The legal drama surrounding Aquaman star Amber Heard and her ex-husband, Fantastic Beasts star Johnny Depp, has taken another turn following shocking allegations against the actress, who has claimed that Depp had physically abused her during their tumultuous 18-month-long marriage.
Depp is currently suing Heard for defamation due to her domestic abuse claims and there appears to be new evidence that suggests that Heard faked some of her alleged injuries at the hands of Depp that allowed her to obtain a temporary restraining order (TRO) against the actor and if that were to be proven true, the actress could face up to three years in prison for falsifying evidence.
The two actors, who met while filming The Rum Diary in 2011, married in February 2015. Heard filed for divorce in May 2016. She obtained the TRO at the same time, stating that Depp had been physically and verbally abusive to her. Their divorce settled in August of that year and the divorce was finalized in January 2017. However, in December of 2018, Heard wrote an op-ed piece for the Washington Post where she once again spoke about Depp being physically abusive. Soon after, Depp filed a $50 million defamation lawsuit against his former wife (interestingly, Heard did not actually use Depp's name in the opinion piece, but a judge recently ruled that Depp sufficiently demonstrated that it was clear who Heard was referring to, so he was still eligible to argue it was defamatory).
At issue now are Depp's claims that Heard used makeup to paint on the bruises that she used as her evidence to obtain the TRO in 2016. Actor James Franco has become a key figure in the case, since he was filmed on survellience video spending time with Heard in the days before and after the TRO was obtained.
Heard had also claimed that Depp gave her two black eyes before she appeared on The Late Late Show With James Corden in 2015, but her stylist, Samantha McMillen, has stated, “Throughout the day of December 16, 2015, I could see clearly that Amber Heard did not have any visible marks, bruises, cuts, or injuries to her face or any other part of her bod."
California Penal Code Section 141 PC establishes that it is illegal to alter, modify, plant, place, conceal, manufacture or move any physical matter with the intention of causing someone to be charged with a crime. Other laws that would apply include Offering false evidence under California Penal Code 132 PC and Preparing false evidence under California Penal Code Section 134 PC. The latter two laws are felony charges, while the initial law is typically a misdemeanor, but could be charged as a felony.
The felony charges have a maximum sentence of three years in prison.