Day 18 · Raquel Pennington & Others

The morning sidebar addressed two matters: signing a juror order and resolving exhibit issues for Pennington's deposition. Heard's team argued photo timestamps were admissible metadata under Kadem v. Commonwealth; Depp's team objected on foundation grounds. Judge Azcarate distinguished changeable iPhone display data from true extracted metadata, citing her computer forensics training, and allowed the timestamps over objection.

Camille Vasquez continues cross-examining Raquel Pennington via video deposition. Pennington describes injuries she saw on Heard after Australia, at Thanksgiving 2015, in December 2015, and before Coachella 2016, but repeatedly concedes her knowledge of causes comes from Heard's account. On May 21, 2016, Pennington was present but never saw Depp touch or throw anything at Heard. Multiple injury photographs she took are authenticated and entered into evidence.

Rottenborn questions Pennington about Depp's self-named "monster" alter ego and elicits her first-person account of the May 21, 2016 penthouse confrontation, in which she placed herself over Heard while Depp stood over them yelling. She authenticates injury and damage photographs from December 2015 and May 21, and denies that any scenes were staged. She also confirms Depp told her he cut off his own fingertip in Australia.

Depp attorney Benjamin Chew examined Josh Drew, ex-husband of Raquel Pennington. Drew testified he never witnessed Depp strike Heard or any woman, while describing marks and bruising on Heard's face on May 22 and after December 15, 2015, without firsthand knowledge of the cause. He recounted damage across three penthouses on May 21, police noting "her face is red," and revealed Elon Musk visited Heard's penthouse shortly after the restraining order while she and Depp remained married.

Kaplan cross-examined Drew, eliciting that he witnessed Depp use drugs more than 20 times and recognized Depp's handwriting on a kitchen counter message on December 15, 2015. Drew described Heard's facial injuries on that date and on May 21–22, 2016, walking through multiple photo exhibits. He recounted Depp's aggressive entry into his apartment on May 21 and disclosed he is a domestic violence survivor. Drew denied any coordination with other witnesses.

On redirect, Chew targeted an inconsistency in Drew's prior testimony: Drew had said Depp's dogs were too small to climb stairs, yet one dog apparently could jump on the bed. Chew pressed the point, and Drew clarified that one dog had the ability to climb stairs and jump on the bed while the other lacked both. Judge Azcarate then dismissed the jury for lunch, concluding Drew's testimony entirely.

Whitney Henriquez describes a progressive pattern of Depp's substance-fueled controlling behavior over Heard's clothing, career, and social circle. She testifies to directly witnessing the March 2015 staircase incident at the Eastern Columbia Building, in which Depp struck her from behind before grabbing Heard by the hair and hitting her repeatedly in the face. Photos of the destroyed closet were admitted as Exhibit 400. Afterward, an NDA appeared on Whitney's kitchen table. She closes by describing Heard's distress following Adam Waldman's public statements.

Lecaroz opens by establishing Whitney's financial dependence on Depp and protective loyalty to Heard as sources of bias. She extracts admissions that Whitney used cocaine with Depp in 2013 and sent a text joking about him hitting Heard. The staircase incident testimony is narrowed: Whitney was unsure the contact was intentional, sustained no injury, and took no photos of Heard. A sidebar over Plaintiff's 1283 results in the text being read to Whitney rather than admitted, impeaching her claim that she did not understand the "point of no return" framing. Cross closes with Whitney confirming the staircase was the only incident she directly witnessed.

Elizabeth Marz, a longtime friend of Raquel Pennington, testifies about the May 21, 2016 penthouse incident at the Eastern Columbia Building. She describes Depp entering penthouse 5 forcefully, appearing intoxicated, wielding a large wine bottle, and saying "get your bitch out of here," causing her to flee in fear. Reuniting in penthouse 1, she observed Heard with a red, swollen face on the right side around the eye. Marz acknowledged she did not directly witness Depp strike Heard.

Brook draws out Marz's first-person account of Depp bursting into penthouse 5 wielding a magnum wine bottle, screaming profanities, causing her to flee in fear. Marz describes finding Heard afterward with a swollen, marked face she attributes to being hit. Exhibit 13 is introduced: photos of Heard's injuries, a broken bed frame, wine staining in the hallway, and broken picture frames. Marz confirms the marks were absent when she saw Heard earlier that afternoon.

Makeup artist and friend Melanie Inglessis testified she visited Heard's penthouse around December 15, 2015, observing kitchen wall writing and a broken bed. On December 16 she found Heard with bilateral periorbital discoloration, bridge-of-nose bruising, and a split lip. She applied peach-undertone concealer and red lipstick to cover the injuries before Heard's James Corden appearance. Inglessis described Heard as "angry, sad, a little erratic" and found her crying on stylist Samantha McMillan's shoulder when she arrived.

Vasquez established that across fewer than ten interactions, Inglessis never personally witnessed Depp be violent, yell, or cause injuries to Heard. All knowledge of alleged abuse came from Heard and her inner circle. Inglessis walked back her direct-examination characterization of injuries as consistent with being "lightly headbutted," stating she was not present. Memory uncertainty about whether the December 15, 2015 penthouse visit occurred then or before a May 2016 incident was also exposed.

Bredehoft asked Inglessis whether Heard had deviated from her regular makeup routine during the week of May 21, 2016; Inglessis recalled no such deviation. Inglessis confirmed Heard used arnica gel and ice to reduce swelling in preparation for the James Corden show. She explained that arnica gel, a standard item in her professional kit, helps bring down facial swelling, though not dramatically.

Kristina Sexton, Heard's acting coach from 2009 to 2017, testified about observing the couple's relationship deteriorate. She described Depp growing darker and controlling, disparaging Heard's career choices with derogatory terms, and restricting her independence. In the final year, 80–90% of sessions began with Heard in tears. Sexton recounted a Hicksville trip where she found a destroyed trailer and heard Depp apologize, saying he turned into a "monster."

Vasquez focuses on when Sexton learned of Heard's Australia rape allegation and the limits of her direct observations. Sexton confirms she only heard of the bottle penetration after consulting Heard's attorneys, before her formal deposition. She acknowledges never seeing Depp hit, kick, or throw anything at Heard, though she saw him advance on Heard before a bodyguard intervened. Sexton also recounts Heard's version of the finger injury: Depp broke the bottle himself and accidentally cut his finger.

On redirect, Kaplan asks a single question about Depp's attitude toward drug testing. Sexton recalls an evening at Depp's Orange penthouse — while Heard was out — where Depp joked that insurance tests were easy to fake and advised a method for passing a urine test, saying "that's why we do what we do." The brief exchange adds a character detail supporting Heard's team's narrative of ongoing, concealed substance use.