hln, we begin with breaking news right out of ft. collins, colorado where the sheriff will speak on whether he's pressing charges over the balloon boy saga. deputies searched the home of the boy's parents last night and left with several boxes and a computer and police also questioned them about whether they knew their 6-year-old was hiding by calling 911 saying he floated away in a balloon they built. afterward richard henne emerged and then he made a quick statement. >> i was talking to the sheriff's department right now

to further things along and we're doing well. >> now, if he and his wife did, in fact, stage a publicity stunt they could face charges of making a false report. that crime carries a maximum sentence of six months in jail and a $750 fine. you may recall police, the military and even the faa all got involved in chasing down that balloon when they thought the boy was inside. millions of all of us who watched on tv were worried sick about whether the child had survived. a justice of the peace who refused to marry an interracial company said he has nothing to apologize for. the elected official in louisiana. he doesn't marry interracial couples because he's worried about their children's future and says he does not regret it. breaking news for you right now we want to tell you about, sheriff jim is talking to reporters. let's listen in.

>> we have to operate on facts and to get to the truth. we would not have been able to arrive at the truth if it hadn't been for the tireless work of many, many of the individuals here in our larimir county family that's with us today. i want to thank them publicly for all their support and hard work and effort they put into this case. as i said, this is, it has been determined that this is a hoax, that it was a publicity stunt. we believe that we have evidence at this point to indicate that it was a publicity stunt done with the hopes of marketing themselves or better market themselves for a reality television show at some point in the future. i know this is going to be disjointed and i somewhat apologize for that, but a lot of points i wanted to cover and some of them may be somewhat out

of order. we talked about local prior history. only two prior calls to this residence. both of them being 911 hang up calls. one of them was cleared after it was determined that a juvenile had been messing with the phone and accidentally dialed 911. the second call was cleared of a suspicious circumstance. there's a possibility or potential that there was some domestic violence involved in that call however after screening it with the district attorney's office there was insufficient evidence to proceed with a criminal prosecution. couple other things i wanted to confirm. there is issues as to the timeline and who called whom when. we had been able to confirm that the hennes did, in fact, call 9 news. we haven't been able to confirm they did call the faa.

the timeline when these calls were placed and whether they were called before or after 911 was called is still questionable. we haven't been able to determine that timeline. we have put a preserve order in place for the henne telephone records and we'll be getting subpoenas or search warrants in order to access those records so we can establish a timeline. another issue that came up. whether or not this device, this spaceship was capable of launching with a 37-pound 6-year-old in it. the day the event occurred we took the dimensions and the information and the weight provided to us by richard henne and gave that information to a professor at colorado state university. he's a professor of physics. he was asked to join us here

today. i'm not sure if he is. professor brian jones. based the information and the weight and the volume provided to us by richard henne, professor jones determined that it was, in fact, possible for this balloon to have launched. however, now that we have custody and have recovered the balloon and the utility box and weighed them and have precise measurements professor jones has reexamined that, has recalculated it and based on the accurate information and the accurate weight of this device, we now know that it was not capable of lifting off. in fact, the difference is due to 18-pound discrepancy as to whether this thing would go

aireair born or not. the entire contraption weighing 18-pound difference. we also wanted to look closely at the construction of this device. basically, it's a one mill plastic tarp that was taped together and covered with al aluminum foil and the base of the utility box is a very thin piece of plywood and the sides of that box are cordboard all held together with string and duct tape. certainly we wanted to question whether that was strong enough of falcon. we have that on display in our evidence bay, we will show you that at the conclusion of this press conference and allow you to get some photographs. we did place 37 pounds weight in it and suspended it and it is,

in fact, capable, as bizarre as it sounds being held together with duct tape, it will, in fact, support the weight of a 37-pound boy. i want to recap the events just briefly up to this point. the morning this occurred, it was obviously chaotic. we responded as a number of other rescue personnel responded to what we believed was a life-threatening event with a 6-year-old boy's life in jeopardy. we responded in a rescue mode. after the balloon landed and it was determined that the boy was in there and he was not in the house, we went in a body recovery mode. clearly, emotions were running high. at that time, i made a big point out of saying, talking about the emotional condition of the family, their body language and nonverbal communications. everything that we experienced with the family to that point

was very consistent and believable, auto, certainly, a number of people, including the media and including the viewers were skeptical about this thing. we remained somewhat skeptical, but as i constantly said, we have to operate on facts and what we can prove as being facts. the fact that the information we had was plausible to believe that this event occurred. so we were in a recovery mode. some of the other things that initially lead credibility to this fantastic story was the fact that the henne family granted us free access to search their house. they granted us complete access to their children to interview independently. after falcon was found, they didn't even hesitate to allow us to talk to him outside of their presence. all of these things were very suggested to us that it was, in

fact, a real deal. that somebody was trying to, somebody were trying to make something like this up. we would not expect them to give us the access that they did or the level of cooperation. again, after the fact, we have since learned, as many of you have that the people are actors. they appeared on reality television shows and youtube we have determined that they met, the way that they met and established their relationship was in acting school in hollywood. so, needless to say, they put on a very good show for us and we bought it. again, i don't fault any of our staff for us. everything appeared very credible. i can also say for many of you suggested what if questions and wouldn't you have done things differently if you were parents. certainly we would have, but for all those questions that you raised, we had also raised them with the family and obtained

what we thought were plausible explanations. certainly not what many of us would have done at the time, but there was a plausible explanation and a rational they could give us that would say, okay, it wasn't until the larry king show where the family was interviewed by wolf blitzer that we had the first ha-ah moment. why didn't you come down? he said the media said we did it for the show. if you look at the nonverbal responses, as well as some of the verbal cues not only from him but from the family and the children, their reaction, it became very clear to us at that point that they were lying. you know, you picked up on it, we picked up on it. from that point we had to develop a strategy of where do we go from here?

how do we get to the bottom of this? clearly the only way we would bring this to a successful conclusion is if we got a confession. we had to get somebody talking and somebody telling us what really happened. we developed a strategy to do that. it was very important during this time that they maintain their trust with us, that we maintain a very good relationship that we had established with the family and we had to say and do things to make sure that they believed we were on their side still and try to just maintain that trust so that we could get them in here voluntarily in order to conduct our interview. we, obviously, wanted to conduct an interview on our turf and our environment that was more controlled. the obvious goal was to separate them, to interview them

separately and hopefully be able to convince them to take a polygraph, part of the theme of getting them to take a polygraph is this is the only way they're going to get the media feeding frenzy off of their back. if they pass the polygraph, that would be great. if they failed a polygraph, that would give us ammunition to use an intearitation, ultimately with the goal of getting a confession. we arranged, we had hoped to do that on friday, that was our game plan to try to get them voluntarily in here on friday to do a polygraph examination. however, after watching the media that morning and the obvious distress that the family was under and the fatigue that they were under had we run a polygraph under those circumstances, the results would be invalid. so, we needed to get them rested before we could do a polygraph that was going to have any validity. that's why we decided not to pursue the investigation that day, but pursue it the following

morning. mr. henne voluntarily came in here under the pretext that we were going to return his aircraft to him, but before we could do that, we had a few questions that we needed to ask him and a few issues we needed to clarify. he consented it come in. he came in voluntarily. unbeknownst to him, the minute he hit the door here, we had investigators prepared to go to the house and talk to mrs. henne and try to gain her cooperation, as well as conduct interviews with her and the children. that was successful, she volunteered to do that and then she volunteered to come to the sheriff's office for further interviews and leave her kids there. so, those interviews were all conducted there, there were interviews conducted here.

