'Balloon boy' incident 'hoax,' sheriff says

[tabatha]

The case of a giant Mylar balloon, which ascended into the sky late last week amid fears a 6-year-old boy was aboard, has been determined to be a "hoax" and a "publicity stunt," Larimer County, Colorado, Sheriff Jim Alderden said Sunday.

http://www.cnn.com/2009/US/10/18/colorado.balloon.investigation/index.html

Colorado sheriff: Parents met at acting school. "They put on a good show. And we bought it.

[Contrary1]

1. Mom and Dad in deep doodoo...

At least 3 felonies and 1 misdemeanor charge coming, at that's at a local level. I think the federal charges will be even more serious.

[beyurslf]

8. The article says the only charge they may face locally is

a level 3 misdemeanor for filing a false report with the police. Where are the other charges?

[Contrary1]

11. Here's what I caught from the live report on MSNBC now

1) Contributing to the delinquecy of a minor
2) Conspiracy to influence a public servant
3) False reporting
4) Didn't catch that one

Unlikely jail time. Wife taken to domestic abuse shelter yestrday, but refused to cooperate, and went back home. At least one media outlet has agreed to pay them some amount.

[eShirl]

14. 4) conspiracy

[beyurslf]

16. Pay them for what? Being kooky? I wanna get paid for being an idiot.

I can do it, I promise!

[RichGirl]

20. Also....didn't he mention endangering air traffic or something like that.

[liberalhistorian]

30. Yes, one or both may very well face

federal charges for that. In fact, I'd be surprised if they didn't. The FAA takes such things VERY seriously, as it should. And they also may very well be facing having their children being taken from them. I'd also be surprised if that didn't happen. What a couple of arrogant dipshit idiots. And the media's no better for falling all over themselves in such a ridiculous frenzy, without even questioning any of it.

[emulatorloo]

38. Article says felony charges including conspiracy, contributing to the delinquency of a minor

"Charges have not been filed, but authorities expect to recommend felony charges including conspiracy, contributing to the delinquency of a minor and attempting to influence a public servant, Alderden said. They also plan to recommend a charge of filing a false police report, which is a misdemeanor."

[thenooch]

59. and where was the Heene family during the presser?

that's right...Wal-Mart!

Presumably buying a new computer...

Richard and Mayumi Heene were shopping at Wal-Mart with their three sons as Larimer County Sheriff Jim Alderden told reporters at the sheriff's station that the parents' reports were a big hoax.

http://www.9news.com/news/article.aspx?storyid=125304&catid=339

I wonder if they will find any "weird" stuff on Dick's puter?

[ecstatic]

2. Glad the sheriff finally realizes

what I realized on the 15th.

[LeFleur1]

5. I Don't Understand...

why the sheriff's department didn't contact those experienced with balloons to find out the capability of the balloon. One person, contacted by our local news reporter, said that balloon couldn't lift a child that size. That was after it landed. It seems to me anyone experienced with balloons would have known that. And so would the father...you'd think.

[RichGirl]

19. When there is even the slightest possibility that a child is endangered...

It is much better to err on the side of safety. It would have seemed irresponsible to the public if they had disregarded safety before the balloon actually came down. There were experts on CNN saying that the balloon would have acted different if someone, even a small child were in it.

[LisaL]

34. He addressed this during the press-conference.

They contacted a physics professor, but all they had of the balloon is the dimensions the father gave them. Based on these dimensions professor calculated the balloon could carry a small boy. They obviously didn't have the actual balloon until it crashed to measure the actual dimensions.

[arcadian]

81. Bullshit.

Hey guess what? I just saw a child clinging to the side of the space shuttle as it was about ready to be launched! Proof? I just said it and posted it on the internet. Better Err on the side of caution when a child is involved scrub the launch. Please, there is also a thing called common sense.

[Darth_Kitten]

29. Well, I'm sure he'll now get training in Hot Air Awareness....

n/t

[LisaL]

33. They did. They contacted a professor at the University with

the dimensions the father gave them, and professor told them the balloon could carry a boy.
But guess what-the dimensions the father gave them were off.

