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     Colorado Heene Family balloon incident
View Assie telling the Balloon Boy Story....this guy is even more entertaining than the Heenie Family


Tags:
balloon boy runaway falcon heene we did this for the show father richard interview family larry king live comments punished grounded hiding attic garage storm chasers wife swap missing kid children stray news politics yell scream deflate launch box climbing gas foil landing parents search sheriff fort collins colorado not tethered release took off bradford brother sneak flying saucer gone life wolf blitzer high voltage six year old mayumi mother admit call name
balloon boy runaway falcon heene we did this for the show father richard interview family larry king live comments punished grounded hiding attic garage storm chasers wife swap missing kid children stray news politics yell scream deflate launch box climbing gas foil landing parents search sheriff fort collins colorado not tethered release took off bradford brother sneak flying saucer gone life wolf blitzer high voltage six year old mayumi mother admit call name
balloon boy runaway falcon heene not hoax publicity stunt father richard interview family larry king live comments punished grounded hiding attic garage storm chasers wife swap missing kid children stray news politics yell scream deflate launch landing parents search fort collins colorado tethered release we did this for the show mmm wolf blitzer six year old mayumi mother call name tears alive joy happy thanks school cbs videos trick media appalled
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balloon boy runaway falcon heene we did this for the show father richard interview family larry king live comments punished grounded hiding attic garage storm chasers wife swap missing kid children stray news politics yell scream deflate launch box climbing gas foil landing parents search sheriff fort collins colorado not tethered release took off bradford brother sneak flying saucer gone life wolf blitzer high voltage six year old mayumi mother admit call name
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 president Obama calls Falcon Heene 'Balloon Boy' Dad Jackass
Category:  News & Politics




 
undefinedundefined
Location of Fort Collins in Larimer County in Colorado
: Location of Colorado in the USA

Raw Home Video of Lift Off of the Balloon




Raw Video: Falcon, "The Balloon Boy" Floats Away in Flying Saucer




UFO Balloon Takes Off Over Colarodo





UFO Balloon Landed: without the Boy





Falcon's Faux Flying Saucer Flight

    


Home Video From The Launch: Was It A Hoax?





The Ballon Boys and The Heenes: An Unusual Family






Heene Family at home doing a Heene Rap




"Balloon Boy" Falcon Henne Admits: "We Did This For The Show"



Hours after he worried America sick into thinking he was on a runaway balloon flying over Colorado - while he was just hiding in the attic - 6-year-old Falcon Henne, aka "Balloon Boy", appears with his family on "Larry King Live."

In this scene, Falcon admits that he heard his parents calling him, but declined to come out of the garage.

At 0:40, he mutters, "We did this for the show."

This leads father Richard to try and explain what he just said. "Whenever we tell him things like, it's a bad thing t do, he does go and hide," he says.
Category:  News & Politics
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balloon  boy  runaway  falcon  heene  we  did  this  for  the  show  father  richard  interview  family  larry  king  live  comments  punished  grounded  hiding  attic  garage  storm  chasers  wife  swap  missing  kid  children  stray  news  politics  yell  scream  deflate  launch  box  climbing  gas  foil  landing  parents  search  sheriff  fort  collins  colorado  not  tethered  release  took  off  bradford  brother  sneak  flying  saucer  gone  life  wolf  blitzer  high  voltage  six  year  old  mayumi  mother  admit  call  name 


Balloon Boy's Pop: This Was Not A Publicity Stunt

The Colorado balloon incident (also known as the Heene Hoax, Balloon Boy Hoax, or Balloon Boy Incident[1]) occurred on October 15, 2009, when a six-year-old was mistakenly believed to have floated away in a home-made balloon, attracting world-wide attention.[2][3] Falcon Heene, of Fort Collins, Colorado, was believed to be traveling at altitudes reaching 7,000 feet (2,100 m)[2] in a homemade helium balloon colored and shaped to resemble a silver flying saucer-type of UFO.[4][5][6] Falcon, referred to as the "Balloon Boy" by some media outlets,[7] had reportedly climbed into the balloon when it became untethered and launched.

After an hours-long flight that covered more than 50 miles across three counties,[8] the balloon landed about 12 miles (19 km) northeast of Denver International Airport. The boy was not found inside the balloon, prompting fears he had fallen out of the balloon; it was reported that an object had detached from the balloon and fallen to the ground.[5] A search was conducted for the child and, later that afternoon, he was eventually reported to have been hiding at his house the whole time.[9]

In an interview with Wolf Blitzer on Larry King Live that evening, in response to a question about why he was hiding, Falcon said to his father, "You guys said that, um, we did this for the show." This added to speculation that the incident was a hoax and publicity stunt engineered by the boy's father, Richard Heene.[10] On October 18, Larimer County sheriff Jim Alderden announced his conclusion that the incident was a hoax, and that the parents would likely face several felony charges.[11][12]

Background

Falcon Heene's parents, Richard and Mayumi, first met at an acting school in Hollywood, Los Angeles, California.[13] Richard Heene had pursued careers in acting and stand-up comedy without success, and for a time he and his wife ran a business out of his home producing demo reels for actors. Richard is a handyman and an amateur scientist, whom associates have called "a shameless self-promoter who would do almost anything to advance his latest endeavor".[14] Heene is a storm chaser, who started in the 1970s after a storm ripped the roof off of a building he was working on.[14] Heene's storm chasing has included riding a motorcycle into a tornado, and reportedly flying a plane around the perimeter of Hurricane Wilma in 2005.[14] Heene regularly involved his children in his endeavors, taking them along on UFO-hunting expeditions and storm-chasing missions.[14][15]

The family had been featured twice on the reality television show Wife Swap, the second time as a fan-favorite choice for the show's 100th episode.[16][17] During his time on the show, Heene expressed his belief that humanity descended from aliens, and spoke of launching home-made flying saucers into storms.[citation needed] Heene had unsuccessfully sought the media's interest in a proposed reality show called "The Science Detectives", which he envisioned as a documentary series "to investigate the mysteries of science".[15] Months before the balloon incident on October 15, 2009, Heene pitched a reality show idea to the television channel TLC, but TLC passed on the offer. After the balloon incident, the producer of Wife Swap said that a show involving the Heenes had been in development, but that the deal was now off. The producer declined to provide specifics.[15] The Lifetime channel had been set to air one of the Wife Swap episodes involving the Heenes on October 29, 2009; they pulled the episode as a result of the balloon incident.[18]

On October 16, 2009, home video was released showing the previous day's launch of the balloon. The video shows Richard inspecting the basket, then his family counting down in unison "three, two, one" before releasing the cord.[19][20] Apparently believing the balloon to be tethered a few feet from the ground,[19] the family started screaming in distress when it floats off into the sky. Richard Heene, who can be seen kicking the wood frame that supported the balloon, yelled, "You didn't put the fucking tether down!"[20] In the days after the video was released, questions would arise that fueled claims the balloon incident may have been a hoax. In the video, Falcon is nowhere to be seen, and nobody ever mentions the possibility of Falcon being in the runaway balloon.[citation needed] After watching the video, Alderden said it appeared the balloon, which was supposed to have a child inside it, was rising very quickly.[19]
The helium balloon flight

Richard Heene stated the saucer-shaped balloon was an early prototype in an experiment for an alternative form of transportation, in which "people can pull out of their garage and hover above traffic" at about 50 or 100 feet (15 or 30 m).[21] He also stated that, once "the high voltage timer" was switched on, the balloon "would emit one million volts every five minutes for one minute"[22] in order to "move left and right — horizontal" [23]

The balloon measured 20 feet (6.1 m) in diameter and 5 feet (1.5 m) in height,[2] and was constructed from plastic tarps taped together, covered with an aluminum foil, and held together with string and duct tape. The base of the balloon, which Falcon allegedly crawled into, was a utility box made from a very thin piece of plywood and cardboard on the side. It was held together with string and duct tape.[24][25]

If fully inflated, a balloon of this size would contain just over 1,000 cubic feet (28 m3) of helium.[26] Helium's lift capacity is equal to the difference between its density (0.1786 kg/m3 at STP) and that of air, about 1.0214 kg/m3 (1 ounce per cubic foot) at sea level at 32° Fahrenheit, 0° C, decreasing at higher altitudes and at higher temperatures. The volume of helium is sufficient to lift a total load of 65 pounds (29 kg) at sea level, and 48 pounds (22 kg) at 8,000 feet (2,400 m).[26]

Fort Collins is at an elevation of about 5,000 feet (1,500 m), and the balloon was estimated to have reached an altitude of as high as 7,000 feet (2,100 m).[2][27][28] The balloon drifted for 60 miles (97 km), passing through Adams County and Weld County, and then landed 90 minutes later near Keenesburg, 12 miles (19 km) northeast of Denver International Airport. Planes were rerouted around the balloon's flight path and Denver International Airport was briefly shut down.[16]