excuse me just a moment here. let me talk about one thing yo r folks aren't going to like. there is a rule in colorado, this is for our people that are not from colorado media called rule 3.6 and 3.8 and the district attorney constantly reminds me of these. he did so again last night. we are not allowed under these rules to talk about the results in a scientific evidence that is presented. we're not allowed to talk about whether, in fact, a polygraph examination was administered. if a polygraph was administered, we're not allowed to say whether it proved truthful or deceptive and if anybody made any confession, we're not allowed to comment on whether anybody confe confessed. that's the status of where we're at. what i will say is that based on

the interviews that were done yesterday, we obtained enough probable cause to execute search warrants at the house last evening. what we were looking for in particular were computers that might contain e-mails, phone records, financial records, any sort of media recordings, videotapes or cd. any contracts or any other documents that might relate to a reality television show or plans to have such a reality television show. those search warrants were executed last night. at this point, we have not filed charges. you also saw that mr. and mrs. henne were allowed to leave yesterday. we need time to regroup, to, we have a lot of work that still needs to be done. this is still an ongoing investigation and we have to

look at all these documents that we seized and we certainly need further consultation with the district attorney's office. but we do believe we will be presenting a case recommending the following charges. conspiracy, contributing to the delinquency of a minor, which is a class four felony, false reporting to authorities, which is a class three misdemeanor and attempting to influence a public servant which is a class four felony. sergeant -- where is he? >> okay, you have been listening to jim alderman talking about this incident about whether falcon henne was off in that balloon and he says, no. in fact, they have evidence it was a hoax, a publicity stunt. they talked to the family

extensively and no charges have yet been filed, but they say they are working on that and they are going to regroup but they believe this was all a stunt thanks to "larry king live" and wolf blitzer's interview on our sister network cnn. they had an ah-ha moment and it is a hoax, a publicity stunt and we will follow this story as it unfolds all the rest of the day. we'll check some of the day's top stories after a quick break.

bagpipes and color guard as california takes time to remember some of its fallen hereoes. the name of o82 firefighters who died in the line of duty were added to a memorial wall in sacramento.

they include two firefighters who died battling the station fire. arnold schwarzenegger thanked all the members for their service. >> california's firefighters know the risks and they know what they must sacrifice. still, they only jump into action they do it with complete commitment and passion. it is not just work for them, it is their calling. california's firefighters are the bravest of the brave. they've proven themselves over and over that they're the most skilled, the toughest, the most selfless and the best trained firefighters in the world. >> the families of the firefighters who were honored were presented with flags and in all there are 1 r,100 names inscribed on that firefighter memorial. they have jammers and blockers and helmet panties? sure roler derby is fun to

watch, but one skater who pushed and shoved her way into making a difference and she is today's break through woman. >> my name is beth mcmacon aka pink panther. when i first heard robin meade announce the segment on break through woman i wanted to nominate tonya vojtkofsky. she co-founded the first women's flat track roller derby league a not for profit organization who has donated to women and children's charities. her main goal is community, it ended up being so much more. i don't think she really knows how much her vision has changed so much of her derby sister's lives. when we put on her skates we get to be whoever we want. from all your derby sisters, we love you, you are truly a break through woman.

thanks for making this a reality. hugs and slugs, pink panther.

breaking news out of ft. collins, colorado, where the larimer county sheriff just announced momented ago that the balloon boy saga was a hoax. he will likely charge them with making a false report, child endangerment and possibly federal charges. evidence shows they staged the situation that had millions believing their 6-year-old son, falcon, had floated away on a balloon the family made in their yard. during the investigation he learned the henne met in acting school and their acting skills made their story seem more credible. >> this has, it has been determined that this is a hoax.

that it was a publicity stunt. we believe that we have evidence at this point to indicate that it was a publicity stunt done with the hopes of marketing themselves or better market them selves for a reality television show at some point in the future. >> police, the military and the faa were all involved in trying to capture that balloon when they thought there might be a child inside. many of you this was a hoax when the balloon was in the air. that's when we learned the family was on "wife swap" and trying to get the networks to buy a reality show about them. the odd circumstance and inconsistencies in the henne's behavior helped fuel those rumors. people became really skeptical when cnn's wolf blitzer asked falcon why he hid during the search and he answered, we did

this for show. the university of connecticut is mourning the death of one of their star football players. 20-year-old jasper howard was killed in an on-campuses stabbing just hours after yesterday's game. howard was stabbed during a fight after the team's victory over louisville and police are now still looking for the perpetrator. howard was a junior and starting carnerback from miami. he led the big east in punt returns last season. michael hogan calls this stabbing a tragedy for the entire university. a third person died after taking part in a sweat lodge ceremony in arizona. ten days ago she was among more than 50 people inside a sweat lodge during a retreat led by self-help guru arthur ray. they have not filed charges yet. ray says he hired his own team to investigate what went wrong. his spokesman says ray's team is

cooperating with police. two weeks after the fact, investigators are still not sure about the sequence of events that ended with the death of a florida teenager. now, police say officer gerald ard was in his police cruiser chasing victor steen who was on a bicycle. now, he wanted to question steen because he was acting suspiciously around a construction site. he missed but he accidentally ran over him with his cruiser. his death has prompted community protests. >> troubled by the fact that the officer would use poor judgment and shoot a taser gun from a moving vehicle to a suspect that ended up causing the untimely death. >> it is just saddened the entire community. my prayers are that the truth will come out. >> now, officer ard is now on paid leave while the investigation continues. hurricane rick is now a

strong category 5 pacific storm. the national hurricane center reports the storm's maximum winds at 175 miles per hour. although they were up to 180 miles per hour earlier. forecasters expect rick to lose some steam and turn towards baja, california, and mainland mexico later this week. right now rick is the second strongest hurricane in the eastern north pacific in more than a decade. hurricane linda's top winds hit 185 miles an hour in 1997. a suicide bomber killed at least 29 people in iran today, including five senior commanders of the country's revolutionary guard. the ground forces was one of them. state-run media says a man wearing an exclusive belt blew himself up during a conference between shia and sunni groups in southeastern iran. no one has claimed responsibility, they are

accusing a group of carrying out that attack. fighting between rival drug gangs turned into a gun fight that lasted for hours in reo d s reodetia nero yesterday. the police who died were onboard this helicopter that caught fire when it was hit by gun fire. the chopper eventually crashed into a soccer field. rio was selected as the host city for the 2016 summer olympics. the parents of the so-called balloon boy could be going to jail, but what charges they're likely to face and why so many people question their story from the beginning. also ahead, defense secretary robert gates is headed overseas to seek support for the mishz in afghanistan. who he's visiting and why the meetings are so pivotal.

