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A 2020 court declaration by Jennifer Howell, a woman who claims to be friends with Amber Heard's sister Whitney Henriquez (formerly Heard), recently surfaced online. The document came to light amid Heard's ongoing defamation trial against her ex-husband Johnny Depp.
Howell's declaration highlighted Depp and Heard's 2015 staircase fight involving Henriquez and Depp's infamous finger injury following a violent altercation with Heard in Australia. The woman claimed that Henriquez told her that Heard was violent and abusive towards Depp, contrary to Henriquez's statement in court.
On Wednesday, Depp's team spoke about Henriquez's friendship with Howell during cross-examination of Henriquez's testimony. Shortly after, Twitter user @mimasdiaries pointed out that Howell posted an IG story claiming that an unidentified man broke into her house after she chose to share the truth.
Everything to know about Jennifer Howell and her declaration
Jennifer Howell is Amber Heard's sister Whitney Henriquez's close friend and former employer. She calls herself Henriquez's "chosen sister," a moniker the latter approves of herself.
Howell is the owner of The Art of Elysium, a non-profit organization she founded more than two decades ago. The organization helps artists provide services to communities in need and reportedly serves over 30,000 individuals every year.
The woman recently made news after her court-submitted declaration about Johnny Depp and Amber Heard surfaced online. She shared that Heard's sister volunteered for her organization for six months in 2014 and started working as a full-time paid employee as an Art Salon Manager/Director between 2015 and 2016.
Jennifer Howell said that she learned about Whitney Henriquez's testimony at Johnny Depp vs. The Sun's UK libel trial and realized that it was the opposite of the account Henriquez allegedly shared with her in the past.
In her testimony, Henriquez mentioned that she had to sleep on her employer's home floor after Depp and Heard's 2015 staircase fight. Howell clarified that she was the employer above, and Henriquez did not sleep on the floor but came to live in the guest room of her Wilshire Boulevard apartment.
Contrary to Henriquez's statement in the London trial, Howell claimed that she initially told her Heard attacked Depp on the stairs and nearly pushed her sister down the staircase when she attempted to intervene:
“Whitney told me she tried to stop her sister Amber from hitting [and] attacking Johnny on the stairs. Whitney said when she tried to intervene to stop Amber from going after Johnny, Amber nearly pushed Whitney down the stairs.”
Jennifer Howell claimed that Henriquez told her she was worried Heard "would kill Johnny." Henriquez also allegedly called Heard "extremely violent" and said she had to endure abuse at her sister's hand for her entire life.
The woman further mentioned that Henriquez moved in with her as "she was terrified of her sister." Howell also said that Henriquez told her that Depp continued to check in on her and called her "sis" while she called him "brother."
Howell claimed that Henriquez had told her that she suffered alleged "physical and psychological" injuries by Heard after experiencing abuse at the hands of their father during childhood. She alleged that Henriquez told her Heard attacked her and threw a glass of red wine at her during their time in New York, possibly during the Tribeca Festival or The Adderall Diaries premiere.
Howell went on to claim that Henriquez discussed the infamous fight between Johnny Depp and Amber Heard in Australia, and the latter cut off Depp's finger:
“[Henriquez said] Oh my god she has done it now. She has cut off his f***ng finger.”
Jennifer Howell also claimed that Heard asked her to write a character reference for her charity work after she faced legal trouble for allegedly smuggling dogs in Australia. She wrote the letter and gave the Aquaman star a humanitarian award.
The Art of Elysium founder mentioned that she was surprised when she learned none of Amber Heard's $7 million divorce settlement money would be donated to the organization despite the actress' longtime association with the charity.
She also alleged that Heard's publicist told her the money would be donated to the ACLU and LA Children's Hospital as they were more prominent charities with better press reach.
Howell said that she later received a $250,000 donation from an anonymous donor "on behalf of Amber Heard" and believed that it was Elon Musk.
Contrary to the alleged stories Henriquez shared with Howell, the former previously testified that she saw Heard with wounds, bruises, cut lips, and scratches on her back in 2013 while she was in a relationship with Depp.
Meanwhile, Heard testified that Depp attacked her during the 2015 staircase fight and nearly pushed Henriquez down the stairs when she attempted to intervene.
Jennifer Howell reportedly received two subpoenas from Johnny Depp's attorney on July 24, 2020. She then spoke to his lawyer Adam Waldman and decided to share her version of the truth in a declaration.
Twitter reacts to Jennifer Howell's resurfaced declaration
The Johnny Depp vs. Amber Heard defamation case has been under significant scrutiny ever since the trial began at the Fairfax County court on April 11. Social media users have also continued to unearth several pieces of evidence and statements from the past to analyze the situation further.
Amber Heard's sister Whitney Henriquez's friend Jennifer Howell's court declaration made the rounds on social media. Netizens immediately flocked to Twitter to share their reactions to the same:
While some claimed that Depp's team could call Howell as a rebuttal witness, others alleged that Heard attempted to threaten the former after she shared her truth:
As reactions continue to pour in online, it remains to be seen whether Jennifer Howell's declaration will be mentioned in court during the final days of Johnny Depp and Amber Heard's defamation trial.