Larimer County sheriff's officials consulted a Colorado State University physics professor who initially determined, based on the dimensions provided by Richard Heene, the balloon could plausibly lift off with a boy of Falcon's reported size (37 pounds). However, when authorities later measured the balloon, they concluded it was not large enough to lift the child.[8][24] Upon inspecting the balloon, authorities learned it weighed 18 pounds more than Heene originally said. Alderden said the base of the balloon could have handled 37 pounds without breaking, but in order to go airborne with those 37 pounds inside it would have had to have been attached to a more powerful balloon.[25]

Search and discovery

The family said they first noticed Falcon Heene was missing when his sibling reportedly saw him climb into the basket of the balloon. When the balloon finally landed, having been tracked by helicopters, the boy was not found inside the balloon. Officials expressed concern that he may have fallen out during flight. Margie Martinez of the Weld County Sheriff's Office said that the door was unlocked in the balloon. A sheriff deputy reported seeing something fall from the balloon near Platteville, Colorado and a photograph of the balloon in flight with a small black dot below seemed to suggest the boy may have fallen out or something had detached from the balloon.[29] Once the balloon touched down, it was reported that it did not appear breached.[2] Search crews in Colorado searched for the boy.[30] The Colorado National Guard assisted the effort with UH-60 Black Hawk and OH-58 Kiowa helicopters.[31] The helicopter flights alone during the rescue operation cost about USD $14,500.[32] The New York Post estimated that the total cost of the rescue operation would be about $2 million, however, this has yet to be verified.[33]

The family called the Federal Aviation Administration and the Denver NBC affiliate KUSA-TV; they reportedly requested that the station send a news helicopter to track the balloon's progress,[34][35][36] and then called emergency services. During the call to 911 at 11:29 AM local time (MDT) Richard Heene said "I don't know whether it's possible you guys could detect the electricity that it emits ... it emits a million volts on the outer skin."[37][38]

At approximately 4:14 PM, CNN and other news reported that the boy was found hiding in a cardboard box in rafters above the garage,[2] but county sheriff Jim Alderden later said, "For all we know he may have been two blocks down the road playing on the swing in the city park."

Hoax allegations and criminal investigation

After the incident, several news agencies began questioning whether it was a hoax.[39] As Editor & Publisher pointed out, "Few had raised the issue of whether such a balloon could even lift off with a 50-pound kid inside, and then float the way it did" during the flight.[40] The police initially said it did not appear to be a hoax.[41] However, when Falcon and his family were being interviewed by Wolf Blitzer on CNN's Larry King Live, he asked Falcon, "Why did you not come out of the garage?" After his parents repeated the question, he responded by saying "You guys said that, um, we did this for the show."[10] The next day, during interviews on ABC's Good Morning America and NBC's Today, the boy vomited when he was asked about his comment, and again when his father was asked about it, fueling more suspicion.[42]

Falcon's answers prompted the sheriff's office to pursue further investigations as to whether the incident was part of a publicity stunt.[43] On October 16, Alderden said, "the suggestion that the boy ... was coached to hide seems inconceivable."[44] Alderden indicated on October 17 that search warrants were being drawn and that charges would likely be filed with regard to this incident.[45] The charges had not yet been released to the public. The sheriff confirmed that making a false report to authorities would result in Class 3 misdemeanor charges and expressed that this charge "hardly seems serious enough given the circumstances."[46]

A man named Robert Thomas sold a story to Gawker.com alleging that he had helped plan a publicity stunt involving a weather balloon.[47] Investigators have expressed a desire to interview Thomas.[48] According to Thomas, Heene was a fan of David Icke who was motivated by fears stemming from the 2012 phenomenon to raise money to build a bunker as a survivalist strategy for 2012. In 2008, Heene had participated in a six-part series on YouTube titled "2012 - The Best Evidence - by The Psyience Detectives."[49]

During a press conference on October 18, Alderden called the incident a hoax, stating "we believe we have evidence at this point to indicate that this was a publicity stunt in hopes to better market themselves for a reality show." He also said that charges in the case have not yet been filed, but that the parents could face both misdemeanor and felony charges, including conspiracy to commit a crime, contributing to the delinquency of a minor, filing a false report with authorities, and attempting to influence a public servant.[11][12] Alderden stated that his comments on October 16 were part of a "game plan" to keep the Heenes' trust.[50]

If convicted, the Heene couple would be liable for the cost of the recovery effort, but Larimer County Sheriff Jim Alderden said, "I don't think there's much to recover" because of the family's limited resources.[51]

Richard Heene's lawyer, David Lane, announced on October 19 that Richard and Mayumi Heene would surrender to police as soon as charges are filed.[52] Lane said it would be "abusive" if the Heenes were handcuffed where their children and the news media could watch.[52] Lane said they would plead not guilty.[52]

The balloon incident is also under investigation by the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration. FAA rules prohibit flying balloons or kites within five miles of an airport. [53] 

 Media and Internet attention

For hours, the incident received extensive media coverage in many parts of the world, with local TV helicopters broadcasting live video of the balloon and rescue operation.[54]As pointed out by Editor & Publisher shortly after the craft was found to be empty, "press and news agencies reported for hours that a boy was in the balloon, without many qualifiers, even though the only witness was a sibling who claimed to have seen him climb inside", and "only after the crash did TV hosts stress that reports of boy in it were unverified and raised the possibility of hoax."[55]

The incident also sparked a "balloon boy" Internet meme, as the events were closely followed in blogs and social networking sites in real time, generating speculation, image editing jokes and parodies[56][57] of the story, which started even when the boy's safety was uncertain.[58][59][60] "Balloon boy" became the No. 1 search on Google within hours of the event and 34 of the top 40 searches on Google were related to Falcon Heene and the incident.[61] During the October 17, 2009 episode of Saturday Night Live, the incident was mentioned in the opening sketch and twice during "Weekend Update". A model replica of the balloon hovered around anchor and SNL head writer Seth Myers and said, "Seth, it was a hoax", to which Myers replied, "we know."[62]

The incident was also used by certain commentators to debate the role of the media in modern American society. An analysis by AFP concluded that little had been learned by the episode. Media outlets would likely repeat their mistake in the future of uncritically covering a sensational event without much fact-checking; the "voracious demands of the 24-hour news cycle" simply did not allow a more critical approach.[63] Others criticised the media's priorities, as well as their gullibility. Arianna Huffington, editor-in-chief ofThe Huffington Post, was invited on MSNBC to speak about the war in Afghanistan, when the segment was interrupted by the "balloon boy" story.[64] She later commented on the wall-to-wall coverage the episode received, and suggested the media turn their focus to other issues, such as homelessness among American children.[65]


Woopi Goldberg and the rmedia personalities on the ABC, talk about their

view of Ballon Bot, The Heenes. their actions and behaviour and what they

think should happen to Heene Family,  and the

Heene's  relationship with the Media, which made in Ballon incident into

world  wide attention where hundreds of millions of people were glued

 to their TV's or Internet, watching the "Balloon Boy Drama" unfold, and are

still  keen to watch any further developments on the on going criminal

investigation and possible arrest of the  Heene Family over the Incent


Do you think what Woopi Goldberg abd the 9other media people are saying

is correct?

Please email Mr Wijat at


dearmrwijat@usaweeklynews.com

with your views:










Video of the Sherif Talks About What Will Happen to the Heenes
 
over boy not being in the Balloon as everyone thought

 

 Video of Heene's Attorney talking about what is likely to
happen about the possibe arrest of the Heene's

 

During a press conference the day after the Falcon heene "balloon boy" incident, Larimer County Sheriff Jim Alderden is asked by a reporter why the punishment for the Heene family, if it is discove...


Sheriff Dept. Press Conference on "Balloon Boy," Falcon Heene

Larimer County Sheriff Jim Alderden holds a press conference the day after the Falcon heene "balloon boy" incident, as well as the fallout from the family's appearance on "Larry King Live" later that day.

Alderden said the department "searched the house three times... except for the place where the boy was hiding... There's no ladders to get up in the attic." Due to debris in the garage, they thought it would be impossible for the child to be in the attic.

The Sheriff also confirmed that a tip of there being a box in the attic was "erroneous information," confirming a "clear attic space that was flat."

Speaking on behalf of investigators, Alderden says: "We were convinced yesterday after talking to the parents and having investigators on scene... that the parents were being honest with us." He added that the family's emotions were "consistent with the events that were taking place."

Alderden also commented on the infamous Wolf Blitzer interview the family did later that day. "Clearly that has raised everybody's level of skepticism," he says. He added that investigators planned to "go back to the family and attempt to reinterview them to establish whether this is in fact a hoax." He said such an interview would be conducted later this weekend, as the family is very "fatigued" today.

"Certainly people are free to speculate... but those of us in the law enforcement profession have to operate on facts... and not on whay the public might think without any proof."

During the start of the question period, the Sheriff confirmed tha the boy's father, Richard, had first called the FAA after the balloon launch, and then a local TV station, before calling 911.

