After much official deliberation – and mud throwing from both sides – Amber Heard has been ordered to appear in a Queensland court on April 18, 2016, for allegedly smuggling Pistol and Boo into Australia.
The actress is facing two counts of knowingly importing a prohibited product [in this case her Yorkshire terriers] in breach of the Quarantine Act, and one count of producing a false document.
Penalties range from a hefty fine to more than 10 years in prison.
Amber, 29, came under fire for failing to declare Pistol and Boo to authorities when she arrived via private jet in Brisbane in April, 2015. Johnny, 53, was in Australia to film the latest instalment of Pirates of the Caribbean.
Under strict Australian laws designed to keep disease at bay, dogs entering from the US must be declared and have to spend 10 days in quarantine.
The case, now dubbed the “war on terrier”, sparked global attention after the dogs were threatened with death by Australia’s Agriculture Minister Barnaby Joyce, unless they went back to the United States.
Mr Joyce said he did not care if Johnny had been voted the “sexiest man alive”, he still had to adhere to quarantine rules.
“Mr Depp has to either take his dogs back to California or we’re going to have to euthanise them,” he said.
The pampered pooches were promptly whisked back to the U.S. on a private jet, while Amber and Johnny stayed behind for filming.
Amber was understandably upset by the hardline taken, vowing to never return to Australia, although a more recent report quotes her as saying “she respected Australia’s laws” and was looking forward to “attending the hearing of these matters”.
Johnny has previously joked about the international scandal, including the Agriculture Minister’s threats to have the dogs put down.
“I killed my dogs and ate them under direct orders from some kinda, I dunno, sweaty, big-gutted man from Australia,” he said, in an apparent reference to Mr Joyce, during the Venice Film Festival.
