‘It isn’t a matter to joke about’
Gary Lineker has come under fire after tweeting a joke following the verdict in Johnny Depp’s defamation trial against Amber Heard.
On Wednesday evening, the jury in Fairfax, Virginia, ruled that Depp had been defamed by his ex-wife Heard in a 2018 Washington Post op-ed she wrote.
After deliberating for approximately 12 hours and 45 minutes, they concluded that Heard had defamed Depp with the article.
The jury found ‘yes’ in answer to each question asked to them, finding that Heard’s statements about her marriage were “false” and conveyed “a defamatory implication” to people other than Depp.
They also found she acted with “actual malice”.
The jury awarded Depp $10m (£8m) in compensatory damages and $5m in punitive damages.
In a tweet following the verdict, Lineker joked: “Depp wins and gets Heard immunity.”
Depp wins and gets Heard immunity.
— Gary Lineker (@GaryLineker) June 1, 2022
But the Match of the Day host quickly came under fire for the tweet, with some accusing him of trivialising a case which had contained serious allegations of domestic abuse.
One person replied: “However pleased you were with this, you should have kept it to yourself. Domestic abuse victims were just told by the courts that they cannot talk about their abuser – it isn’t a matter for joking about.”
Another said: “Delete this immediately what the f**k.”
And a third wrote: “Delete your account.”
Both Depp and Heard have released statements following the verdict.
In his statement, Depp said he had ‘got his life back‘ thanks to the jury.
Meanwhile Heard said the verdict was a ‘setback’ for women.
Related links:
- Johnny Depp was in a pub in Newcastle while the verdict of his defamation trial was read out
- Johnny Depp and Kate Moss ‘reunited’ at second performance in London with Jeff Beck
- Petition to axe Amber Heard from Aquaman 2 nears 4.5m signature target ahead of verdict