[jeffbr]

37. Actually - anyone who has taken college physics would know how to do the calculations

if they still remember

[LisaL]

41. For which you would need the dimensions of the balloon.

So there is no point of arguing it was obvious the balloon couldn't carry a kid, since none of us know the exact dimensions of the balloon.

[whopis01]

75. Not at all.

It was easy to prove that a much bigger balloon would be incapable of carrying the kid. You could get a good estimate of the size from the pictures. It was not necessary to be exact.

[LisaL]

92. How well did you do in your college physics?

:eyes:

[whopis01]

96. Quite well actually, thanks for asking. n/t

[kestrel91316]

84. If you base your calculations on false data about dimensions of the thing,

provided by that lying SOB of a father, you will get wrong data.

[kestrel91316]

83. Heene lied to the cops about the balloon's dimensions to make it

seem plausible that it could fly off with the kid.

[Contrary1]

6. Presser going on right now...

Sheriff said Henne gave then wrong dimensions on the balloon. That's why it was determined it could have carried the boy. Box tested at headquarters, and it did support 37 pounds, the weight of Falcon.

Also, he said one of the reasons law enforcement was saying they believed it was not a hoax was to gain the family's confidence.

[stray cat]

17. Unlike yourself - he is a professional who has to have evidence to support accusations

[Liberal_in_LA]

43. Public sentiment forced him to realize. Otherwise he'd still be out looking to the sky

[whopis01]

74. Actually the sheriff (likely) realized it then as well.

They kept saying that they believed the family in order to get them to continue to cooperate with them - even letting them interview the children individually to get to what the real story was.

[kestrel91316]

82. The cops knew something was up on the 15th also. They just had to

keep their mouths shut as to that fact until they got the info they needed. Heene and wife played right into their hands.

They turned the tables on the scammers. Cops can act, too.

[tridim]

3. Problem is they'll get fined, and still get their reality show.

My guess is the contracts were signed well before the incident took place.

[keep_it_real]

4. Publicity for what?

I'm not saying that this was not a "hoax" and a "publicity stunt," but what, is the family selling cookies or something they need publicity for? And as hoax's go - this was not for fun - or to reveal some truth in a ironic way.

This was just stupid IMO.

[mrcheerful]

13. Which is why you never ever talk to police without a lawyer present

what some in DU don't seem to understand, the police "talked" to the family, a nice way of saying the police interrogated the family. Remember, police presume guilt, always, its why the prison's are full of nit wits that admitted to crimes they might not have done. I'm not defending the family, I'm just pointing out the fact that most folks out there only bring attorney's after the police "talk to them and after charges are brought against them.

[keep_it_real]

18. I agree always ask for an lawyer

[LisaL]

35. I fail to see why in the world do I have to worry about

this family deciding to talk to police without a lawyer present.
I can't think of a single freaking reason.

[mrcheerful]

71. You forgot the sarcasm thing

[RichGirl]

24. They wanted publicity because they wanted a reality show.

Both parents are actors. This hoax has been planned for two weeks.

[snagglepuss]

25. You haven't read the tell all by Heeme's asst at Gawker. nt

[Blue Diadem]

36. Wasn't the flying saucer balloon #16 on their list for the show?

It was late when I read it last night.

[Odin2005]

44. Some people have a near pathological need for attention.

Histrionic Personality Disorder and Narcissistic Personality Disorder.

[endless october]

7. they're going to be on the hook for half a mil at least.

[backwoodsbob]

9. how do you figure that

[WeDidIt]

54. Helicopter flight time, down time for DIA

all those emegency workers.

Half a mil is a very conservative estimate.

[endless october]

60. a simple ambulance ride costs more than $1,200.

and they had at least one or two ambulances, several helicopters, dozens of cops w/ cars, and who knows how many of whatever else following that balloon for 2 hours.

half a mil seems the low end of what those folks are going to bill.

[Cleita]

10. The parents or at least the father (who seems to be the mastermind behind

this) should spend some time in jail IMHO.

[951-Riverside]

22. They offered to take Mom to a safe house and asked Richard not to come back to the house

Dad is staying with a friend who works for in the "criminal justice field". :eyes:

[LisaL]

94. I believe she refused the safe house offer, so they are all

together.

