Day 3 · Kate James & Others

Rottenborn questioned James about her roughly ten contacts with Adam Waldman and a past meeting with Vasquez, then impeached her with UK testimony contradicting her disavowal of a Depp text disparaging Heard. James testified she never observed violence between Depp and Heard during her employment. Her financial distress at termination and request to live rent-free in a Depp property were surfaced as evidence of bias.

Camille Vasquez cross-examined Heard's former personal assistant Kate James, who confirmed she never observed injuries or violence involving Heard over three years of daily contact. James described Heard as verbally abusive to her, her sister, and her mother, and testified to Heard's Provigil manic episodes and admissions of illegal drug use. Depp was characterized as peaceful and gentlemanly. Email exhibits were introduced, and James saw no injuries on Heard in a bathing suit at the Chateau Marmont in May 2014.

Rottenborn uses redirect to highlight that James formed an opinion about Heard's insecurity affecting the relationship but refused to make any similar assessment of Depp's substance abuse. James characterizes Heard's communications to her as repeated expressions of sadness and longing, dismissing them as "blah, blah, blah." Rottenborn then poses two normative questions — whether insecurity or "smothering" justifies abuse — and James declines to answer both, ending the examination.

Anderson, Depp and Heard's 2015 couples therapist, testified about sessions conducted under pseudonyms. She described Depp as overwhelmed by Heard's rapid communication style, unable to "have a voice." Heard herself reported initiating physical confrontations to prevent Depp from leaving, and striking him to keep him present during deescalation. Anderson characterized the dynamic as mutual abuse, noting both parties had childhood abuse histories.

Chew walked Anderson through her therapy notes (Plaintiff's Exhibit 2) and treatment summary (Exhibit 6). Anderson confirmed Heard's admissions of initiating physical violence, including slapping Depp during a December 2015 incident when he was intoxicated. A note asking "Will she have advantage if she leaves him but files with police first?" was identified as Heard strategizing aloud. Anderson characterized the relationship as mutually abusive but acknowledged she never witnessed any violence firsthand.

Nadelhaft redirected Anderson to reaffirm she saw multiple bruises under Heard's eyes. Anderson explained Depp's "chaotic, violent" therapy note language as a retrospective self-description of the relationship. She confirmed her understanding that Heard initiated physical violence and fought as hard as Depp did. Anderson stated Depp never mentioned his finger injury before June 18, 2016.

Chew closes with one question: when Anderson received Heard's accounts of Depp's violent behavior, Depp was not present. Anderson confirms. The exchange flags that Anderson's knowledge of those incidents rests entirely on Heard's one-sided accounts in solo sessions.

Gina Deuters, wife of Depp assistant Stephen Deuters, describes Depp's cocaine use (~20 times over a decade) with no violent behavior. She recounts Heard ignoring her in Las Vegas and angrily reprimanding Depp for secretly sipping champagne at a Japan press tour dinner. At their Bahamas wedding, Heard and friend Rocky gave Deuters her first MDMA. The examination ends at a sidebar after Rottenborn reveals Deuters posted about the trial on social media.

Judge Azcarate discovers witness Gina Deuters had watched trial clips online and strikes her testimony, instructing the jury to disregard it entirely. In a sidebar, Depp's team reveals journalist Eve Barlow passed a cell phone with an undated two-year-old screenshot to Heard's counsel from the front row. The judge bars all non-legal-team members from the front row for both sides. Exhibit 397 (Baruch-Depp texts, redacted) is admitted, and Dr. Kipper's video deposition begins.