Balloon incident is a hoax !!!! but is the punishment worth it ?

I think they are both nuts. What they have done to those kids is ridiculous. They will probably end up gettting them taken away & it might not be a bad thing. Don't guess they were thinking what could happen to the kids if they got caught. stupid, stupid.

Yes, i just saw this on the National news. The sheriff said it's possible some media group could also be charged. Apparently somebody was trying to help them get a third reality show & made the comment, they could get it done if they had something to spark interest in the family once again. Soooo....the events we've watched over the last 4 days or so. My question is, what did they do with the money from the other 2 reality shows??? With the way the dad handles himself, he'll have a camera crew following him around jail telling us how pitiful his life is!!! I don't think he can get enough time in jail. He was teaching his children to lie in order to get what they want!!!

It was a hoax and a good one at that. I say good luck to them for getting over one on us all. I think charging them and giving then jail time is just overkill. When was the last time any of us faced charges for a practical joke

First off, I'm glad to know that it was a hoax in the first place. For a parent to have actually allowed their child to mess with something like this would have been just plain stupid. Now, this isn't to say that setting up the hoax wasn't stupid as well. Why on earth would anyone go to that kind of an extent for attention? I hope that he does get the maximum sentence for what he's done and I hope that in light of finding out that this whole scheme was a hoax, the media will chose to ignore their entire family from here on out. If that is the way that it works out, then the punishment really wouldn't be worth it to Mr. Heene at all.

This is just so terrible. I feel so sorry for those children! The fact that it got to the point where that poor little baby was vomiting on television--while his father *ignored* him--because he felt so guilty for being involved in this lie just makes me want to slap both parents. I mean, NORAD was out there, the whole country was upset, they spent $10,000 of taxpayer money--I really hope they get convicted and they both should serve jail time. I hope that a much saner relative would take in the children during that time and teach them some morals and show them some love; they need it. If you watch their horrid YouTube videos, the father is taping them while they're wasting food by throwing it around, swearing and beating on each other, etc. The father openly swears in front of the kids and the mother openly laughs at one of her children while he's crying. These people are a mess.

If the charges are within the laws, then why argue with it? Whatever they call it, publicity, exposure, media attention, it is still called cheating. Cheating the public which includes family members and kids. Damn I see the interview when the kid told the press that he was ask by Dad to do a lie. What kind of parent would do that to their kids? I think the sentence if proven guilty is lawful as to teach (including us) lessons about the law and how to become a responsible citizen.

I think the whole incident was rather stupid. The Air National Guard spent between 10 and 14 thousand dollars to find this little boy. Instead of jail time, maybe Heene needs to repay the money spent to do the search. He's probably looking ahead into the theory that he can write a book or make a movie of his tactics and make a small fortune. This is a poor way to get media attention, in my opinion.

I can not believe they are wasting all the news media time on this crap. I mean just charge the people and get it over with already. Now they are talking about it being a federal crime and want to put the kids in foster care. I believe its all being blown out of portion. I fail to understand how its a federal crime. Charge them for the time the police spent looking for the kid. Im sure they have plenty of unsolved real crimes and on going crimes that need to be solved rather than creating all this crap.

The question you asked us should be asked of the Heenes. I can't answer for them.

Hey there, I just replied to the similar thread as this one. =) I hope you don't mind if I reply to this thread as well. For me, balloon hoax was very very disgusting and didn't make any sense at all. Especially the parents, because I've read some articles on internet that the parents were in pursue of popularity due some television program (I'm so sorry if I write it mistakenly). And also one's field was also disturbed for the useless rescue. I think the punishment is worth giving to the hoax-maker. It's simply because a lot of money was spent during the unworthy rescue. I've read the amount on some articles on internet earlier today. =)

From what I read I don't think it is a hoax but if it turns out to have been I am sure they will take action.

Well, they got what they wanted from the stunt, right? If nothing else he can write a book from jail about what he did and what happened as a result.

The world does not need another reality tv show with some crazy family desparately seeking attention. That's all I have to say.

well first of all i am glad that the boy was not hurt .i don't fell putting them in jail is a good idea because then it just cost the tax payer more money .i feel that they should have to pay back all the money it cost for all the help. they also should apology to the world that was watching and praying for them and they should not be able to earn the money with a tv show.so it can be paid back in a year they need to do it just like us one that have to make a honest living and we all know that is not easy.

With so many people worring about the child and all the money spent to try and save the kid, they should get jail time. That like prank calling 911. But using a child for bait, what kind of person would teach that to their own kids. Now the hole family going be mess up.

I really don't think jail time is the right punishment for this. I think he should be banned from earning anything off from any sort of reality show, book etc resulting from this stunt. I think that rather than jail, he should be made to pay back the expenses incurred because of this idiotic adventure. I also think he should get some councelling and maybe parenting classes. And where is the mom in all this? Is she ok with what lessons he is teaching her sons? Are they even fit to be parents?

I think it is really sick what they did and using their child to do it makes it even sicker, I was practically in tears watching that thinking that little boy was up in that balloon. How desperate does someone have to be to pull something like that, to pull such a stunt, they have already done reality TV it is a sick obsession with them I think. This whole thing is just really sad in a really sick way.

This was so horrible! I am at my daughter's school all the time and a bunch of us parents were discussing this incident. We couldn't figure out what was worse, a child getting into a balloon like this on his own - or the family making up a STORY that their 6 year old got into the balloon! Don't they have other kids? It was extremely irresponsible in my opinion for them to use their son like this for media attention. They absolutely horrified and worried thousands of people, some of us who have young children. Having your child disappear, even for a few minutes, is scary enough, but to have them loose in a balloon and then to have a huge search turn up NOTHING? I would be beside myself with worry and guilt! Of course it's not worth it. I still can't believe this whole debacle....

The children are the victims here; they were just doing what they were told to do by their idiot parents and now they are going to be without them while they probably do jail time! How could anyone be so stupid! There are so many people out there who have had children go missing for real and these fools do it as a hoax for publicity wasting tax payer’s money and resources not to mention everybody’s concern. I say throw the book at the them; if it was meant to be a bit of a joke, it’s not funny!

The things people do to get media attentions could make your head explode. Just enjoy their doings as entertainment and be done with it. Stupidity never has lower bottoms, you know