defense secretary robert gates will spend the next week trying to convince u.s. allies they need to stay the course in afghanistan. gates will visit japan and korea and then meet with nato defense ministers in slovakia. they will roll back operations in january. south korea currently provides noncom bat support in afghanistan. the nato meeting may be pivotal. gates is expected to ask the alliance to maintain its commitment to the mission while the u.s. decides whether to increase troop strength in afghanistan. president obama won't decide whether to change the number of troops in afghanistan until he knows there's a stable government in that country. at least that's word from white house chief of staff raum emanuele.

it is wreckless to decide about levels right now since no one knows the outcome of afghanistan's disputed presidential election. >> there are basically two roads there, two protheses and one is a run-off election between the two top candidates or a negotiation between those candidates but the end result must be a legitimate government to the afghan people. >> senator john kerry is making the same point. the chairman of the senate foreign relations committee is in kabul and it would be irresponsible putting more troops in the country without know whoog is running the government. he died in an ambush in afghanistan earlier this month along with seven other soldiers. audrey barnes of wusa talked to friends and family about the kind of man he was. >> reporter: relatives and friends walked through an arch

of honor to pay their respects to a soldier who lived and died with it. >> anybody who goes over there is a hero. >> reporter: the dad of a childhood friend put back on the uniform he never thought he would to talk about stefan mace who shared stories with him on a recent trip home. >> definitely had a tough challenge ahead of him. there's no question if he said it once, he said it 1,000 times that he wanted to go back. he wanted to be with his friends, he wanted to be with his brothers and he went back and did exactly what he is trained to do and i don't think he would change it even now. >> reporter: gridiron tough since birth. his former football coach said everyone wanted stephan on their team. >> he wasn't the biggest kid i ever coached, the biggest, the fastest, but he was, no question, one of the toughest. he took the feat, as well as he took victory and he never one time backed up. >> reporter: if he could change two things, stephan's friend who

took him hunting in africa before he went into the military said he would have been list would him and would have wanted stephan speaking at his funeral rather than the other way around. >> that was audrey barnes of wusa reporting. in that october 3rd attack that killed mace and seven other soldiers was the deadliest single battle for u.s. forces in afghanistan in more than a year. the military says more than 100 taliban fighters and two afghan soldiers were also killed that day. more than 3,000 u.s. troops scheduled to go to iraq are staying home. a unit based in ft. drum, new york, was forced to relieve another unit this coming january. but military officials say iraqi security forces say they will handle that patropatrol. >> the reconciliation is a tough business and i've been in some of these meetings with people,

you know, they don't like each other and you have to work, get them to work together and get them to understand their futures together and then you have a bond that makes it even tougher. again, i think the iraqi people have really signaled that they are really sick and tired of this stuff. >> yesterday iraq security forces were the targets of militant attacked. at least nine people were killed and four iraqi soldiers died in an assault against a convoy just outside of fallujah. in ramadi a suicide bomber blew up a key highway bridge. they used that bridge to transport equipment out of iraq. the balloon boy hoax. what it could cause falcon henne's family and what it did cost emergency service agencies. plus, california lost more than 80 firefighters in the line of duty within the past year. people from across the state.

breaking news from larimer county, colorado, where the sheriff is planning criminal charges against the family in the balloon boy hoax. richard henne staged a publicity stunt when he reported his 6-year-old son, falcon, was

trapped in that run away balloon. the sheriff will recommend conspiracy and other charges. then there is the matter of how much the escapade cost. no one knows the exact total yet. the sheriff hasn't seen any cost estimates for the resources his office committed, including the more than four hours deputies spent looking for falcon henne before finding him at the family's home where he allegedly was hiding from everyone. the balloon was in the air for two hours. rescue and federal safety regulators were involved in keeping track of it. the colorado national guard even launched two helicopters to try to rescue the boy and that alone cost more than $14,000. officials at denver's airport also diverted flights for about 15 minutes because the balloon would have drifted into air traffic. bagpipes and a color guard

as california takes time to remember some of its fallen heroes. the names of 82 firefighters who died in the line of duty were added to a memorial wall in sacramento. they include two firefighters who died battling the massive station wildfire. and yesterday governor arnold schwarzenegger thanked all of the state's firefighters for their service. >> california's firefighters know their risks and they know what they must sacrifice. still, only jump into action and do it with complete commitment and great passion. it is not just work for them t is their calling. california's firefighters are the bravest of the brave. they have proven time themselves over and over that they're the most skilled, the toughest and the best trained firefighters in the world. >> the families of the firefighters who were honored were presented with flags and in all there are 1,100 names inscribed on that firefighter memorial.

don't plan on any last-minute travel deals for thanksgiving, because travel experts say unlike last year when airlines slashed fares after a sharp drop in travelers this year ticket prices are already on the rise. and not only are you going to pay more for a ticket, but many airlines are also hitting you with a $10 peak travel charge. homeowners who are having financial difficulty need to act quickly and wisely, that's the advice of hln money expert clark howard who says you might be able to save your home and your credit. >> i get a lot of questions from people wanting to know if they negotiate a deal with their mortgage lender how is that going to affect their creditsta. the three major bureaus put out a report that if you just negotiate a new payment plan with your lender that the affect

on your credit score is actually very small, almost meaningless. but what if you say i give up and you negotiate a short sale? the effect on your credit score? getting up there. you lose over 100 points. let's say instead you just say i give up, here are the keys and you allow yourself to be foreclosed on. the effect is actually just a little worse than doing a short sale. but if you really want to blow up your credit, you file for bankruptcy. because then what it will do is drop your credit score, you're not going to believe this, but over 300 points. better to stay and try to work something out. i'm clark howard. for more ways for you to be smart with your wallet, go to cnn.com/clarkhoward. for more ways to save more, spend less and avoid getting ripped off. stay with us for the "clark howard show" right at on hln.

deaths from the h1n1 are rising, especially among children. but as kitty pilgrim reports, only a small percentage of the vaccine needed to combat the outbreak has been shipped. >> it's week 41 of the swine flu epidemic and the delivery of vaccine is still uncertain in many parts of the country. the injectible vaccine only shipped this week. >> initially, you know, we only had the nasal spray available but now it's about half and half available and it will be coming out towards the states relatively soon. >> the cdc has now ordered enough to provide 251 million doses, but as of this past monday, only a fraction of that order 9.8 million vaccines were available to be shipped. only one maker of the swine flu vaccine is manufacturing all its swine flu vaccine for the u.s. market in the united states, some 75 million doses. the other three producers clc, medimune make their vaccines

overseas. the public health department of suffolk county, new york, is the distribution center for 1.2 million doses and they only received 6,000 doses and 1,000 doses of it only received doses today and 1,000 of the nasal spray doses last week. they say they will need 300,000 to 400,000 doses. county executive says supplies are uncertain. >> we just got that shipment today of the 600 injectable form. and we're hoping for thousands more to come. we think spore radsporadically. >> reporter: he says he only finds out day-to-day what they will receive. >> we certainly could use more. the sooner the better. but for the doses that we do receive incrementally, we're going to administer them as soon as they come in. >> reporter: until then, the county is prioritizing high-risk

