Felony for Balloon-boy Dad

Lawyer: Colo. balloon boy parents to plead guilty

Excerpt:

The Colorado parents who reported their 6-year-old son floated away aboard a helium balloon will plead guilty to some charges and serve probation so that the family can stay together, the attorney for the boy's father said Thursday.

Richard Heene will plead guilty in the alleged Oct. 15 hoax to attempting to influence a public servant, a felony, his attorney David Lane said. Mayumi Heene—a Japanese citizen who could have been deported if convicted of more serious charges—will plead guilty to false reporting to authorities, a misdemeanor, he said.

Comment: If I ever hear about Richard Heene after today .... GONNA GAG!

Balloon-boy: State was planning dramatic (and dangerous) rescue

State planned to drop rescuer from helicopter to balloon

Excerpt:

The state made daring plans to rescue the boy believed to be floating free in an experimental balloon Thursday, but not everyone knew about the rescue plans or other help available to find the boy, 9Wants to Know has learned.

"I lost my temper a few times talking to some of my command staff about why the hell we didn't have a helicopter in the air yet," Larimer County Jim Alderden said.

The sheriff did not realize the Colorado National Guard had two helicopters, including a Black Hawk, available to him to search for 6-year-old Falcon Heene after law enforcement discovered he was not inside the space-like balloon when it landed Thursday.

While the balloon was still in flight, the state had come with various ideas to rescue Falcon.

One plan included flying the Black Hawk high above the balloon so that the rotor wash wouldn't damage the balloon, then lower a Search and Rescue crew member in a basket to try to grab Falcon.

Comment: Image captured from article

'[They] put on a very good show for us, and we bought it."

Larimer sheriff: Balloon event a hoax

Excerpts:

Alderden said all three of the Heenes' sons knew of the Thursday hoax, but likely won't face charges because of their ages. The oldest son is 10. One of the boys told investigators he saw his brother get in the balloon's box before it launched.

Alderden said 6-year-old Falcon may not have even been in the rafters in the garage, as originally reported, based on where the investigators were when the boy entered the house.

"For all we know he may have been two blocks down the road playing on the swing in the city park," he said.

...

A Colorado State University physics professor, using dimensions given by Richard Heene, had told sheriff's officials as they were tracking the balloon Thursday that it was plausible for it to lift off with 37-pound Falcon inside.

Once the device landed, sheriff's officials discovered it was made with plastic tarps taped together and covered with aluminum foil, with a utility box made of a very thin piece of plywood, cardboard on the side, held together with string and duct tape, Alderden said.

Using the true dimensions, the professor determined it could not have launched with the boy inside, Alderden said.

Comment: Suspicions confirmed. Details coming to light

Balloon-boy parents: False reporting / Class 3 misdemeanor

Charges pending in "balloon boy" saga

Excerpt:

The Larimer County Sheriff's Office announced Saturday night it is drawing up search warrants and expects to file charges in the "balloon boy" saga.

Sheriff Jim Alderden made the announcement after Richard Heene and his wife voluntarily met with officials at the Larimer County Sheriff's headquarters for several hours.

The sheriff did not give specifics, but he said the charges would likely be a class 3 misdemeanor. False reporting is a Class 3 misdemeanor.

Alderson said that the misdemeanor charges "hardly seem serious enough" and that he would be talking to the district attorney and federal officials to see what other charges could be considered.

Comment: Interesting developments

Proof of Balloon-boy hoax?

Exclusive: I Helped Richard Heene Plan a Balloon Hoax

Excerpt:

When my friends called me about the whole balloon episode I was working. I had just moved to a new place and didn't have my television set up. I probably would never even have heard about this, except that a good friend of mine remembered me telling him about Richard several months ago. He told me, "Rob, you need to turn on the tv immediately! That Richard guy you worked with just pulled a massive publicity stunt!"

Richard's story doesn't add up. He is saying he thought Falcon was in the balloon, and that Falcon ran and hid as a result of Richard yelling at him. I've spent a lot of time with them, and Falcon is, first of all, not afraid of his father. I've never once seen Richard's children afraid of him — and I've definitely never seen Falcon go hide. He was one of the most social of the three children.

