{
  "$type": "site.standard.document",
  "description": "Judge Azcarate opened Day 24 by reading comprehensive jury instructions establishing the seven-element defamation test for Depp's three op-ed claims, the five-element test for Heard's three Waldman counterclaims, and the actual malice standard requiring clear and convincing evidence. Vasquez and Chew delivered the plaintiff's closing, playing audio recordings of Heard admitting to hitting Depp, challenging the absence of corroborating medical evidence for her injuries, and walking the jury through the 21-question verdict form. Rottenborn argued the op-ed was First Amendment-protected speech and walked the jury chronologically through Depp's own texts and recordings documenting alleged abuse, while Bredehoft's counterclaim closing presented Waldman's three defamatory statements alongside a $47–50 million career-damages estimate. Vasquez's rebuttal directly attacked Heard's credibility on the charity pledge, the escalating sexual assault allegations, and the causation gap in her damages case, and Rottenborn's final rebuttal urged the jury that any single act of abuse—physical, verbal, or sexual—was sufficient to support Heard. After final deliberation instructions, alternate jurors were released and the jury retired.",
  "path": "/trial/day/24/",
  "publishedAt": "2022-05-27T00:00:00.000Z",
  "site": "at://did:plc:vd3vzujxkxsthkswrc2zzupm/site.standard.publication/dvh",
  "title": "Closing Arguments",
  "updatedAt": "2026-06-08T13:28:18.946Z"
}