people to receive their shots first. katie pilgrim, cnn. when nasa smashed into the moon, the crash did make a splash. here's what it looked like. a mile high plume of debris. the point was to see if there was water frozen in the moon dust. scientists are still analyzing the data which they say is very high quality. the impact made a new 60-foot wide crater on the moon. the colorado couple that called 911 to report their child had soared away in their makeshift balloon could be

soaring away to jail. what charges they're likely to face now that authorities have determined it was all a hoax. satellites have given us a bird's eye view of possible signs of global warning. vanessa wants th-- nasa wants --

heene home twice. reverend al sharpton says he'll sue rush limbaugh if the conservative radio host does not apologize to him. limbaugh says sharpton played a role in two new york race riots. he made the claim in a "wall street journal" op-ed piece. sharpton was not involved in the incidents limbaugh referenced. sharpton says both allegations are false and limbaugh is out of bounds accusing him of criminal activity. limbaugh has not commented on the threatened lawsuit. blog world is taking place in las vegas this weekend. it's an expo bringing together bloggers and social media fans from across the globe. don lemon with our sister network, cnn, is at the expo.

he found out how social media like twitter and facebook are actually helping active duty soldiers stay in touch from the front lines. >> i think it's a great way, social media is a great way for the army to be able to connect with soldiers and the people out there, the american public in general, let them know what's going on. it's where the audience is at. it's where we need to be. >> people can actually see their loved ones overseas, realtime as they're talking to them. >> absolutely. it's a great method for soldiers to keep in touch with their families as well. i think it's a win/win for us and for the soldiers. >> don also speak with several physicians at the expo about how social media can help people deal with everything from the common cold to cancer. >> if you take somebody who is -- has migraine headaches or cancer or digestive problems, if they take something that changes their life and fixes their body, heals their body, or if they learn how to heal their body, do you think that they're going to

twit about that? >> reporter: yeah. >> do you think they're going to put it on their facebook? >> reporter: or blog about it or what have you. >> they're going to do every single thing they can possibly do. a, it's personal. b, it worked. and, c, that's a pretty motivating thing. >> nasa is beginning a study of the ice and the north and south poles. last week the agency flew a modified dc-8 over the antarctic ice sheet. 16 more flights are planned over antarctica as nasa looks to do the most extensive study of ice there ever. other flights will study ice at north pole. the flights are designed to gather information that satellites can't. including how much water is under that ice. nasa says the six-year project could help forecast how changes in the ice sheet could contribute to changes in sea levels. this is and has been determined that this is a hoax. >> it captured the attention of

millions of slewe viewers. now the balloon boy saga has captured the attention of the authorities. and they're interested in filing charges.

this is, it has been determined, that this is a hoax. that it was a publicity stunt. >> the jig is up for the heene family. it's the unbelievable story that started with that dramatic balloon chase followed by a frantic search for a little boy and ending, as authorities say, they found the truth. breaking news from larimer county, colorado, where the sheriff is preparing criminal charges against the family in the balloon boy incident. the sheriff says his office is likely to recommend felony counts including conspiracy and

contributing to the delinquency of a minor. he outlined for the media how the story started to unravel. >> the morning this occurred, it was obviously chaotic. we responded as a number of other rescue personnel responded to what we believed was a life threatening event with a 6-year-old boy's life in jeopardy. we responded in a rescue mode. after the balloon landed and it was determined the boy was not in there and determined that he was not in the house, we went into a body recovery mode. so clearly emotions were running high. at that time, and i've made a big point of saying, talking about the emotional condition of the family, their body language, their nonverbal communications, everything that we experienced with the family to that point was very consistent and believable, although certainly a number of people, including the

media, including the viewers, were skeptical about this thing. we remained somewhat skeptical, but as i have constantly said, we have to operate on facts and what we can prove as being facts. the fact that the information we had, it was plausible to believe that this event occurred. >> he says additional interviews with richard heene and other members of the family convinced investigators this entire episode was a sham. he says of the heenes, they're actors. and they put on a good show. the larimer county district attorney will make the final determination if the heenes should be prosecuted for reporting their 6-year-old son was trapped inside that runaway balloon. deputies searched the home of the boy's parents last night and left with several boxes and a computer. investigators also questioned the boys' parents. a justice of the peace who refused to marry an interracial couple says he's got nothing to apologize for. the elected official in

louisiana spread criticism. he says he does not marry interracial couples because he's worried about their children's future. and says he does not regret his recent decision. >> it's kind of hard to apologize for something that really, truly down in your heart you don't feel like you've done wrong. >> the couple found another justice of the peace to marry them. bardwell has served as justice of the peace for 34 years. his term ends in five years. louisiana governor bobbie jindal says he should be removed from office or resign now. a third person has died after taking part in a sweat lodge ceremony in arizona. liz neuman died yesterday. ten days ago she was among more than 50 people inside a sweat lodge during a retreat run by self-help guru james arthur ray. authorities are treating the deaths as homicides. they have not filed charges yet.

ray says he's hired his own team to investigate what went wrong. his spokesman says ray's team is cooperating with police. two weeks after the fact, investigators are still not sure about the sequence of events that ended with the death of a florida teenager. police say officer gerald ard was in his police cruiser chaising 17-year-old vikt tor t steen who was on a bicycle. ard fired a stun gun from his car to try to stop ste,n. he missed but accidentally ran over the boy with his cruiser. the death has prompted community protests. >> the officer used poor judgment and shoot a taser gun. >> it has just saddened the entire community. >> my prayers are that the truth will come out. >> officer ard is now on paid leave while the investigation

continues. hurricane rick is now a strong category 5 pacific storm. the national hurricane center reports the storm's maximum winds at 175 miles an hour. although they were up to 180 miles per hour earlier. forecasters expect rick to lose some steam and turn toward baja, california, and mainland mexico later this week. right now rick is the second strongest hurricane in the eastern north pacific in more than a decade. hurricane linda's top winds hit 185 miles an hour in 1997. a suicide bomber killed at least 29 people in iran today, including five senior commanders of the country's revolutionary guard. the deputy head of the revolutionary guard's ground forces was one of them. state run media says a man wearing an explosive belt blew himself up during a conference between shiia and sunni groups in southeastern iran. although no one has claimed responsibility, tehran is

accusing the minority sunni group jindala of carrying out that attack. fighting between rival drug gangs turned into a gunfight that lasted for hours in rio de janeiro yesterday. by the time it ended at least a dozen people were dead including two police officers. the police who died were on board this helicopter that caught fire when it was hit by gunfire. it crashed on to a soccer field. rio was elected as the host city for the 2016 summer olympics. parents of the so-called balloon boy could be going to jail. what charges they're likely to face and why so many questioned their story from the beginning. also ahead, defense secretary robert gates is headed overseas to seek support for the mission in afghanistan. who he's visiting and why the meetings are so pivotal.

