Depp and Heard issue grim videotape apology

Actor’s wife avoids long prison term over Australian dog-smuggling spat

Actor Johnny Depp’s wife Amber Heard pleaded guilty Monday to providing a false immigration document when the couple brought their two dogs into Australia last year, but she managed to avoid jail time over what was dubbed the “war on terrier” debacle.

Prosecutors dropped more serious charges that Heard illegally imported the Yorkshire terriers, Pistol and Boo, into the country while Depp was filming the fifth movie in the Pirates of the Caribbean series. A conviction on the illegal importation counts could have sent the actress to prison for up to 10 years.

Depp and Heard submitted a videotaped apology to the court that was played during the hearing.

It drew jibes online for the couple’s grim, wooden appearance as Heard apologized and they both expressed support for protecting Australia’s biodiversity.

The drama over the dogs began last May, when Agriculture Minister Barnaby Joyce accused Depp of smuggling the tiny terriers aboard his private jet. Bringing pets into Australia involves applying for a permit and quarantine on arrival of at least 10 days to prevent the spread of diseases such as rabies.

“If we start letting movie stars — even though they’ve been the sexiest man alive twice — to come into our nation (with pets), then why don’t we just break the laws for everybody?” Joyce said at the time. “It’s time that Pistol and Boo buggered off back to the United States.”

Depp and Heard were given 72 hours to send Pistol and Boo back to the U.S., with officials warning that the dogs would otherwise be euthanized.

The comments by Joyce, now the deputy prime minister of Australia, elevated what might otherwise have been a local spat into a global delight for comedians and broadcasters.