Alderden also told a reporter that he finds it "inconceivable" that Falcon would be told to stay in the attic and be quiet for a prolonged period of time. "I just don't see that happening as hyperactive as he is," he said.
Category:  News & Politics

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2009/10/23/mayumi-heene-admits-hoax_n_332307.html

Mayumi Heene Admits Hoax: Balloon Boy's Mother Confesses To Authorities
DAN ELLIOTT | 10/23/09
Read More: Balloon Boy, Balloon Boy Hoax, Boy In Balloon, Colorado Balloon, David Lane, Falcon Heene, For Collins, Jim Alderden, Mayumi Heene, Mayumi Heene Confess, Richard Heene, Denver News

DENVER — The mother of the 6-year-old boy once feared missing inside a runaway helium balloon admitted the whole saga was a hoax, according to court documents released Friday.

Mayumi Heene told sheriff's deputies that she and her husband Richard "knew all along that Falcon was hiding in the residence" in Fort Collins, according to an affidavit used to get a search warrant for the home.

She allegedly told investigators the incident was a hoax meant to make them more marketable to the media.

"Mayumi described that she and Richard Heene devised this hoax approximately two weeks earlier.... She and Richard had instructed their three children to lie to authorities as well as the media regarding this hoax," the affidavit said.

Richard Heene has denied a hoax. His lawyer, David Lane, said Friday he is waiting to see the evidence in the case.

"Allegations are cheap," Lane said.

Mayumi Heene's lawyer, Lee Christian, was traveling and didn't immediately respond to messages left with his office.

Larimer County Sheriff Jim Alderden has said he will recommend charges against the Heenes including conspiracy, contributing to the delinquency of a minor, making a false report to authorities, and attempting to influence a public servant. The most serious charges are felonies and carry a maximum sentence of six years in prison.

Alderden said authorities also would be seeking restitution for the costs of the balloon chase, though he didn't provide a figure.

His office has said it will likely be next week before it forwards its findings to prosecutors to decide on charges.

In frantic calls to a TV station, 911 and federal aviation officials, the Heenes reported that they feared Falcon was in the homemade, saucer-like balloon when it was accidentally launched from their back yard last week.

Millions watched as media and National Guard helicopters tracked the balloon across the Colorado plains. It landed in a dusty farm field, where ground crews looked inside but found no sign of the boy.

Later, the relieved-looking couple reported Falcon had been hiding in their garage the whole time. But suspicion heated up when Falcon made a comment on CNN that sounded like "You had said we did this for a show."

Sheriff's deputies questioned the parents separately on Oct. 17, two days after the flight. Mayumi Heene told authorities "she and Richard Heene had lied to authorities on October 15, 2009 (the day of the flight)," the affidavit said.

She told investigators "that the release of the flying saucer was intentional as a hoax.... The motive for the fabricated story was to make the Heene family more marketable for future media interest," the affidavit said.

The Heenes twice had appeared on ABC's reality show "Wife Swap," and acquaintances said Richard Heene had plans for other possible shows.

The producer of "Wife Swap" had a show in development with the Heenes but said the deal is now off. The TLC cable network also said Heene had pitched a reality show months ago, but it passed on the offer.

Sheriff's officials declined to comment Friday.

Among the items taken by authorities during the home search Saturday were video cameras, computers, hard drives, a picture of a flying saucer, receipts, papers, a phone/address book and a flight itinerary. The list didn't identify the passenger, destination or date of travel.

Associated Press Staff Writer Kathy Packer contributed to this report from Fort Collins


http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2009/oct/24/balloon-boy-mother-admits-hoax


'Balloon boy' mother admits it was a hoax

Court papers say mother and father of Falcon Heene told three sons to lie to authorities and media in marketing ploy
'Balloon boy' mother admits it was a hoax

Falcon Heene (centre front), with dad, Richard; mum, Mayumi; and brothers Ryan and Bradford. Mayumi told police the family 'knew all along' Falcon was hiding in the garage attic. Photograph: ABC Network/AP

The mother of Falcon Heene, the six-year-old American boy who sparked a major rescue operation after he was wrongly believed to have been carried away inside a helium weather balloon, has admitted the incident was a hoax, reports say.

Mayumi Heene told a sheriff's investigator that she and her husband, Richard, "knew all along" that their son was hiding at their Colorado home, according to court documents.

The papers, which were made public in the United States, also suggest the parents had told their three children to lie to the authorities and the media.

According to the affidavit, Heene said the plan was to make the family, who have appeared on the US reality TV show Wife Swap, more marketable to the media.

The couple called police and TV stations last week to say Falcon was in a homemade balloon that had accidentally launched from their backyard in Fort Collins.

TV news channels in the US and much of the world carried live footage of the silver, saucer-shaped balloon drifting thousands of feet in the air above rural Colorado, pursued by rescue helicopters, after authorities were told Falcon was seen climbing into the base of the craft shortly before it took off on 15 October.

But when the balloon eventually came down around 50 miles from Fort Collins it was empty. Searches of the Heene's home uncovered nothing, prompting fears the boy had fallen out mid-flight. But Falcon then climbed down from the rafters of the garage attic where he had been hiding.

An apparently straightforward good news story took a curious twist when, during a live CNN interview with the Heene parents and their three sons, Falcon was asked by his father why he had not responded to shouts from his worried family. "Um ... You had said that we did this for a show," Falcon replied.

The court document said the parents devised the hoax about two weeks earlier.

"She and her husband had instructed their three children to lie to authorities as well as the media regarding this hoax," it stated.

But Richard Heene has continued to deny that the incident was faked.

His lawyer and his wife's lawyer had not seen the document before it was made available to the public yesterday through the Larimer county courthouse, the Coloradoan newspaper reported.

The Larimer county sheriff, Jim Alderden, has said he would recommend charges including conspiracy, contributing to the delinquency of a minor and making a false report to authorities.

Some of the most serious charges each carry a maximum sentence of six years in prison and a $500,000 (£305,000) fine.





http://www.reuters.com/article/newsOne/idUSTRE59M5J720091023

Mom admits to "Balloon Boy" hoax: court record

DENVER (Reuters) - The mother of a Colorado boy thought to be aboard a homemade helium balloon has admitted to investigators the whole thing was a hoax, according to a court document made public on Friday.

The local sheriff had already said the October 15 "Balloon Boy" incident was a publicity stunt and expected felony charges to be filed against the 6-year-old boy's parents, Richard and Mayumi Heene.

The live television images of the silver saucer-like balloon soaring through the Colorado skies captivated audiences until the boy turned up in the family's attic. Public sympathy turned to outrage when the family's account began to unravel.

According to a copy of a search warrant affidavit posted on the website of Fort Collins newspaper "The Coloradoan," Mayumi told investigators she and her husband lied to authorities and knew their son Falcon was at home as rescue teams tracked the balloon believing the boy was inside.

"The motive for the fabricated story was to make the Heene family more marketable for future media interest," the affidavit states.

The document also says the Heenes, who had starred in the reality television show "Wife Swap," had devised the hoax about two weeks before and had instructed their three children to lie to authorities and the media.

(Reporting by Keith Coffman; Writing by Alex Dobuzinskis; Editing by Mary Milliken and John O'Callaghan)



#http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/americas/8323600.stm

Mother 'admits balloon boy hoax'

BBCVideo Link:
 http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/americas/8323600.stm

The mother of a six-year-old Colorado boy thought to have been on board a runaway homemade helium balloon has reportedly admitted to investigators the whole thing was a hoax. Court papers suggest Mayumi Heene told police she and her husband knew all along that their son, Falcon, was hiding in their house. The BBC's Nicola Pearson explains why the original story had US viewers glued to their screens.

EdinburghFringeFest.com

There are rumours mounting that the Heene Family will be appearing at the 2010 EdinburghFringe
Fest with their show

"Now You See Me Now You Don't"..
staring Balloon Boy and his family Heene Family
The Amazing Heene Family
who have become part of the folk history of Colarodo
The Heene Family Balloon Videos from from the AB.C .. have a look at these and make you own mind up about this outrageous but lovable family
        The original manuscripts of the Seven Volumes of
         Triumph of Truth (Who's Watching The Watchers?)
             stolen by Queensland Freemason Police-
$100 Milllion Writ to Issue against the Queensland Government for damages
                          http://www.whoiswatchingthewatchers.com

The Seven Volumes of Triumph of Truth (Who's Watching The Watchers?) who were purchased by the Western Australia Alexander Resource Library with public money during the years 1988 and 1992 and cateloged into the the library's computer for about three year myseriously completely disappeared from the Library and from the Libray's computer sysyem as though they never existed... and in the year 2005, Detective Sergent Gregory Stormont on behalf of the Queensland Police Force and the Queensland Government, which have  historically been controlled by the Freemasons since the beginning of Federation in Australia, stole the original manuscripts of  the Seven Volumes of Triumph of Truth (Who's Watching The Watchers?) from 6 Earl Court Tallai, known as the Hollywood Hills of the Gold Coast in Queensland, even signing a receipt for them, which International News Limited, the owners of the publisher the Australian Weekend News, has a copy of such receipt....constant requests to the Premier of Queensland, The Atorney of Queensland, the Police Commissioner of Queensland, the Prime Minister of Australia and to Detective Sergent Gregory Storemont himself for the return of thesse original manusripts since 2005 have been ignored.. International News Limited through its Australian owned publisher the Austalian Weekend News is about to issue a Supreme Court legal action for in excess of $100 million in damages for the loss of these books since the year 2005, as in 2005 at the time they had been stolen, they were about to be made into a series of films,TV series, plays, short stories, legal training books, a cartoon series staring Mr Wijat and Mr Wijat's Team Fighting For Truth Justice and the Australian Way up against The Monster Gang.
 Mr Wijat and Mr Wijat's Team and the Monster Gang are the cartoon characters created by the author Stephen Carew-Reid that resemble some of the real characters in the series of books "Triumph of Truth (Who's Watching The Watchers?)
Sorry balloon boy! Heene family not first to try balloon hoax, Edgar Allen Poe beat them to it