breaking news out of ft. collins, colorado, where the larimer county sheriff just announced moments ago that the balloon boy saga was a hoax. the sheriff says he'll likely charge the heenes with making a false report, child endangerment and possibly even federal charges. now, he says evidence shows they staged the situation that had millions believing their 6-year-old son, falcon, had floated away on a balloon the family made in their yard. the sheriff says during the investigation he learned the heenes met in acting school. he says their acting skills made their stories seem more credible. >> this is, it has been determined, that this is a hoax. that it was a publicity stunt. we believe that we have evidence at this point to indicate that it was a publicity stunt done with the hopes of marketing themselves or better marketing themselves for a reality television show at some point in

the future. >> police, the military and the faa were all involved in trying to capture that balloon when they thought there might be a child inside. now, many of you thought this was a hoax even as the balloon was still in the air. that's when we began to learn that the family had been on "wife swap" and was trying to get the networks to buy a reality show about them. psychologist susan kaiser told hln just yesterday the odd circumstance and inconsistencies in the heenes behavior helped fuel those rumors. people became really skeptical when cnn's wolf blitzer asked falcon why he hid during the search and he answered, "we did this for a show." defense secretary robert gates will spend the next week trying to convince u.s. allies they need to stay the course in afghanistan. gates will visit japan and korea and then meet with nato defense ministers in slovakia. japan is planning to roll back its support for afghanistan combat operations in january. south korea currently provides

noncombat support in afghanistan. the nato meeting may be pivotal. gates is expected to ask the alliance to maintain its commitment to the mission while the u.s. decides whether to increase troop strength in afghanistan. president obama won't decide whether to change the number of troops in afghanistan until he knows there's a stable government in that country. at least that's word from white house chief of staff rahm emanuel. he's telling cnn's "state of the union" it would be reckless to decide about force levels right now especially since no one knows the outcome of afghanistan's disputeded presidential election. >> there are basically two roads there, two protheses and one is a run-off election between the two top candidates or a negotiation between those candidates, but the end result must be a legitimate and credible government to the afghan people. >> senator john kerry is making the same point. the chairman of the foreign

relations committee is in kabul. he says it would be irresponsible to dmit mocommit troops to the country without knowing who will be running the government. a war hero died in an ambush in afghanistan earlier this month along with seven other soldiers. we talked to friends and family of the 21-year-old about the kind of man he was. >> reporter: relatives and friends walk through and honor to pay their respects to a soldier. >> anybody that goes over there is a hero. >> the dad of a childhood friend put back on the uniform he thought he never word to talk about specialist stephan mace. >> he had a tough challenge ahead of him. there's no question, if he said it once, he said it a thousand

times. that he wanted to go back. he wanted to be with his friends. he wanted to be with his brothers. he did exactly what he was trained to do. i don't think he'd change it even know. >> reporter: his former football coach said everyone wanted stephan on their team. >> he wasn't the biggest kid i ever coached, the fastest, the strongest. but he was no question one of the toughest. he took defeat as well as he took victory. and he never one time backed up. >> reporter: if he could change two things, stephan's friend, adrian bower who took him hunting in africa before he went into the military, said he would have enlisted with him and would have wanted stephan speaking at his funeral rather than the other way around. >> that was audry barns of hln affiliate wusa reporting. and that october 3rd attack that killed mace and seven other soldiers was the deadliest single battle for u.s. forces in afghanistan in more than a year. the military says more than 100

taliban fighters and two afghan soldiers were also killed that day. more than 3,000 u.s. troops scheduled to go to iraq are staying home. a unit based in new york was supposed to relieve another combat brigade unit this january. one lingering challenge is to get iraq's political factions to compromise. >> reconciliation is a tough business. i've been in some of these meetings with people. you know, they don't like each other. you have to get them to work together. get them to understand their futures there together. and then you get a bombing which makes it even tougher. again, i think iraqi people have signaled they're sick and tired of this stuff. >> yesterday at least nine people were killed, four iraqi soldiers died, in an assault against a convoy just outside

falluja. and in ramadi a suicide bomber blew up a key highway bridge. u.s. military used that bridge to transport equipment out of iraq. the balloon boy hoax. what it could cost falcon heene's family and what it did cost emergency service agencies. plus, california lost more than 80 firefighters in the line of duty within the past year. people from across the state paused to remember their sacrifice. how governor around schwarzenegger paid tribute to them.

breaking news from larimer county, colorado, where the

sheriff is preparing criminal charges against family involved in the balloon boy hoax. investigators have determined richard heene staged a publicity stunt when he reported his 6-year-old son falcon was trapped in that runaway balloon. the sheriff says he'll recommend conspiracy and other felony charges. then there's the matter of how much the escapade cost. no one knows the exact total yet. sheriff alderden says he hasn't seen any cost estimates for the resources his office committed, including the more than four hours deputies spent looking for falcon heene before finding him at the family's home where he'd allegedly been u hiding from everyone. the runaway balloon was in the air for about two hours. local law enforcement, rescue agencies and federal safety regulators were involved in keeping track of it. the colorado national guard even launched two helicopters to try and rescue the boy. that alone cost more than $14,000. officials at denver's airport also diverted flights for about 15 minutes because the balloon

could have drifted into air traffic. ♪ bagpipes and a color guard as california takes time to remember some of its fallen heroes. the names of 82 firefighters who died in the line of duty were added to a memorial wall in sacramento. they include two firefighters who died battling the massive station wildfire. and yesterday governor arnold schwarzenegger thanked all of the state's firefighters for their service. >> california's firefighters know their risks and they know what they must sacrifice. still, they not only jump into action, they do it with complete commitment and a great passion. it is not just work for them, it is their calling. california's firefighters are the bravest of the brave. they've proven themselves over and over that they're the most

skilled, the toughest, the most selfless and best trained firefighters in the world. >> the families of the firefighters who were honored were presented with flags and in all there are 1,100 names inscribed on that firefighter memorial. reverend al sharpton says he's going to sue rush limbaugh if the conservative radio host doesn't apologize to him. limbaugh says sharpton played a role in two new york race riots. he made that claim in a "wall street journal" op-ed piece. sharpton was not involved in the incidents limbaugh referenced. limbaugh also blames sharpton for derailing his bid to co-own the st. louis rams. sharpton says both allegations are false. i'm reynolds wolf. this is a look at your forecast. we're keeping a very sharp eye on the biggest storm on the planet. that storm is this one, hurricane rick, now moving away way from acapulco and is expected to actually weaken possibly over the next couple of hours. right now it's as strong as it can get. winds of 180, gusting at 220. one of the strongest storms in the history of this part of the

world. the last storm that strong was actually back in 1997. so it has been a while. meanwhile we're also watching another system making its way just a long parts of the eastern sea board. this nor'easter is providing not only heavy rainfall but also a touch of snow for parts of pennsylvania and into new york state. as that moves out, high pressure builds in to parts of the central plains, a flow of much cooler, drier air into the ohio valley and southeast. out west just the opposite. warm and dry for the four corners. showers for you in the pacific northwest. in terms of high temperatures, 53 degrees in chicago for the high today. 57 in atlanta. 69 in tampa. 72 in houston. 97 in phoenix, 94 las vegas. 60s for both san francisco and seattle. and billings 70 degrees for your expected high. that's a look at your forecast. i'm reynolds wolf for hln. the colorado couple that called 911 to report their child had soared away in their

makeshift balloon could be soaring away way to jail. what charges they're likely to face now that authorities have determined it was all a hoax. also ahead, satellites have given us a bird's eye view of possible signs of global warning. nasa wants that bird to fly a little lower to see what's going on in antarctica. why it says the data it's gathering is crucial.

