Balloon Boy Parents Sentenced to Jail

Time to pay the piper, Richard Heene!

The Colorado dad who reported that his son, Falcon Heene, had floated away in a runaway balloon was sentenced to serve 90 days in jail on Wednesday for staging the elaborate hoax. Most of that time will be on a work-release basis, however.

Mayumi Heene, the boy's mother, does not have to do any jail time, but instead got 20 days of supervised public service. Both parents were put on probation for four years and have to pay fines and restitution that will be tallied up later.

The entire Balloon Boy saga began back on October 15 with what was later revealed as a publicity stunt aimed at getting the attention-starved parents their own reality TV show.

Here's the beautiful part...as part of the terms of their probation, the judge prohibited the couple from earning any income from the entire fiasco. That means no book deals, no TV appearances...NADA!

Richard is to report to prison by January 11 to starting serving his time. Mayumi will begin her sentence after Richard finishes his.

More here: Balloon Boy Saga