[eShirl]

12. conspiracy, contributing to the delinquency of a minor, attempting to influence a public official,

and one other charge I can't remember that they're probably going to be charged with

edit - as stated in a post above by Contrary1 - it was filing a false report

[Swamp Rat]

15. Corporate media must be pleased as punch, as well as pro-war/Wall St./private healthcare politicians

YOU ARE FEELING SLEEEEEEEEEEEEPY........... OBEY.

[nc4bo]

21. Really nice one Swamp Rat!! nt

[DearAbby]

23. Has Fox tied "Balloon Dad" with Obama & ACORN? n/t

[Liberal_in_LA]

49. good question

[backscatter712]

32. AWESOME PIC!!!

I wish I could K&R embedded images!

[BeHereNow]

91. Hands down- ONE OF YOUR BEST! EVER!!!

thumbsup: :hi: :hug: :loveya:

Have I told you lately?
DU wouldn't be DU, without YOU!

BHN

[951-Riverside]

26. Nice, the Sheriff is a Bill O'Riley fan

:eyes:

[cwydro]

27. Yeah and earlier in the conference

he said "I swear on Johh Wayne's name that I am telling the truth"

[romantico]

28. Billo

Billo will jump on this and claim it's his professionalism as a serious journalist that singled him out. I say we should call the police station and give him hell. How does he tell the media that he is done talking so don;t bother to call or contact us and then say I will make an exception but to only one other person. WOnder how those reporters feel. Jerk!

Can't we call and complain that if he gives Billo an interview he should/has to give one to others to be fair? I would think the Police Department would frown on political ideology interfering with a investigation.

[adamuu]

52. Other than that, he sounds pretty reasonable for once. n/t

[backscatter712]

31. Christ, now we'll never hear the end of this ridiculous circus.

The cable news channels are going to be The Balloon Boy Channel for the next month!

:eyes:

And it's in MY HOMETOWN! From now on, Fort Collins won't be known as Fort Fun, or the home of CSU, or one of the top ten places to live in the country, it'll be known as home of the Balloon Boy.

[Common Sense Party]

77. Do they live in FC itself, or out in the county?

I thought it was the county, since the sheriff was called.

I was out in FC that day last week. I didn't know what was going on at all until the next day.

[backscatter712]

79. Their house was apparently on the southern edge of Fort Collins.

Not really far out in the sticks, though I'm not sure if they were actually in city limits.

[kestrel91316]

85. Suburban development on former farmland. Don't get me started on what they have

done to my lovely town.

[Common Sense Party]

89. My beef with your lovely town is that it takes 20 minutes to drive across.

I cut down from WY on 287 to get over to I-25. It takes forever to get through Ft. Collins.

I love the town, though. I keep trying to get my family to move there.

[kestrel91316]

90. We were complaining about that problem in the late 70's, when the only

street that went all the way through town north to south was College Ave, lol. Now you have other major n-s and e-w corridors. There wasn't even that road that angles down from N College out east toward the freeway, lol. You got nuthin' to complain about these days, lol. It took half an hour to get from my grandparents' place up by the "Y" down to the "new" mall on S College, what with the single lane each direction through downtown, and the totally unsynchronized lights.

Failure to have a coherent plan for city growth and traffic management is a major reason why I never wanted to stay there. Other than that, I loved the place and still do.

[kestrel91316]

86. Hi to a fellow former Collinsite!!

[adamuu]

39. The absolute worst part of this is that the adults made the kid lie

The poor kid was so stressed by this that he vomited.

[LisaL]

40. The kid outed them on LKL when he said "...we did this for a show."

[SoCalDem]

50. he actually said "you guys said, we did this for the show"

the "you guys said" part is being skipped over, since he sort of mumbles it..the poor kid's bewildered..Dad & Mom told him what to do, and then he's being questioned about it, as if the 3 kids cooked this up..

[adamuu]

51. It was very revealing. I just hope he was not punished for it

not that I or anyone can do anything about it.

[cwydro]

57. If you look at the other two boys' faces when he says that

it is so obvious he let the cat out of the bag.

They both look shocked and look at their mom, like, uh oh...