this is, it has been determined, that this is a hoax. that it was a publicity stunt. >> the jig is up for the heene family. it's the unbelievable story that started with that dramatic balloon chase followed by a frantic search for a little boy and ending, as authorities say, they found the truth. breaking news from larimer county, colorado, where the sheriff is preparing criminal charges against the family in the balloon boy incident. alderden says his office is likely to recommend felony counts, including conspiracy and contributing to the delinquency

of a minor. he outlined for the media how the story started to unravel. >> the morning this occurred, it was obviously chaotic. we responded as a number of other rescue personnel responded to what we believed was a life threatening event with a 6-year-old boy's life in jeopardy. we responded in a rescue mode. after the balloon landed and it was determined the boy was not in there and determined that he was not in the house, we went into a body recovery mode. so clearly emotions were running high. at that time, and i've made a big point out of saying, talking about the emotional condition of the family, their body language, their nonverbal communications, everything that we experienced with the family to that point was very consistent and believable, although certainly a number of people, including the media, including the viewers,

were skeptical about this thing. we remained somewhat skeptical, but as i have constantly said, we have to operate on facts and what we can prove as being facts. the fact that the information we had, it was plausible to believe that this event occurred. >> he says additional interviews with richard heene and other members of the family convinced investigators this entire episode was a sham. he says of the heenes, they're actors. and they put on a good show. the larimer county district attorney will make the final determination if the heenes should be prosecuted for reporting their 6-year-old son was trapped inside that runaway balloon. deputies searched the home of the boy's parents last night and left with several boxes and a computer. investigators also questioned the boy's parents about whether they knew their 6-year-old was hiding despite calling 911 to report he had floated away in the balloon they built in their

chard. t yard. he says he'll likely charge them with making a false report, child endangerment and possibly federal charges. alderden says during the investigate he learned the heenes met in acting school and their acting skills made their story seem so much more credible. a justice of the peace who refused to marry an interracial couple says he's got nothing to apologize for. the elected official in south louisiana spread criticism. keith bardwell says he doesn't marry interrational couples because he's worried about their children's future. and says he does not regret his recent decision. >> it's kind of hard to apologize for something that really, truly down in your heart you don't feel like you've done wrong. >> the couple found another justice of the peace to marry them. bardwell has served as justice of the peace for 34 years. his term ends in five years. louisiana governor bobbie jindal and senator marry lan drew say he should resign or be removed from office now.

bardwell says he had decided earlier he wasn't going to run again. a third person has died after taking part in a sweat lodge ceremony in arizona. liz neuman died yesterday. ten days ago she was among more than 50 people inside a sweat lodge during a retreat run by self-help guru james arthur ray. authorities are treating the deaths as homicides. they have not filed charges yet. ray says he's hired his own team to investigate what went wrong. his spokesman says ray's team is cooperating with police. two weeks after the fact, investigators are still not sure about the sequence of events that ended with the death of a florida teenager. police say officer gerald ard was in his police cruiser chasing 17-year-old victor steen who was on a bicycle. ard wanted to question steen because he was acting suspiciously around a construction site. they say he fired a stun gun from his car to try to stop the boy. he missed, but he accidentally ran over the boy with his

cruiser. the death has prompted community protests. gl tri . >> troubled by the fact the officer would use poor judgment and shoot a taser gun that ended up causing the untimely death. >> it has just saddened the entire community. >> my prayers are that the truth will come out. >> officer ard is now on paid leave while the investigation continues. hurricane rick is now a strong category 5 pacific storm. the national hurricane center reports the storm's maximum winds at 175 miles an hour. although they were up to 180 miles per hour earlier. forecasters expect rick to lose some steam and turn toward baja, california, and mainland mexico later this week. right now rick is the second strongest hurricane in the eastern north pacific in more than a decade. hurricane linda's top winds hit 185 miles an hour in 1997.

a suicide bomber killed at least 29 people in iran today, including five senior commanders of the country's revolutionary guard. the deputy head of the revolutionary guard's ground forces was one of them. state run media says a man wearing an explosive belt blew himself up during a conference between shiia and sunni groups in southeastern iran. although no one has claimed responsibility, tehran is accusing the minority sunni group jindala of carrying out that attack. fighting between rival drug gangs turned into a gunfight that lasted for hours in rio de janeiro yesterday. by the time it ended at least a dozen people were dead including two police officers. the police who died were on board this helicopter that caught fire when it was hit by gunfire. the chopper eventually crashed on to a soccer field. rio was recently selected as the host city for the 2016 summer olympics. parents of the so-called balloon boy could be going to jail.

what charges they're likely to face and why so many questioned their story from the beginning. also ahead, defense secretary robert gates is headed overseas to seek support for the mission in afghanistan. who he's visiting and why the meetings are so pivotal.

breaking news out of ft. collins, colorado, where the larimer county sheriff just announced moments ago that the balloon boy saga was a hoax. sheriff jim alderden says he'll likely charge the heenes with making a false report, child

endangerment and possibly even federal charges. now, he says evidence shows they staged the situation that had millions believing their 6-year-old son, falcon, had floated away on a balloon the family made in their yard. alderden says during the investigation he learned the heenes met in acting school. he says their acting skills made their story seem more credible. >> this is, it has been determined, that this is a hoax. that it was a publicity stunt. we believe that we have evidence at this point to indicate that it was a publicity stunt done with the hopes of marketing themselves or better marketing themselves for a reality television show at some point in the future. >> police, the military and the faa were all involved in trying to capture that balloon when they thought there might be a child inside. now, many of you thought this was a hoax even as the balloon was still in the air. that's when we began to learn that the family had been on "wife swap" and was trying to get the networks to buy a

reality show about them. psychologist susan kaiser told hln just yesterday the odd circumstance and inconsistencies in the heenes behavior helped fuel those rumors. people became really skeptical when cnn's wolf blitzer asked falcon why he hid during the search and he answered, "we did this for a show." defense secretary robert gates will spend the next week trying to convince u.s. allies they need to stay the course in afghanistan. gates will visit japan and korea and then meet with nato defense ministers in slovakia. japan is planning to roll back its support for afghanistan combat operations in january. south korea currently provides noncombat support in afghanistan. the nato meeting may be pivotal. gates is expected to ask the alliance to maintain its commitment to the mission while the u.s. decides whether to increase troop strength in afghanistan. president obama won't decide

whether to change the number of troops in afghanistan until he knows there's a stable government in that country. at least that's word from white house chief of staff rahm emanuel. he's telling cnn's "state of the union" it would be reckless to decide about force levels right now, especially since no one knows the outcome of afghanistan's disputed presidential election. >> there's basically two roads there or two basically processes. one is another run-off election between the two top candidates or a negotiation between those candidates. but the end result must be be a legitimate and credible government to the afghan people. >> senator john kerry is making the same point. the chairman of the foreign relations committee is in kabul. he says it would be irresponsible to commit more troops to the country without knowing who will be running the government. more than 3,000 u.s. troops scheduled to go to iraq are staying home. a unit based in ft. drum, new

