Sally and Stephen Miller, owners of ChemNutra, Inc., the company that imported the melamine-laden protein powder that led to the 2007 pet food recall, and the illness and death of tens of thousands of dogs and cats, were sentenced.

Last Friday, February 5, 2010, at 10:00 a.m. the United States Magistrate Judge John T. Maughmer sentenced the unscrupulous couple. If you were hoping for justice, you can forget about it.

As explained in the agreement, the court adopted the recommendation of the attorneys in exchange for a plea agreement and imposed a sentence of three years probation for each defendant.

The agreement concludes that the Millers were at fault and “what they did caused great harm”:

Because of the neglect of these defendants, because they failed to exercise foresightand vigilance, the public suffered greatly. Thousands of innocent pets became seriously ill and many suffered death. It is impossible to talk about this case without realizing that the defendant's criminal conduct posed and caused substantial physical injuries, death, and psychological injuries.

The defendants pled guilty to misdemeanor violations of the Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act (FDCA). But, that doesn’t mean they regret what they did. It appears the Millers are still balking at the charges, despite their guilty plea.

The only bright light is that, in the event the parties breach their agreement, the Government is released from its obligations under the agreement.

Doesn’t mean a lot, but it’s something…

During the proceeding, there were a lot of sad stories floating around the court about “how difficult this has been on the Millers” and plenty of testimony about what “good, righteous, honest, religious, upstanding citizens the Millers are.”

What wasn’t seen was the testimony about how many animals suffered horrific deaths, or how tragic the recall was for the pet’s owners, many of whom lost their entire pet family in one fell swoop.

Justice? Not so much…

The Millers, I’m sure you’ll be happy to hear, were so effected by the proceedings that they immediately entered back into the import business. ChemNutra’s business license with the city of Las Vegas and incorporation at the Nevada secretary of state’s office are both listed as active. They've apparently even expanded operations with a new company known as EOS Direct, LLC.

Apparently, the terms of probation did not include the clause that the Millers shouldn’t be allowed to continue in the import business – so they are perfectly within their rights, such as they are, to continue with operations. To add insult to injury, the FDA had this to say about the situation:

“We commend the action of the U.S. Attorney’s Office against those companies and individuals responsible for many animal injuries and deaths from melamine contamination of pet food,” said Dr. Joshua M. Sharfstein, principal deputy commissioner of the Food and Drug Administration. “The FDA will support strong enforcement of the law to protect the health and safety of our pets.”

Huh.

If we read the settlement correctly, we are only left to assume that the government believes that the untold psychological and emotional damage inflicted on owners who watched their beloved pets die a horrific death, is worth a total of $35,000. That's a total of $5,000 each for the Millers, and $25,000 from their business, ChemNutra.

Oh – and three years probation.

Granted, there is a $24 million settlement in a related civil suit that they need to deal with, but let’s face it – the end result of that case will be a settlement amounting to pennies to each affected pet owner – and that’s assuming they can kept their vet bills and are able to provide documentation to the courts that their pet died or suffered as a result of the recalled food.

It’s just another great tragedy of our world. Sure – I realize that the real world applies little value to pets – it’s true that our pack members have been treated as chattel for the last millennia. But, it doesn’t make it right.

On the bright side, the court couldn’t leave without the following statements:

“We commend the action of the U.S. Attorney’s Office against those companies and individuals responsible for many animal injuries and deaths from melamine contamination of pet food,” said Dr. Joshua M. Sharfstein, principal deputy commissioner of the Food and Drug Administration. “The FDA will support strong enforcement of the law to protect the health and safety of our pets.”

“ICE will continue to aggressively pursue individuals and organizations involved with illegally importing tainted or substandard goods that may jeopardize the safety of our families, communities and pets,” said John Morton, Department of Homeland Security assistant secretary for ICE. “Today’s sentence sends a strong message that we will work tirelessly to stop dangerous goods from entering the American marketplace.”

Will it? Because it sure hasn’t stopped the Millers who are already back in the food import business…