BY KAREN YI
DAILY NEWS WRITER

Tuesday, October 20th 2009


Nangle/News; KUSA TV
Trick me once shame on you, trick me twice shame on me. Balloon hoaxers are still alive and kicking - from Edgar Allen Poe's balloon hoax in 1844 to the Heene family's in 2009.
http://www.nydailynews.com/news/national/2009/10/20/2009-10-20_heene_family_balloon_hoax_not_the_first_of_its_kind.html

Looks like balloon-boy hoax masterminds Richard and Mayumi Heene, who face criminal charges for conspiracy and for contributing to the delinquency of a minor, are not the first to float this type of ruse. The famed poet Edgar Allen Poe cooked up a balloon plot of his own - back in 1844.

Poe,- who penned such classics as “The Fall of the House of Usher” and “The Raven,“ wrote an article in the old New York Sun, telling the gripping tale of balloonist Monck Mason, who took off from England and ended up landing his “egg-shaped gas-filled balloon” in South Carolina.

It was a historic moment for all - the first balloonist to cross the Atlantic! People lined up outside the Sun’s office for a copy of that day's paper.

Two days later, the Sun published a correction: The story was a fictitious account. "We are inclined to believe that the intelligence is erroneous," wrote the Sun.

The first balloon didn't cross the Atlantic until 1978.

Fast-forward 165 years from Poe to Heene, and the balloon hoaxers have got us again.

Read the full text from Edgar Allen Poe's The Balloon Hoax.



Read more: http://www.nydailynews.com/news/national/2009/10/20/2009-10-20_heene_family_balloon_hoax_not_the_first_of_its_kind.html#ixzz0Ua8GWFT6


Read more: http://www.nydailynews.com/news/national/2009/10/20/2009-10-20_heene_family_balloon_hoax_not_the_first_of_its_kind.html#ixzz0Ua65jnG7
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/northamerica/usa/6364437/Balloon-boy-Heene-family-facing-criminal-charges.html

 


Richard Heene (L), his wife Mayumi, sons six-year-old Falcon Heene (lower left), Bradford (C) and Ryan (R) talking to reporters in Fort Collins, Colorado last week. Photo: Reuters

 

Balloon boy: Heene family ‘facing criminal charges’

The family of Falcon Heene, who were involved in the runaway balloon scare in Colorado last week, are to face criminal charges, its police chief has said.

By Andrew Hough
Published: 9:32AM BST 18 Oct 2009

Despite the six year-old boy's father, Richard Heene, an amateur scientist and inventor denying the incident was a publicity stunt, Jim Alderden, the Larimer county sheriff confirmed police were preparing to file charges against the family.

Mr Alderden would not say what the charges would be, or who would face them.

The development in the case that has grippedAmerica and the world came after Mr Heene and his wife, Mayumi, were questioned at length on Saturday and their family home in Fort Collins searched amid claims the episode was an elaborate hoax.

An enormous land and air rescue effort was launched on Thursday as the flying saucer-shaped balloon was swept thousands of feet into the air but the boy was later discovered hiding in the attic of his family garage.

It emerged that his family had appeared in the US edition of the television reality show, Wife Swap, and that his father, Richard, admitted that he was obsessed with getting publicity for his eccentric activities, including storm-chasing.

Then, in an interview on CNN, Falcon was asked by his father why he had not come out of his hiding place sooner. He replied: "You guys said that we did this for the show."

Later, the boy vomited in two subsequent television interviews, in which he and his father were asked about his comment that "we did this for a show".

But speaking to reporters late on Saturday, Mr Alderden confirmed police were poised to charge the couple over the incident.

"We were looking at Class 3 misdemeanor, which hardly seems serious enough given the circumstances," Alderden said.

"We are talking to the district attorney, federal officials to see if perhaps there aren't additional federal charges that are appropriate in this circumstance."

He also said he would be talking with the Federal Aviation Administration and other federal agencies about possible federal charges.

After initially believing the family’s story, the police chief admitted the CNN interview had fuelled scepticism but insisted that officers would have realised if the family's panic over the missing boy had been fake.

Asked if it was a hoax, Alderden replied: "I think I've said enough here that you guys can read what's going on without me saying anything more formal."

After they were interviewed, Mr Heene and his wife refused to comment with the scientist only saying "I was talking to the sheriff's department just now”.

Earlier, Mr Heene told reporters camped outside his Fort Collins home to stand by for a "big announcement”.

He finally emerged from his house carrying a cardboard box which he asked reporters to put written questions into for his consideration.

He brushed off shouted questions apart from one which asked him to confirm "once and for all" if the balloon drama had been a hoax.

"Absolutely no hoax, I want your questions in a box and I'll get right back to you, okay?" he said.

The patience of the family’s neighbours is also wearing thin, local reports said.

Local residents and brothers Paul and Jarrod Pocarnsky carried signs laced with irony. Paul Pocarnsky's banner read: "10-15-09 We will never forget."

Brother Jarrod also held a sign that read: "Put balloon boy on TV: Americas's Most Wanted."

Later, on door of the Heene home was a handwritten sign on a piece of paper that simply said: "Thank you for all of your support. We aren't taking any interview any more. We are tired. Thank you."

     Heene Family Tell their Story

  

Raw Footage of Family Balloon take off 


http://religionblog.dallasnews.com/archives/2009/10/texas-faith-balloon-boy-and-th.html
undefined 

TEXAS FAITH: Balloon Boy and the American family Rod Dreher/Columnist Tue, Oct 20, 2009

 

Richard and Mayumi Heene may face criminal charges in the "Balloon Boy" incident of last Friday. Many believe that the couple staged the incident to gain publicity for their family; it has been reported that father Richard Heene has been trying to sell a reality show based around his family to cable TV networks. YouTube carries several startlingly obnoxious videos of the Heene boys, plainly staged and filmed by their father, in an attempt to market his young sons as rough-and-tumble scamps. (Go to YouTube.com and use "Hilarious Heene Family" as your search terms, if you want to see them.) In them, the children swear, behave like brats, and in one rap video not easily discoverable on YouTube, fart, pick their noses, and throw rocks at a, quote, "faggot." This, their father filmed and put on the Internet, in what looks like an attempt to promote his children's career as public personalities.

So, to this week's question, or questions: What does the Heene family and their Balloon Boy saga tell us about modern parenting? What should responsible parents should learn from their example?

Panelists' answers are below the jump.

CINDY RIGBY, Austin Presbyterian Theological Seminary:


I'm afraid I see the Heene family's behavior not as an "extreme" of exhibitionist/stage-parent tendencies (as the "postlude" to the question suggests), but as something qualitatively different and morally out of bounds. If what is really wanted is that we discuss the pros and cons of putting our children "in the limelight," as parents, how about putting forward a question about Miley Cyrus, or President Obama's girls, or - for that matter - any high school football star?

 

My answer to both of the actual questions posed is: "absolutely nothing." The heart-wrenching "Balloon Boy Saga" is so far out that it tells us NOTHING useful about modern parenting. And there is NOTHING responsible parents can learn from the example of the Heene family (though the Heene family certainly has a lot to learn from responsible parents!).

Moving beyond the actual questions posed, here's what I think about the Balloon Boy saga: Children are not our toys. Adults - even parents - have no right to use them for their own financial or egotistical gain. Children must, in fact, be protected from such exploitation and abuse. In my view, any responsible person - parent or no - will agree with these statements.

Going further: The "balloon boy" story, and the Heene youtube videos, clearly indicate a family situation that must be investigated. If there is found to be abuse, the children must be removed and re-located where they are safe and protected.

To discuss "parenting" in relation to a situation in which children are likely not even safe is to distract from the real moral issue that must immediately be addressed. The Heene children might be in real danger. Let's take care of them them - please - before deigning to wax eloquent about the lessons of "modern parenting" or the nuances of when and how it is OK to push our children into the limelight, and when and how we should, rather, shield them from it.

 

WILLIAM LAWRENCE, dean, SMU Perkins School of Theology:

In an age when many religious communities have struggled with concerns over the meaning of "family" and have even built political agendas around the topic of "family values," it has been interesting to see how many different ways there are for presumably intact families to go awry. The Heene household allegedly is the latest, most widely publicized example. Jon and Kate offer another.