[Phoebe Loosinhouse]

80. Yes, they do look like they know all hell is going to break lose.

Well, as someone on late night TV said, that's what happens when you try to have a conspiracy and the lynch pin is a five year old.

Somehow, it will all be the kid's fault for not following the storyline and getting his parents in trouble. I honestly wonder what the long term implications for the family dynamic will be due to this incident.

[ecstatic]

42. Luckily, the sheriff says the children will not receive criminal charges

Personally, I was hoping they'd try Falcon as an adult.




J/K

[TicketyBoo]

47. You're joking, right?

Sometimes it's kinda hard to tell.

Of course, Dad made him do it. Like a 6-year-old is gonna say, "No, I won't"?

[adamuu]

48. J/K = "just kidding" n/t

[TicketyBoo]

58. Thanks

for the clarification. Took the "J/K" as your initials. D'oh!

[Raschel]

46. And went right on with the interview while he was vomiting.

:grr:

[kestrel91316]

87. THAT part was child abuse, pure and simple. I hope they charge him with that, too.

[Odin2005]

45. I knew this was a hoax when the kid said "I thought this was for a show?"

[WeDidIt]

53. Falcon Heene couldn't take the pressure of being forced to lie so early in the morning

so he lost his breakfast on live television.

[TwilightGardener]

55. Anyone else think that these kids are going to absolutely despise

their parents in a few years?

[Liberal_in_LA]

56. See the wife swap tapes. Kids had reason for despising BEFORE the balloon incident

dad is a raging lunatic

[cwydro]

61. Are those on youtube or somewhere?

Now I am curious.

[EmeraldCityGrl]

62. They are all over YouTube

but watch this one. Really gives you a clue as to how they are using these kids to gain some
kind of fame and fortune. It's really sad.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nmlBPAY90MM

[cwydro]

64. Hey thank you.

I really hate myself for this, but for some reason I am just fascinated by this story.

[EmeraldCityGrl]

67. Hey, don't feel guilty

we all need our little diversions from all the serious stuff we deal with all the time.

ENJOY THE MADNESS!

:toast:

[cwydro]

70. What is funny is that I missed the whole thing that day

and only heard it afterwards.

What I would really like to see is the footage of that day and see if I can pick up on his lying.

Lol, I did find the wife swap episodes; this guy is scary.

[Liquorice]

68. Why do you hate yourself for being interested? It's an interesting story! nt

[Liberal_in_LA]

72. Nothing to hate yourself about.

[Zix]

76. Well, you'll have to hate me too then,

Cos I'm sucking up every last bit of juice out of this juicy thing. :D

[cwydro]

78. Lol.

TMZ has some more on the douchedad...apparently he was in ttouble in California or somewhere for vandalism.

[kestrel91316]

88. Yep. Richard Heene is an ex-con.

[cwydro]

65. Lol, I actually have seen that one.

Horrid.

[spanone]

63. sad thing is, the media WILL make them celebrities...already have. probably give them reality show

wouldn't surprise me one bit

[TorchTheWitch]

66. now you can play the balloonboy game!

http://www.balloonboygame.com/

oh dear.

[EmeraldCityGrl]

69. This could really add up

Beside all the emergency personnel, there's the crop that was destroyed when the balloon landed AND
the hours of productivity lost by the entire country as we watched this farce for two hours.. 65 million easily.

[OneBlueSky]

73. you can also buy the t-shirt . . . don't have a link, cause I'm not that interested . . .

but I did see a photo of someone wearing a balloon boy t-shirt . . . wonder if dad gets a cut of the action? . . .

[BeHereNow]

93. He's going to NEED a cut of the action-

These people are in deep shit.
"Good." Says I.

Sad for the kids, but hoping they are placed with some sane foster parents.
Perhaps then, they will have a chance at a normal childhood.

BHN

[BeHereNow]

95. If ever the judicial system need to make an example, it is now.

I hope these nut jobs are prosecuted to the maximum penalties of the law.
Perhaps if an example is made of them, other children trapped in
"American Idol Wannabe" families will be spared the destruction these
parents have inflicted on their children's lives.

Punishment could serve as a deterrence in this case.
I hope they lay it on hard and fast.

BHN