Secondly, Falcon supposedly hid in that attic in the garage. I've spent a lot of time in his garage, which has a drill press and various welding tools. It's unorganized and chaotic. There's really not so much an attic as some support beams connected with plywood. Being an adult of average height, I couldn't get up into the attic if I'd wanted to, so I don't know how a six-year-old child could have gotten up there. There's not an easy way to access that overhang. Maybe if I'd lifted that child up into the attic, he might have been able to rest up there, but not comfortably.

Comment: The plot thickens

Was Balloon-Boy incident a staged hoax?

Interview Sets Off Skeptics of Balloon Drama

Excerpt:

In a posting typical of many found on an array of Web sites, one person commented on the Denver Post site: “Clearly a hoax. The kid said he had all of his toys and snacks up there with him in the attic. Now how would he have that if he accidentally released the balloon and then ran up there to hide? I really hope something is done about this.”

Comment: Too early to tell but something smells about this

Balloon-Boy Attic-Boy!

6-year-old Colorado boy found alive after setting balloon adrift

Excerpt:

After scouring northern Colorado by foot and air, frantically chasing a Mylar balloon for miles and repeatedly interviewing his big brother, authorities ended the search for 6-year-old Falcon Heene where it began -- at his house.

He was in a box. In the attic. The whole time.

"I played with my toys and took a nap," Falcon told a group of reporters outside his home Thursday afternoon.

"He says he was hiding in the attic," said Falcon's father, meteorologist Richard Heene, clutching his son. "He says it's because I yelled at him."

"I'm sorry I yelled at him," added Heene, tearfully hugging the boy.

The situation grabbed the nation's attention early Thursday afternoon, after authorities reported that the experimental helium balloon was set adrift with the 6-year-old apparently riding in it.

His brother had said he watched Falcon get into the balloon before he untied the tethers, setting it free. Heene later said Falcon was videotaped getting into the vessel by his brother, but "obviously he got out."

Heene said the family was in the early stages of working on the balloon -- a "3D low-altitude vehicle" -- when the contraption and the boy went missing.

Once it was untethered, the saucer-like craft flew eastward from the Heenes' neighborhood, though officials couldn't immediately confirm how fast it was going. Video Watch the balloon float thousands of feet over Colorado »

Comment: These boys need some closer supervision!

Latest on Balloon Boy

Balloon craft down, Fort Collins boy not inside

Excerpt:

Rescuers and paramedics are with a "homemade flying saucer" that just came down in a field, but the fate of a 6-year-old who was on board is unknown.

Rescuers on the ground told their dispatcher the boy was not inside.

Officials and the boy's family had said he was in the gondola when it went airborne this morning; it's unclear what happened to the boy.

Comment: Weird story!

Balloon Boy in jeopardy

6-year-old Colorado boy floats away in balloon

Comment: hard to believe this will have a good ending! Please pray!

Excerpt:

Margie Martinez of the Weld County Sheriff's Office said a sibling saw the boy climb into the basket before the balloon took off. Since the door on the balloon was unlocked, Martinez said it's possible the boy had fallen out.

The balloon appeared to be a saucer-shaped, Mylar-coated helium balloon, not unlike a party balloon. The craft was drifting eastward, authorities said.

The helium balloon was tethered to the boy's family home in Fort Collins, the Larimer County Sheriff's Department said. The boy got into the craft Thursday morning and undid the rope anchoring it.

The aluminum-covered, dome-shaped balloon is 20 feet long and 5 feet high, the Larimer County Sheriff's Office said.

...

The Federal Aviation Administration is trying to track the aircraft on radar and has notified the Denver International Airport. Shortly after noon (2 p.m. ET), the balloon was sighted two miles south of Evans.

CNN meteorologist Chad Myers estimated the wind would keep the vessel moving at 30 mph. Authorities say the craft is about 7,000 feet above the ground.

Kathy Davis, spokeswoman for the sheriff's department, said a dispatcher received a call Thursday morning, and emergency services personnel were contacted.

Davis said a balloon company had been contacted and several media outlets offered to help track the balloon with their helicopters.
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The family has described the structure as a a dome-shaped "homemade flying saucer," Larimer County Sheriff's Office Spokeswoman Kathy Davis said.

"We're trying to determine the best course of action," Davis said. "This is a first and we'll do what we need to do."

Note to self: Don't make a craft like this and let the kids in it!

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