Such episodes demonstrate the capacity of adults to exploit and commercially (if not physically or emotionally) to abuse children. They also demonstrate the utter fascination of a larger society to engage in voyeuristic activity. The problems which may inhabit the Heene family and the troubles that they caused for a sheriff's department are only part of the story. Viewers' willingness to give their time and attention to such spectacles is another.

But it should not be overlooked that one major aspect of the Heene adventure was the eagerness of the media to provide intense coverage for an event that had two features. First, it offered a stimulating visual sight. Second, it was easy for the media to cover. Why is it that the major networks--such as CNN--could not find a way to have a three-hour special analysis of the current health care situation in the country, the problems with the status quo, legislative options for addressing the problems, and data about the impact that the options would have? However, news media are not willing to commit that kind of time to such a real story. It is not easy to cover, for one thing. And there are no stimulating visuals--unless we count a Congressman shouting from his seat in the Capitol, or a former governor threatening frightened people with something that never existed in any bill.

Not only did the Heene family provide us with a sad spectacle. The popular media exploited it as well, instead of doing their jobs properly.

 

LARRY BETHUNE, pastor, University Baptist Church, Austin:

Parenting is one of the most sacred callings adults have and requires unselfish, sacrificial love, protection of health and well-being, the inculcation of positive social values, and education for life. The formation of a life not only affects that life, which is important enough, but the entire human community for good or ill. The Heene's exploitation of their children seems to me a tragic example of self-centered, child-destructive parenting. But it is also a textbook example of corporate guilt. In other words, the Heene's are personally liable for the mistakes they have made as parents and the possible crimes in which they have involved their children. But their crimes reflect the disease of our culture of narcissism, celebrity, the worship of wealth, and fame gained by infamous behavior. It is a small overstep from "reality" programs like "Jon and Kate plus Eight" and "Jackass" to the Heenes' attempts to gain celebrity by encouraging their children's inappropriate behavior. One could easily argue they are simply following the widely accepted cultural values of the moment. So before we judge them too easily, we would do well to reflect on our own parenting, our own values, and the plight of children in a country which both elevates and exploits children to extreme degrees. Of far more important concern is the rising number of abused children and children living in poverty without necessary resources for adequate housing, nutrition, and healthcare. So while we are decrying the inferior parenting of the Heenes, we might consider our culpability for underprivileged children in a nation of privilege.

DANIEL KANTER,senior minister, First Unitarian Church of Dallas:

Does it tell us people will do anything to get attention? I think that is the lesson these boys are learning. They are also being trained to act out in ways that challenge notions of personal and public responsibility, telling the truth, and doing things for personal satisfaction rather than as a spectacle to be applauded. The world of 24-hour media and internet technology teaches us all that what matters is our fifteen minutes of fame. That cheapens life itself. Eventually we may only act publically if we think we are being filmed or observed rather than for some intrinsic sense of satisfaction and to do the right thing. I have to ask how this will affect our sense of service or justice-making given freely for the good of society rather than for a popsicle or chance on the evening news. More than ever instead of saying, "Johnny get down from there you will break your neck!!" parents might be saying, "Johnny go way up there and balance on one foot for the camera and if you break your neck what a great Youtube video it will be!!"

JOE CLIFFORD, pastor, First Presbyterian Church (Dallas):

At best, the Heenes invaded their children's right to privacy by exploiting them to serve their own yearning for attention. At worst, they have engaged in abusive behavior. Either way, their story exemplifies the objectification of another human being to serve one's own interests. In this case, it was their own children.

Our faith tradition teaches children are a gift from God, entrusted to our care. They do not belong to us, but are entrusted to us. In the sacrament of baptism, we acknowledge they are first and foremost children of God. As parents, our calling is to equip our children to survive and thrive in the world in which they will live. We are to provide an environment with boundaries to protect our children, yet with enough freedom for them to grow. As they grow, the boundaries are extended and their self reliance increases with more freedom to make their own choices. Growing healthy, emotionally mature human beings is at the heart of our call as parents.

Submitting your children to the world's scrutiny through shows like "Wife Swap" and You Tube videos, taking them into deadly storms in the name of adventure, and orchestrating a hoax to hock your own reality show has nothing to do with our call as parents. It has to do with two adults' twisted desire for attention. The best thing to come from this is that the Heene's children will no longer be candidates for exploitation as their parents' twisted desires have been unmasked. For those who seek to be responsible parents, this incident reminds us that our children ultimately do not belong to us, but to God. Serving as their parents is a sacred trust.

 

AMY MARTIN, executive director, EarthRhythms:

Bad parenting, as well as general jerky behavior or worse toward family members, has been a fact since procreation began. Treating children as chattel, selling them for money, consigning them into child labor, abandonment. Laws had to be created to protect children from their parents. How crazy is that! Sadly, some nations still don't have them.

What's changed is that bad parenting is a commercial commodity these days; it's prevalent in sit-coms and pervasive on YouTube. Just enter in "bad parenting" into the YouTube search engine. There are even "best of" compilations! Sadly, the vast majority of the footage is not staged ala Heenes. Rather it's impromptu cell-phone footage of parents, and children, behaving badly in public. The Heenes have nothing to teach responsible parents because the local "Heenes" are already on display.

It's truly sad when parents are too narcissistic to see their children as anything other than players in their own personal drama. Kahlil Gibran bespoke it best:

Your children are not your children.
They are the sons and daughters of Life's longing for itself.
They come through you but not from you,
And though they are with you yet they belong not to you.

You may give them your love but not your thoughts,
For they have their own thoughts.
You may house their bodies but not their souls,
For their souls dwell in the house of tomorrow,
Which you cannot visit, not even in your dreams.
You may strive to be like them,
But seek not to make them like you.
For life goes not backward nor tarries with yesterday.

 

DARRELL BOCK, professor, Dallas Theological Seminary:

The quest for celebrity, fame, and (probably) money--yes I am a cynic on this--causes people to do all kinds of outrageous things to gain attention. This then is reinforced when it is picked up and broadcast (as often times it is). Just look at the recent flap over John McCain's daughter, Meghan. So the exhibitionism extends far beyond children. It often is modeled elsewhere, including in our cultural hubs.

So what can be done? Hard to say, since we consume this as a culture and promote it with shows that display the exhibitions in question. However, there is a fame that is dishonoring and demeaning. Parents perhaps should help their children distinguish between people who make it on TV or the Net and why they gain the attention. But as long as fame brings money, the quest for fifteen seconds of fame, no matter how it is gained will continue because some will not see that fame is fleeting but reputations last.

Comments

Posted by kvh @ 2:22 PM Tue, Oct 20, 2009
Your learned panel makes many fine points with which I agree, but we must keep in mind that these children are not "rough-and-tumble scamps" and the debate over the quality of parenting in the Heene home is perfunctory. What matters is how we as a society decide to proceed. These children are psychopaths in training who will, without question, pose a threat to others because they have been systematically programmed to disdain ANY social convention and they obviously lack empathy. Even the most cursory viewing of the Heene Family videos demonstrates this. Granted, a generally deteriorating society that places value on TV fame has contributed, but these kids have not given a foundation from which they can later determine what is and isn't within the scope of acceptable behavior.
Posted by JJB @ 3:48 PM Tue, Oct 20, 2009
I agree that this is an isolated case. But if there is an overarching moral question in play, here, I think it points to the mass media and the ever increasing concentration of power in the hands of a few. With stronger journalistic standards, a story like this gets very little att ention and no air time. And while we have witnessed the consolidation of power, we've seen an explosion in "celebrity journalism" from these consolidated media giants. Corporate advertisers only spend money when TV ratings are guaranteed to bring traffic. Lost in all of this is the burning question: Is television journalism an oxymoron? I think this story - one in a long parade of stories over the past three decades - that have resoundingly answered that question in the affirmative.
Posted by DeSoto @ 10:33 AM Wed, Oct 21, 2009
JJB, I agree. kvh, unless you are a relative you've really no idea of the dynamics of the family - all you know is what has been presented by the media; please read JJB's post. As to the question what does this saga tell us about modern parenting - oh, good grief! Are we that desperate for topics in the religion blog? It tells us nothing other than you can always find a few nuts in a bowl of trail mix

 

http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,567304,00.html



Home Video Raises Questions Over Heene Family Balloon Ordealundefined

 


A home video taken by the Heenes shows the moment when the runaway balloon took off

Colorado authorities said the Heene family's balloon saga shows no indication it was a hoax, but a video taken of the homemade helium balloon as it floated away raises more questions about the incident.

Larimer County Sheriff Jim Alderden said Friday he has no evidence to believe the Heene family carried out a publicity stunt when their balloon broke away Thursday with their 6-year-old son mistakenly thought to be inside.

The boy was found hiding in the home's garage Thursday afternoon, hours after the balloon launched and traveled more than 50 miles.

But a home video released Friday shows that the boy, Falcon Heene, was nowhere near the balloon as it floated off — despite claims from the boy's 10-year-old brother that Falcon was inside the balloon when it broke away. The boy's father, Richard Heene, is also seen standing next to the balloon as it flew from the family's backyard.

Alderden said any suggestion that the boy was coached to hide seems "inconceivable."