york, was supposed to relieve another combat brigade unit this coming january. military officials say iraqi security forces will be able to handle that patrol. one lingering challenge is to get iraq's political factions to compromise. >> reconciliation is a tough business. i've been in some of these meetings with people. they don't like each other. you have to work -- get them to work together. get them to understand their futures are together. then you get a bombing, which makes it even tougher. again, i think the iraqi people have really signaled that they are really sick and tired of this stuff. >> yesterday iraq security forces with the targets of militant attacks. at least nine people were killed. four iraqi soldiers died in an assault against a convoy just outside falluja. and in ramadi a suicide bomber blew up a key highway bridge. the u.s. military used that bridge to transport equipment out of iraq. the balloon boy hoax. what it could cost falcon

heene's family and what it did cost emergency service agencies. plus, california lost more than 80 firefighters in the line of duty within the past year. people from across the state paused to remember their sacrifice. how governor arnold schwarzenegger paid prtribute t them.

breaking news from larimer county, colorado, where the sheriff is preparing criminal charges against the family involved in the so-called balloon boy hoax. investigators have determined richard heene staged a publicity stunt when he reported his 6-year-old son falcon was trapped in that runaway balloon. the sheriff says he'll recommend conspiracy and other felony charges. then there's the matter of how much the escapade cost. no one knows the exact total yet. sheriff alderden says he hasn't seen any cost estimates for the resources his office committed, including the more than four

hours deputies spent looking for falcon heene before finding him at the family's home where he'd allegedly been hiding from everyone. the runaway balloon was in the air for about two hours. local law enforcement, rescue agencies and federal safety regulators were involved in keeping track of it. the colorado national guard even launched two helicopters to try and rescue the boy. that alone cost more than $14,000. officials at denver's airport also diverted flights for about 15 minutes because the balloon could have drifted into air traffic. the university of connecticut is mourning the death of one of their star football players. 20-year-old jasper howard was killed in an on-campus stabbing just hours after last night's winning game. this is his profile on the u con website. howard was apparently stabbed during a fight after the team's victory over louisville. the police are now still looking for the perpetrator.

howard was a junior and starting cornerback from miami. he led the big east in punt returns last season. university president michael hogan calls this stabbing a tragedy for the entire university community. ♪ bagpipes and a color guard as california takes time to remember some of its fallen heroes. the names of 82 firefighters who died in the line of duty were added to a memorial wall in sacramento. they include two firefighters who died battling the massive station wildfire. and yesterday governor arnold schwarzenegger thanked all of the state's firefighters for their service. >> california's firefighters know their risks and they know what they must sacrifice. still, they not only jump into action, they do it with complete commitment and a great passion. it is not just work for them, it is their calling. california's firefighters are the bravest of the brave.

they've proven themselves over and over that they're the most skilled, the toughest, the most selfless and best trained firefighters in the world. >> the families of the firefighters who were honored were presented with flags and in all there are 1,100 names inscribed on that firefighter memorial. reverend al sharpton says he'll sue rush limbaugh if the conservative radio host does not apologize to him. limbaugh says sharpton played a role in two new york race riots. he made that claim in a "wall street journal" op-ed piece. sharpton was not involved in the incidents limbaugh referenced. limbaugh also blames sharpton for derailing his bid to co-own the st. louis rams. sharpton says both allegations are false. and that limbaugh is out of bounds accusing him of criminal activity. limbaugh has not commented on that threatened lawsuit. don't plan on any last-minute travel deals for thanksgiving.

traveli experts say unlike last year when airlines slashed fares, this year ticket prices are already on the rise. not only are you going to pay more for a ticket, but many airlines are also hitting you with a $10 peak travel charge. homeowners who are having financial difficulty need to act quickly and wisely, that's the advice of hln money expert clark howard who says you might be able to save your home and your credit. >> i get a lot of questions from people wanting to know if they negotiate a deal with their mortgage lender, how is that going to affect their credit scoring, credit standing? the three major bureaus put out a report that says that if you just negotiate a new payment plan with your lender, that the effect on your credit score is actually very small, almost meaningless. but what if you say i give up and you negotiate a short sale?

the effect on your credit score? getting up there. you lose over 100 points. let's say instead you just say i give up, here are the keys and you allow yourself to be foreclosed on. the effect is actually just a little worse than doing a short sale. but if you really want to blow up your credit, you file for bankruptcy. because then what it will do is drop your credit score -- you're not going to believe this -- but over 300 points. better to stay and try to work something out. i'm clark howard. for more ways for you to be smart with your wallet, go to cnn.com/clarkhoward. >> for a lot more ways to save more, spend less and avoid getting ripped off, stay with us for "the clark howard show" which is at 4:00 p.m. eastern right here on hln. the colorado couple that called 911 to report their chile had sailed away in a balloon,

could be facing jail. now authorities have determined it was all a hoax. satellites have given us a bird's eye view of possible signs of global warming. nasa wants that bird to fly a little lower.

it has been determined that this is a hoax, that it was a publicity stunt. >> the jig is up for the heene family. it's the unbelievable story that started with that dramatic balloon chase followed by a frantic search for a little boy and ending, as authorities say they found the truth. breaking news from larimer county, colorado, where sheriff jim alderdon is preparing charges against the family in the balloon boy incident. his office is likely to recommend felony counts including conspiracy and

contributing to the delinquency of a minor. he outlined for the media how this story started to unravel. >> the morning this occurred, it was obviously chaotic. we responded, as a number of other rescue personnel responded, to what we believed was a life-threatening event with a 6-year-old boy's life in jeopardy. we responded in a rescue mode. after the balloon landed and it was determined the boy was not in there and determined that he was not in the house, we went into a body recovery mode. so clearly emotions were running high. at that time -- and i've made a big point out of saying -- talking about the emotional condition of the family, their body language, their nonverbal communications -- everything that we experienced with the family to that point was very consistent and believable, although certainly a number of people including the media,

including the viewers were skeptical about this thing. we remained somewhat skeptical, but as i've constantly said, we have to operate on facts and what we can prove as being facts. the fact that the information that we had, it was plausible, to believe that this event occurred. >> now, alderdon says additional interviews with richard heene and other members of the family convinced investigators this entire episode was a sham. he says of the heenes, they're actors and they put on a good show. the larimer county district attorney will make the final determination if the heenes should be prosecuted for reporting their 6-year-old son was trapped inside that runaway balloon. deputies searched the home of the parents last night and left with several boxes and a computer. investigators also questioned richard and miyaumi heene about their son. sheriff alderdon says he'll

likely charge richard and miyumi heene with making a false report, child endangerment and possibly even federal charges. alderdon says during that investigation he learned that they met in acting school and their acting skills made their story seem so much more credible. a justice of the peace who refused to marry an interracial couple says he's got nothing to apologize for. the elected official's actions spread criticism. he's worried about their children's future and says he does not regret his recent decision. >> it's kind of hard to apologize for something that really, truly down in your heart that you don't feel like you've done wrong soncht the couple found another justice of the peace to marry them. bardwell has served as justice of the peace for 34 years. his term ends in five years but louisiana governor jobby jindal and senator mary landrieu say he should resign or be removed from

office now. he decided earlier he wasn't going to run again. a third person has died after taking part in a sweat lodge ceremony in arizona. liz neuman died yesterday. she was among more than 50 people inside a sweat lodge during a retreat run by self-help guru james arthur ray. authorities are treating the deaths as homicides, but they've not filed charges yet. ray says he's hired his own team to investigate what went wrong. his spokesman says ray's team is cooperating with police. two weeks after the fact, investigators are still not sure about the sequence of events that ended with the death of a florida teenager. police say officer gerald ard was in his police cruiser chasing 17-year-old victor steen who was on a bicycle. ard wanted to question steen because he was acting suspiciously around a construction site. he fired a stun gun, he missed but accidentally ran over steen with his cruiser.

