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NEWS
THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN MONDAY, OCTOBER 19; 2009
Homewrecker
Tanner Grubbs/KANSAN
A demolition crew begins tearing down an uninhabited house located at 1232 Louisiana St. Thursday. The Lawrence City Commission passed a resolution in August 2008 to demolish the residence, which it said was too dangerous and a detention to the welfare of the surrounding neighborhood.
NATIONAL
Parents may face charges for balloon boy conspiracy
Richard Heene, left, leads his sons Falcon, center, and Ryou out of their home in Fort Collins. Colo. early on Sunday. Hennie will likely face conspiracy charges for last week's balloon hoax.
BY DAN ELLIOTT Associated Press
The parents weren't under
FORT COLLINS, Colo. — The story that a little boy had floated away in a giant helium balloon was a hoax concocted to land a reality television show, authorities said, and the boy's parents will likely face felony charges.
The stunt two weeks in the planning was a marketing ploy by Richard and Mayumi Heene, who met in acting school in Hollywood and have appeared on the ABC reality show "Wife Swap," Larimer County Sheriff Jim Alderden said. The Heenes have reportedly been working on a reality TV deal in Los Angeles.
Six-year old Falcon Heene may not have even been hiding in the rafters of the family's garage during the intense five-hour search for him Thursday, Alderdan said.
"For all we know he may have been two blocks down the road playing on the swing in the city park," the sheriff said.
The stunt temporarily shut down Denver International Airport and caused the National Guard to scramble two helicopters in an attempt to rescue the boy, who was believed to be inside the flying-saucer shaped homemade balloon that hurtled more than 50 miles across two counties.
The drama played on out live television to millions of viewers worldwide. When the balloon landed without the boy in it, officials thought he had fallen out and began a grim search for his body.
In fact, the balloon — which was held together with duct tape — would not have been able to launch with the 37-pound-boy inside, Colorado State University physics professor Brian Jones has determined.
arrest, the sheriff said. He said he expected to recommend charges of conspiracy, contributing to the delinquency of a minor, making a false report to authorities and attempting to influence a public servant. Federal charges were also possible.
The most serious charges are felonies and carry a maximum sentence of six years in prison and a $500,000 fine. Alderden said they would be seeking restitution for the costs, though he didn't have an estimate.
The cost for just the two military helicopters was about $14,500.
Richard and Mayumi Heene were shopping for snacks at Walmart with their three sons as
Alderden told reporters that the whole thing was a hoax.
Richard Heene told The Associated Press he was "seeking counsel," though it was unclear whether he was talking about hiring an attorney. Alderman said the ACLU was representing the family, but the ACLU didn't return messages left Sunday.
"This thing has become so convoluted." Heene said as tears welled in his eyes. He said his wife was holding together better than he was.
The sheriff said all three of the Heenes' sons knew of the Thursday hoax, but likely won't face charges because of their ages. The oldest son is 10.
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