"They appropriately expressed statements — nonverbal communication, body language and emotions during this event that were very consistent with the events that were taking place," Alderden said of the family in a press conference Friday.

During a live interview on CNN Thursday night, Falcon said he heard his family calling his name as he hid in the rafters of their garage. At the time, there was a frantic effort to bring down the balloon safely.

Falcon's father asked, "Why didn't you come out?" The boy answered, "You had said we did this for a show."

Later, Richard Heene bristled when the family was asked to clarify and said he didn't know what his son meant. He didn't ask his son what he meant by "a show."

"I'm kind of appalled after all the feelings that I went through, up and down, that you guys are trying to suggest something else," Richard Heene said.

VIDEO: Click to watch the interview (via YouTube)

After the CNN interview, Richard Heene told KUSA-TV in Denver that he thought his son was referring to earlier in the day when he showed reporters his hiding spot. He didn't return a message from The Associated Press.

Richard Heene said accusations that the ordeal was a publicity stunt are "extremely pathetic."

SLIDESHOW: View photos of the balloon

The boys' parents — Richard Heene and his wife, Mayumi — are storm chasers who appeared twice in the ABC reality show "Wife Swap."

And in addition to attaining a level of reality TV fame on the series, Richard Heene has his own amateur video series on YouTube in which he sizes up various pop culture phenomena.

For each topic, from the Loch Ness monster to Britney Spears' chest, he asks the question "fake or real?"

In February, a Colorado sheriff's deputy responded to a 911 hang-up.

The Larimer County Sheriff's deputy who went to the home said he heard a man yelling and, once inside, noticed Mayumi Heene had a mark on her cheek and broken blood vessels in her eye. She said it was because of a problem with her contacts.

Richard Heene said he was yelling because his children stayed up past their bedtime.

No charges were filed.

Mayumi Heene, Falcon's mother, told reporters Thursday that "It was a miracle to see him" after his was found hiding in the attic.

Richard Heene said the family was working on an experimental craft.

"I call it the 3D LAV, a low-altitude vehicle for people to pull out of their garage and hover above traffic for about 50 or 100 feet," he told reporters. "It's very early stages of the invention."

Richard Heene's "Fake or Real" videos are little more than amusing first-person rants, delivered solo directly into the camera and typically lasting barely a minute.

In one video, dated Jan. 18, 2008, Heene takes on the airplane crash that killed John F. Kennedy Jr.

"I don't know why it would make any sense to me," Heene says, while driving in a car.

It often is difficult to tell if Heene is joking or being serious. In another clip he makes fun of people who say they see life on Mars.

"I want you guys to let me know," he says before going into a five minute tirade with a NASA photo of Mars' surface on his computer screen.

Using computer photo software he zooms in on random images and points out what could be "signs of life" — a bone, a skeleton key, eyes, high-rise buildings and a miniature skull, just to name a few.

Chiropractors, teleportation inventors and even Hillary Clinton (is she a reptile?) face similar treatment through Heene's lens.

Click here to watch some of the videos on YouTube.

But Heene's brief "Fake or Real" segments are only appetizers compared to some of the other video productions in which has been involved.

Heene also is part of a Web site called thepsyiencedetectives.com. Videos on YouTube show him and two others debating science and pseudo-science issues, such as UFOs, as if auditioning for both Comedy Central and the Discovery Channel.

But while the Web site is prominently displayed and referred to during their videos, a search for the site Thursday night turned up a blank page.

The family also has been featured on local TV station for their somewhat interesting "family vacations" — storm chasing.

"What my kids learn from these storms and what they walk away with is the fact that these storms can be very deadly," Heene tells TV station KMGH in video posted on YouTube. "They see what happens when houses are caught in the path of destruction. Now, we always avoided paths of destruction when we go."

On the videos the children are seen photographing the storms and being extremely active in the chasing process.

"I feel like I need to share this with him," Heene told the station, adding that safety is always his first priority.

In a 2007 interview with The Denver Post, Richard Heene described becoming a storm chaser after a tornado ripped off a roof where he was working as a contractor and said he once flew a plane around Hurricane Wilma's perimeter in 2005.

Pursuing bad weather was a family activity, with the children coming along as the father sought evidence to prove his theory that rotating storms create their own magnetic fields.

Although Heene said he had no specialized training, the family had a computer tracking system in its car and a special motorcycle.

The Web site ABC used to promote "Wife Swap" portrays the family members as thrill-seekers.

"When the Heene family aren't chasing storms, they devote their time to scientific experiments that include looking for extraterrestrials and building a research-gathering flying saucer to send into the eye of the storm," the Web site said.

The Heenes were criticized for their chaotic parenting style when Karen Martel of Connecticut entered the household as the new "wife." Martel's husband runs a child-proofing business, and she knew a thing or two about safety.

According to a recap on TVRage.com, the 100th episode finds two families swapping with each other who are returning by a viewers vote.

"One mom believes she is psychic and can speak with the dead, plus has control over the weather. The other is a family of storm chasing science-enthusiasts. The kids in the families will face off in a table meeting"

Attempts by Foxnews.com to contact the Connecticut family they swapped with were not successful.

Foxnews.com's Michelle Maskaly and the Associated Press contributed to this report.

 
http://www.kpth.com/Global/story.asp?S=11338158&nav=menu622_6_11
 
 
 
Heene lawyer: Don't arrest Heene parents in front of kids
 
http://www.kpth.com/Global/story.asp?S=11338158&nav=menu622_6_11
 
 
The lawyer for Richard Heene expects charges will be brought against his client in the next day as investigators analyze e-mails that show Heene discussing the hoax months ago with an associate, according to The Associated Press.
Sheriff calls balloon boy a "hoax," Specifies criminal charges
"I've reached out to law enforcement in Larimer County and said these folks are willing to turn themselves in the minute you give me a phone call," lawyer David Lane said on NBC's Today show. "Do not do the perp walk for media consumption and arrest these people in full view of their children. That's child abuse. That's traumatic for kids."
Watch the interview here
The AP reported that investigators want to question Heene's associate after e-mails surfaced showing their discussion of a balloon hoax as part of a public relation campaign for a reality show.
VIDEO: Watch SNL's balloon boy gag
Robert Thomas, 25, a former research assistant of Heene, sold his story to Gawker.com and provided e-mails between him and Heene regarding the planning of a media stunt to promote a proposed reality show.
"This will be the most significant UFO-related news event to take place since the Roswell Crash of 1947, and the result will be a dramatic increase in local and national awareness about The Heene Family, our Reality Series, as well as the UFO Phenomenon in general," according to a copy of the show's proposal Thomas provided to Gawker.
The balloon, initially thought to carry 6-year-old Falcon Heene, flew across Colorado's sky Thursday, riveting millions watching on television. Then it landed without the boy, and the search for him started amid fears he had fallen out — until he was found at home.
"We certainly know that there's a conspiracy between the husband and wife, you've probably seen some of the e-mails and some of the things on the Internet suggesting that there may be other conspirators," Larimer County Sheriff Jim Alderden said Sunday.
TVGuide.com Poll: 91 percent believe balloon drama was hoax
Alderden also said the charges against Richard and Mayumi Heene would include conspiracy, attempting to influence a public servant, contributing to the delinquency of a minor, and false reporting to authorities.

Some of the most serious charges each carry a maximum sentence of six years in prison and a $500,000 fine. -- Gina DiNunno

 
Richard Heene and his sons Ryo, center, and Falcon leave their Fort Collins, Colo., home Sunday.
Zalubowski/AP
Richard Heene and his sons Ryo, center, and Falcon leave their Fort Collins, Colo., home Sunday.
 

Balloon boy's dad Richard Heene was arrested in 1997, spent 4 days in jail

BY Brian Kates AND Samuel Goldsmith DAILY NEWS STAFF WRITERS  Monday, October 19th 2009,

The wacky Colorado dad at the center of the Balloon Boy scandal spent time in jail for a 1997 vandalism conviction in Los Angeles, court records show.

Richard Heene was arrested in April 1997 for vandalism, vehicle tampering and disturbing the peace, records show. He plead no contest and was sentenced to 30 days in jail, two years probation and hit with a $100 fine.

Details of the crime were not immediately available Monday.

Heene spent just 4 days in jail and spent the rest of his sentence on house arrest.

Meanwhile, the Heene's lawyer said Monday his clients are preparing for an arrest -- and for a fight.

Attorney David Lane said he has "no idea whatever so-called evidence" authorities have to prosecute the family or whether they passed a polygraph test.

"If that's what they're relying on, they're in trouble," he told "Good Morning America," since polygraph results are not admissible in court.

Lane said he expects the Larimer County sheriff's office to file charges Monday or Tuesday against Heene and his wife Mayumi for staging the bizarre balloon saga.

He said he's hoping authorities will stick to their deal to allow the Heenes to surrender rather than be led away in handcuffs in front of their sons.

Sheriff's department investigators said they want to question a Denver man named Robert Thomas who claimed Richard Heene had told him months ago he was planning a media stunt to promote a proposed reality show.

Thomas, a self-described researcher, sold his story to Gawker.com and gave the Web site e-mails between him and Heene.

