Last week I wrote about the Perfect Victim and how the Perfect Victim is rarely ever afforded the privilege of power. Amber Heard is not perfect. No victim ever is. But right now, she has the power.
