Johnny Depp suit against Amber Heard starts with jury picks

Jury selection began Monday in a long-anticipated libel lawsuit Johnny Depp filed against his ex-wife, actress Amber Heard, whom he accuses of falsely portraying him as a domestic abuser.

Depp sued Heard over an op-ed piece she wrote in The Washington Post in 2018 in which Heard refers to herself as a "public figure representing domestic abuse." The article doesn't mention Depp by name, but he says it clearly refers to allegations Heard made in other forums that she suffered physical abuse at his hands. Depp denies the accusations.

The lawsuit brought a little bit of Hollywood to a courthouse that has a long history of dealing with high-profile crimes, just not those involving movie stars.

More than a dozen women, some waving signs saying "Justice for Johnny," joined other fans who waved pirate flags in recognition of Depp's signature role in the "Pirates of the Caribbean" movies, waited outside the courthouse an hour before the hearing.

The courtroom in the city of Fairfax was closed to the public Monday, with limited closed-circuit access in an overflow courtroom. People lined up before 7 a.m. for the wristbands granting access.