Thomas said the show would feature Heene as a mad scientist who carries out various scientific experiments.

"This will be the most significant UFO-related news event to take place since the Roswell Crash of 1947, and the result will be a dramatic increase in local and national awareness about The Heene Family, our Reality Series, as well as the UFO Phenomenon in general," said a copy of the show's proposal provided to the site by Thomas.

Gawker.com editor-in-chief Gabriel Snyder confirmed the New York-based Web site paid Thomas, but declined to say how much. The site headlined the story: "Exclusive: I Helped Richard Heene Plan a Balloon Hoax."

The drama began Thursday when the Heene's said they feared their son Falcon, 6, had climbed into a homemade balloon that broke free and drifted off.

As rapt viewers watched on television, the balloon soared as high as 7,000 feet and drifted 50 miles before finally coming to the ground -- with no boy inside.

Read more: http://www.nydailynews.com/news/national/2009/10/19/2009-10-19_balloon_hoaxers_lawyer_richard_heene_.html#ixzz0UcZJ01LM


 

Video of Sheriff conference over Heene Family Balloon Boy Saga






http://abcnews.go.com/GMA/AheadoftheCurve/balloon-boy-family-expects-charges-sheriffs-hoax-claim/story?id=8859638

Balloon Boy's Parents to be Charged Next Week

Heene Family Lawyer Ready to Take On Police: 'It Is My Job to Slap Them Down'


By SARAH NETTER, RYAN OWENS and RUSSELL GOLDMAN
Oct. 19, 2009
The legal fate of Richard Heene will remain up in the air longer than the runaway balloon that he frantically claimed last week had carried off his son in what police now say was an elaborate hoax.

Larimer County Sheriff Jim Alderden said over the weekend he was preparing to bring charges against Heene and his wife, Mayumi, but Larimer County put out a statement to waiting reporters today suggesting they go home.

"We know many of you are remaining in the area in anticipation of the arrest of the Heenes. In deference to your schedules, we want you to know that we do not anticipate completing our reports and presenting this case filing to the district attorney until next week."

Alderden originally said his investigators had no reason to believe the family was lying but shifted 180 degrees Sunday and called the incident both a hoax and a publicity stunt to gin up buzz for a reality show the family hoped to produce.

"We have evidence at this point to indicate that this was a publicity stunt, done with the hope of marketing themselves for a reality show at some point in the future," he said. "On the bizarre meter, this rates a 10."

Alderden added that police believed the family may have conspired with a media outlet to launch the balloon.

A lawyer for the couple, who met in acting school and twice appeared on the ABC reality show "Wife Swap," said today that while his clients are preparing for arrest, he's ready to take on the sheriff's office.

"If they step over any lines, it is my job to slap them down," Heene family attorney David Lane told "Good Morning America" today. "I have no idea what so-called evidence they have."




http://ca.news.yahoo.com/s/accesshollywood/091019/entertainment/new_details_emerge_about_richard___mayumi_heene

New Details Emerge About Richard & Mayumi Heene

Mon Oct 19, 6:37 PM

LARIMER COUNTY, Colo. -- As the Sheriff's Department in Larimer County, Colo. ramp up their case against Richard and Mayumi Heene over the Balloon Boy hoax incident from last week, new details have come to light about the couple.

Beyond their appearance on ABC's "Wife Swap" and the helium balloon incident, which was allegedly set up as a means to get a reality show, the Heene parents actually had several financial problems, had an acting history together, had a 911 call history... and one of them even has an arrest record.

 

VIEW THE PHOTOS: Keepin' It Real With TV's Hottest Reality Stars!

 

According to Denver's 7 News, the couple met as aspiring actors at the famed Lee Strasberg acting school in Los Angeles, eventually forming a production company together.

 

And while in Southern California, Richard Heene ran into trouble with the law.

 

VIEW THE PHOTOS: Mug Shot Mania

 

In 1997, the Los Angeles City Attorney's Office filed three charges against him -- misdemeanor vandalism, vehicle tampering and disturbing the peace - over an undisclosed incident. A rep for the City Attorneys Office told Access Hollywood that because they incident happened so long ago, they didn't immediately have access to details of the case.

 

On April 15, 1997, Richard pleaded no contest to just one count of vandalism stemming from the incident.

 

Richard was placed on two years probation and ordered to serve 30 days in jail. He had to pay $100 restitution to the victim, who has not been named, as well. He served four days of his jail sentence and was placed under house arrest, according to the minute order obtained by Access.

 

VIEW THE PHOTOS: Hollywood's Biggest Broods

 

And there were reported financial troubles for the Heenes as well.

 

There was a judgment against Richard for $5,000 in LA Small Claims court in 2006, 7 News reported. Additionally, the Heenes' company - My You Me Productions - had $2,191 in tax liens levied against it between 2003 and 2006.

 

Also, in 1993, the state filed a $5,812 tax lien against Richard, 7 News reported.

 

Additionally, a landlord in Burbank told NBC News that Richard Heene left town in 2007, owing her $6,000 in unpaid rent.

 

And there were troubles in Larimer County too.

 

Earlier this year, in February 2009, Deputy Stephen Wicker in Larimer County responded to a 911 hang-up call at the Heene home, 7 News reported.

 

"As I approached the front door, I heard a male voice yelling quite loudly," the deputy said in his report, according to 7 News. "I heard a female voice that sounded like a scream or a squeal."

 

Mayumi then let the officer in.

"Mayumi had a mark on her cheek and broken blood vessels in her left eye," the deputy's report continued. "When asked what happened, she said, 'I had a problem with my contacts."

The District Attorney's Office declined to press charges over lack of evidence.

On Monday, with charges expected within the coming days, the Heene household appeared quiet.

The three Heene children - including (Balloon Boy) Falcon, 6 -- did not go to school.

Access has learned that Child Protective Services are investigating what could happen to the boys if the parents are arrested.

Criminal Attorney Rebecca Rose Woodland, who is not involved in this case, said losing their children is a real possibility.

"They're facing felony charges, so they're facing prison time," she said. "A judge can sentence [the parents with anything from] prison time, to community service... And in addition, a Child Protective Services [person] could review this case from a family perspective and decide whether or not the children are in a fit home an the parents are fit to care for these children."

 


http://voices.washingtonpost.com/tvblog/2009/10/lifetime-tosses-heene-family-w.html

Lifetime tosses Heene family "Wife Swap" episode overboard

Lifetime cable network, which spent a fortune stealing "Project Runway" away from Bravo in an attempt to goose its primetime ratings, has had a pot of ratings gold dumped in its lap but, weirdly, has said "no thanks."

Lifetime has the rerun rights to ABC's reality series "Wife Swap" (ABC-parent Disney co-owns Lifetime).

The basic cable network had scheduled for next Thursday, Oct. 29, the episode of "Wife Swap" that features the Heene family, the It Family of the moment, which apparently pulled off a made-for-Hollywood hoax of Capra-esque proportions: launching a homemade helium-filled balloon, claiming their little boy was stuck in the balloon when he was in fact hidden in the garage and sitting back while the cable news networks, the National Guard, authorities at Denver International Airport and a large swath of the American public got sucked in.

Next Thursday's rerun episode of "Wife Swap" was sure to attract a lot of viewers who had not seen the episode when it first foisted the Heenes on an unsuspecting public, back in October of 2008 on ABC.

And yet Lifetime now says it has scrubbed plans to run the episode and has no plans to reschedule it "in the near future, at this time." It was pulled, a Lifetime rep told The TV Column, "once we determined" the Heene family had perpetrated their stupendous hoax.

"Given the incident that occurred last week, we felt it was inappropriate to air at this time," the Lifetime rep said.

Honestly, we don't get it.

It's not like any member of the Heene family murdered a woman, yanked out her teeth, cut off her fingers, and tossed her body into a dumpster -- which seems to be the new threshold at which VH1 cable network will -- reluctantly -- cancel its reality programming.

And, let's face it, it's not like "Wife Swap" is a show in which philanthropic families swap good-deed-doing wives and the Heenes have now disgraced the brand. "Wife Swap" is a show in which trainwreck families swap mothers/wives for a period of time and cheesetastic TV ensues.

For instance, the Heene episode of "Wife Swap" that Lifetime was perfectly happy to air -- until recently -- featured the three little Heene boys, age 5, 7, and 8 at the time, showing off their farting talent at the dinner table, eating pocket change, and advising their new temporary, pretend mother that it would be unwise to sleep with Dad.

Lifetime likewise had no problem with Dad, aka Richard Heene, observing that "once a woman hits 25, it's all downhill from there," creating a "Bitch-Meter" to gauge his temporary, pretend wife's behavior and when she asked him to help around the house, shouting at her, "You're a man's nightmare! I'm so glad my wife was born in Japan. Nag, nag nag! Over 25 years old. You sag!"

Which we believe qualifies as not only sexist and ageist, but maybe also racist, which would make it a veritable Hat Trick of Prejudice.

