Balloon Boy's Parents to Plead Guilty to Lying, FAA Investigating
Richard and Mayumi Heene cop plea mainly to avoid wife's deportation.
Nov. 13, 2009— -- The expected guilty plea from a Colorado couple who allowed authorities to believe their 6-year-old son floated away in a homemade helium balloon may not be the end of their legal troubles.
Richard and Mayumi Heene may still face federal charges stemming from an ongoing civil investigation by the Federal Aviation Administration because the family's stunt caused some planes at the Denver airport to switch runways while the balloon was in flight.
Richard Heene, 49, is expected to plead guilty today to a felony charge of attempting to influence a public servant. Mayumi Heene, 48 and a Japanese citizen, will plead guilty to false reporting, a misdemeanor, lawyer David Lane said in a statement.
Lane said the Heenes accepted the plea deal rather than risk a trial in which Mayumi, if found guilty, would face deportation to Japan.
"Upon reviewing the evidence, arguably, Mayumi could have possibly ended up being deported and Richard could have proceeded to trial and had a good chance at an acquittal," Lane said Thursday. "This, however, would have put the family at grave risk of seeing a loving, caring, compassionate wife and mother ripped from the family and deported. That was not an acceptable risk, thus these pleas."
Although the law provides for a 90-day sentence for the husband and a 60-day sentence for his wife, Lane said, "the prosecutor has stipulated to a sentence of probation."
Larimer County Sheriff Jim Alderden, who, according to deputies, was on vacation and would not comment on recent developments, posted an item to his blog attacking Lane, calling him "clever and manipulative" and comparing him to the Joker character from "Batman."
"So why would high profile attorney David Lane waste everyone's time on this, besides for the publicity he generated for himself? Simple. We've already seen his playbook and know his methods," Alderden wrote. "In his playbook, the best defense is a good offense. Attack and discredit the accuser. Distract the public. Get them to take their eye off the ball. If this were a SWAT operation, it would be akin to throwing a smoke grenade. Obscure the real issue. Smoke."
Writing on his "Bulls Eye" newsletter, which is not hosted by Larimer County, Alderden accused the defense attorney of a smear campaign by his suggestion that the sheriff violated the Heenes' privacy by asking child welfare workers to investigate the family.
The Heene's sparked a nationwide panic when they called 911 Oct. 15 to report that son Falcon had climbed inside a saucer-shaped balloon that became untethered in the backyard of their Fort Collins home. Local, state and federal authorities followed the runaway balloon and sheriffs fielded hundreds of phone calls with suggestions on how to get the boy safely to earth. Thousands watched riveted as the balloon soared across the Colorado sky.
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