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Whitney Henriquez in court: 'Hair pulled and multiple slaps in the face'
PHOTO: KEVIN LAMARQUE / REUTERS
The sister of US actress Amber Heard described a dispute between the ex-couple in the defamation lawsuit against her ex-husband Johnny Depp.
Depp pulled Heard's hair in March 2015 in the shared apartment in Los Angeles and hit her several times in the face, Whitney Henriquez reported in court.
Heard also beat Depp at the time.
Depp has sued Heard, to whom he was married between 2015 and 2017, for $50 million in damages.
The actor accuses the 36-year-old of having seriously damaged his career with false accusations.
Heard wrote an article for the Washington Post in 2018 and described himself as a victim of domestic violence without naming Depp.
Heard has responded with a counterclaim against the 58-year-old, demanding $100 million in damages.
Her younger sister was called to the witness stand by Heard's attorneys on Wednesday.
Henriquez, who lived for a time in the same penthouse complex as Depp and Heard, described the ex-couple's difficult relationship on the 18th day of the trial.
"When he was sober, things were wonderful," said 34-year-old Henriquez.
"If he wasn't sober, they were terrible." When Depp took drugs or drank alcohol, "there was almost always a fight".
"They said really bad things to each other"
Henriquez detailed the argument in March 2015, a month after the couple's wedding.
Heard woke her up in the middle of the night to tell her that Depp cheated on her and that they had an argument.
"They said really nasty things to each other," Henriquez reported.
Depp ran up the stairs and "kind of hit Henriquez in the back."
Heard then yelled at him: "Don't hit my damn sister!" Then Heard hit him.
Depp's bodyguard tried to intervene, "but by that time, Johnny had already grabbed Amber's hair with one hand and repeatedly slapped her in the face with the other hand," Henriquez said.
The bodyguard finally separated the two.
Depp then destroyed the penthouse, broke numerous objects in the kitchen and threw Heard's clothes on the floor.
Heard's younger sister said the Hollywood star tried to get her to sign a non-disclosure agreement after the incident.
But she refused this.
Closing arguments were scheduled for May 27 by Judge Penney Azcarate.
Then the jury must decide.
bam/AFP