Lifetime's issues with the episode only started last Thursday, Oct. 15, when the Heene parents, who are amateur storm chasers, reported that one of their sons said he thought he saw his baby brother, Falcon, climb into the basket of a helium-filled weather balloon shortly before it took off from the family yard in Fort Collins, Colo.

The Heene parents, Richard and Mayumi, called 911 - and a local TV news outlet, and the Federal Aviation Administration - to report the harrowing news, and for about an hour the cable news networks all took feeds from a local TV channel's footage of the silver balloon as it hurtled over the Colorado landscape for more than 50 miles, while authorities frantically shut down Denver International Airport and deployed National Guard helicopters in an attempt to pluck the balloon out of the air. Meanwhile, TV viewers at home and at the office sat with their hearts pounding against their front teeth, praying the adorable little boy would miraculously survive.

When the homemade balloon finally landed, no Falcon was on board, triggering TV news reports he may have plunged from the balloon to his death.

Then Falcon was "discovered," "hiding" in the rafters of the family garage and CNN scored an interview with the family, in which Wolf Blitzer asked Richard Heene if Falcon hid in the garage because he thought his dad was going to punish him and Richard looked at the son he was clutching to his bosom and asked, "Why didn't you come out [of the garage]?" and Falcon responded sweetly, "You guys said that we did this for a show." After which everything began to unravel at warp speed.

The parents are not under arrest, but authorities are expected to throw the book at them, with charges that could include conspiracy, contributing to the delinquency of a minor, making a false report to authorities, attempting to influence a public servant -- and that doesn't include federal charges. The most serious charges are felonies and carry a maximum sentence of six years in the slammer, the AP reported, citing Colorado authorities.

By Lisa de Moraes  |  October 21, 2009; 6:10 PM ET
Categories:  TV NewsShare This:  E-Mail | Technorati | Del.icio.us | Digg | StumblePrevious: Gosselins trumped by clever Heene family's 15 minutes 

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/americas/8315042.stm

Richard, Falcon and Ryo Heene leave their house in Colorado, 18 October 2009
A lawyer said Richard Heene (l) was prepared to hand himself in
Video of Sheriff Investigating the Heene Family Balloon Boy Sage
"You all won't get  off my back......"


Balloon family 'ready for arrest'

A US couple accused of faking the disappearance of their son in a weather balloon are ready to turn themselves in to police, their lawyer says.

David Lane said he expected police in Colorado to bring charges against his client, Richard Heene, by Wednesday.

"These folks are absolutely willing to turn themselves in, so I don't want to see a 'perp walk' done for media consumption," Mr Lane told NBC TV.

Mr Heene and wife Mayumi are accused of planning the hoax as a publicity stunt.

The disappearance of their son, six-year-old Falcon Heene, last Thursday became a media drama, but he was later found at home.

His parents appeared on several TV networks with Falcon and his two brothers to talk about the incident and insist it had not been staged.

Mr Lane told the Associated Press news agency that the Heenes should be presumed innocent of wrongdoing unless convicted.

"If [the prosecutors] can prove their case beyond reasonable doubt, that's one thing. If they can't prove their case beyond a reasonable doubt, that's another," he said.

'Acting abilities'

Official details of any charges the Heenes might face have not yet been made public.

However, Sheriff Jim Alderden said on Sunday that charges might include conspiracy and contributing to the delinquency of a minor.

Some of the most serious charges each carry a maximum sentence of six years in prison and a $500,000 (£305,000) fine.

Sheriff Alderden said that at first the parents' acting abilities had made them appear credible to the police.

But it had become clear when the son referred to his hiding as part of "a show" during a television interview that they were not telling the truth.

Sheriff Alderden said the authorities were investigating whether anyone else may have been involved, including a media outlet that may have been in on the hoax.

"We certainly know that there's a conspiracy between the husband and wife, you've probably seen some of the e-mails and some of the things on the internet suggesting that there may be other conspirators," he told reporters.

Investigators have said they want to question Robert Thomas, an associate of Mr Heene's in Denver, who provided the website Gawker.com with e-mail exchanges from several months ago in which he and Mr Heene talk about a possible balloon stunt to promote a proposed reality TV show.

Police have searched the house of Richard and Mayumi Heene for evidence that the family was hoping to use the incident to obtain a lucrative contract for such a show.

The family has made previous appearances on a US reality show, Wife Swap.

Other 'conspirators'?

US news networks devoted hours of live coverage to the drama on Thursday after it was reported the boy might be in a balloon floating high over Colorado.

Denver International Airport was temporarily shut down during the incident.

When the balloon landed in fields there was no trace of him, prompting a major ground search and further fears for his safety.

The sheriff said the police may seek compensation for the time wasted.

He did not give an estimate, though the Associated Press news agency said the cost of two police helicopters sent out on a rescue mission was $14,500 (£8,900).

The boy, his two brothers and his parents gave numerous TV interviews late on Thursday and early Friday. Falcon was twice sick on camera.

The Atlanta Journal-Constitution's Cynthia Tucker asks how farpeople will go in search of fame.

The desperate desire for celebrity - of any sort - has long been a dominant feature of our culture, no matter how ignoble or notorious the acts people may have to pull off for their 15 minutes of fame... But, if the police are right, the culture may have reached a new low in which parents involve their children in huge lies with huge consequences. 

Steve Haigh, writing for INDenverTimes.com, believes the Heenes are playing for big stakes.

 

If this were a game of Texas hold 'em, the Heene family would have just gone all in... In this hand of poker, the winner collects the most face time on television and the Internet. But while the attention is satisfying, the Heenes must think the ultimate jackpot is the lucrative book deal or movie rights or reality TV series. They're after the big money, and they're willing to gamble not only with their individual freedom and finances, but also with the emotional future of their young children. 

Scott Collins and Nicholas Riccardi, of the Los Angeles Times, look at the media's role.

Children's advocates warn that reality-TV producers and news organizations are exploiting children from exotic backgrounds for higher ratings. In the 'balloon boy' case, TV news was rewarded for sticking with the story: As the drama unfolded Thursday afternoon, the cable news networks logged ratings roughly double their usual averages, according to the Nielsen Co. 

Writing for the New York Daily News, David Hinckley speculates that the Heene family may get their own show.

If you think the Heene family's Balloon Boy stunt was too bizarre and disturbing even to catch the eye of 'reality' TV, think again. 



Lawyer: ‘Balloon boy’ family ready to surrender

Attorney says that making the Heenes
do ‘perp walk’ would be ‘child abuse’



David Zalubowski / AP
Richard Heene, center, follows his son, Falcon, right, as Mayumi Heene blocks the door as they leave their home in Fort Collins, Colo., early on Sunday.

http://dlisted.com/node/34444




Balloon Boy's Neighbors Are Not Happy

Don't ask me why, but The Trials and Tribulations of Balloon Boy is still taking up precious media space. Because of this, the media has not left Balloon Boy's neighborhood which has given some of his neighbors a case of the angries. Take this dude for instance. Dude has had it with the media getting in his life and decided to do something about it on Sunday evening.

It ended with him throwing punches after he got tackled from behind (not in a sexy way). Somebody needs to send a carrier pigeon to these two with a message that says they are directing their anger at the wrong person. If you need to slap a bitch, slap Richard Heene. The line forms to the right.

And I can't say that I blame the bald dude. It's not easy to get your dealer to make a house call when you've got a zillion camera crews on your front lawn. I'd punch a trick too

http://theview.abc.go.com/forum/balloon-boy-heenies

Say ladies: Some of you might recall the panic caused by Orson Welles delivery of War of the Worlds on the radio years ago--isn't this Heenie uproar quite similar (apart from the kids) in the way the public reacted to a hoax? Think about a constructive solution to the "problem" rather than something punitive might be in order? After all, this is 2009.....g :-)

I said this elsewhere too...there is a farmer who is out 300 acres of wheat because his land was destroyed when this balloon landed and rescue vehicles drove over to 'rescue' the little boy. This farmer needs to be compensated...that's his livelihood. That's who I feel bad for.

No offense to the OP but when I first read your thread title, I thought it said, "heinies"! LOL

I feel so badly for those poor boys, especially the one who bore the brunt of the "blame" for being in the basket that he wasn't in. No wonder the poor child got sick on 2 different shows. :(

You cannot compare Orson's War of the Worlds radio advertisement to this. What Orson did was not intentional, just unfortunate. This guy with the balloon did this intentionally & caused damage to property, fear, disrupted the airport, lied & used his CHILDREN. No comparison!

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I agree,pmora68, with the compenstion idea. All responders should be compensated. In Michigan the Great Lakes in the winter freeze and attract ice fishermen. They drive out there on the ice on ATV's snowmobiles and even cars. If they have to be rescued,(do to falling thru or getting stranded) they have to pay the rescue teams, Coast Guard, police and emergency. This is not that much different. They like the Henne's created the problem. Pay up.

War of the Worlds was a radio presentation and this was stated before and during the broad cast. OW did not call the police or any government agency to report the invasion. It was listeners that did not listen or hear the disclaimer that called police.


 

 

 

Email your oppinion to Mr Wijat at
drearmrwijat@usaweeklynews.com


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