the death has prompted community protests. >> talk about the fact that an officer used poor judgment and shoot a taser gun if a moving vehicle to subdue a suspect that ended up causing the untimely death. >> it is just saddened in entire community. my prayers are that the truth will come out. >> officer ard is now on paid leave while the investigation continues. hurricane rick is now a strong category 5 pacific storm. the national hurricane center reports the storm's maximum winds at 175 miles an hour. although they were up to 180 miles per hour earlier. forecasters expect rick to lose some steam and turn toward baja, california, and mainland mexico later this week. right now rick is the second strongest hurricane in the eastern north pacific in more than a decade. hurricane linda's top winds hit 185 miles an hour in 1997.

so whether you call it hotlanta or the atl, atlanta is one of the hottest cities in the south. and atlanta native takes us on a tour of some of the city's coolest places in today's "my city, my secret." >> a lot of think that the only way that breast cancer can present is with a lump that they or their doctor would feel on physical exam. that's just not true. there are many other ways that a breast cancer lump can show up. look for changes in your breast, changes in your skin, such as a dimpling or puckering of the skin. something pulling the skin back in toward the inside of the breast or a rash or something that looks like an infection or inflammation on the skin that doesn't go away after antibiotic treatment. changes in the nipple. there are different signs and symptoms that you can see of breast cancer or we can feel on physical exam. but the most important thing is to try to find these breast cancers when they're early, when they're smaller, when they're

most treatable. >> my city, my secret, destination information is sponsored by british airways. rely on my city, my secret, to find hot spots and hidden gems.

breaking news out of ft. collins, colorado, where the larimer county sheriff's announced that the balloon boy saga was a hoax. the sheriff has released new pictures that show the compartment where it was believed that the young boy could have been inside. alderdon says he'll likely charge richard and miyumi heene with filing a false report and child endangerment charges. they staged the situation that had millions believing their 6-year-old son falcon had floated away on a balloon the family made in their yard. alderdon says during the investigation he learned the heenes met in acting school, and their acting skills made their story seem more credible. >> it wasn't until the larry

king show where the family was interviewed by wolf blitzer that we had the first a-ha moment, if you would. you all know what i'm talking about, when he was asked, why didn't you come down. and he said, i believe, media said, we did it for the show. if you look at the nonverbal responses as well as some of the verbal cues, not only from him but from the family, from the children, their reaction, it became very clear to us at that point that they were lying. you know, you picked up on it, we picked up on it. >> police, the military and the faa were all involved in trying to capture that balloon when they thought the child was inside. and many of you thought this was a hoax, even as the balloon was still in the air. and that's when we began to learn that the family had been on "wife swap" and was trying to get the networks to buy a reality show about them. psychologist susan kaiser told

hln just yesterday, the odd circumstance and inconsistencies in the heenes' behavior helped fuel those rumors. people really became skeptical when cnn's wolf blitzer asked falcon why he hid during the search and he answered, we did this for a show. the university of connecticut is mourning the death of one of their star football players. 20-year-old jasper howard was killed in an on-campus stabbing just hours after last night's winning game. this is his profile on the uconn website. he was apparently stabbed in a fight after the team's victory over louisville. and police are still looking for the perpetrator. he was a junior and starting cornerback from miami. he led the big east in punt returns last season. university president michael hogan calls this stabbing a tragedy for the entire university community. defense secretary robert gates will spend the next week trying to convince u.s. allies they need to stay the course in afghanistan. gates will visit japan and

korea, then meet with nato defense ministers in slovakia. japan is planning to roll back its support for afghanistan combat operations in january. south korea currently provides noncombat support in afghanistan. the nato meeting may be pivotal. gates is expected to ask the alliance to maintain its commitment to the mission while the u.s. decides whether to increase troop strength in afghanistan. when you think of the u.s. military, the colors that come to mind are red, white and blue, but the military's also thinking of another color -- green. cnn pentagon correspondent barbara starr looks at how thinking green is saving lots of taxpayer green in today's eco solutions. >> reporter: from u.s. military operations in iraq and afghanistan, to jets streaking across the sky, to armored vehicles, the word is out, the

u.s. military is going green, trying to reduce its carbon bootprint where it can and save as much energy as possible. here's just one example. the navy warship is on an energy diet. the navy's trying to cut its entire energy consumption by 1.7 million btus, the equivalent of 13 million gallons of gasoline a year. on board this ship, it all begins down in the engine room. >> it's really important to save as much fuel as we can because the more fuel you burn, the more money it costs the government. >> reporter: here all the equipment is checked constantly for leaks and malfunks so it stays in top operating shape. the commanding officer, john funk, says that's the kind of conservation thinking that extends to all parts of daily ship life. in the scullery, there are new dishwashers to deal with the 10,000 meals served each day on board. >> the most important thing for this massive dishwashing machine

is it uses a lot of water, it uses a lot of energy, but we really fine tune it to make sure that we get its peak efficiency. >> speaking of water conservation, on board the "bon hom richard" many take what's known as a navy shower. >> you get wet, you turn the water off, you use your soap, you use the shampoo, you turn the water back on, you rinse off. >> reporter: for this ship, every bit of energy saved adds up. >> over the last year "bonhomme richard" saved over 30,000 barrel of oil for a cost savings of just over $3.6 million. >> reporter: nowadays every molecule of steam saved on board this ship is all important because when it gets to a war zone, it can then go longer and further in the fight. barbara starr, cnn, san diego. for more on the green military and other important

environmental news, just go to our website, cnn.com/ecosolutions.

breaking news from larimer county, colorado, where the sheriff is preparing criminal charges against the family of the balloon boy hoax. investigators have determined that richard heene staged a publicity stunt when he reported that his 6-year-old son falcon was trapped in that runaway balloon. the sheriff says he'll recommend conspiracy and other felony charge. then there's the matter of how much the escapade cost. no one knows the exact total yet. sheriff alderdon hasn't seen any cost estimates for the costs his department committed including the hours they spent looking for falcon heene before finding him at the family's home where he'd been allegedly hiding from

everyone. the runaway balloon was in the air for two hour. local law enforcement, federal safety regulators were involved in keeping track of it. the colorado national guard even launched two helicopters to try and rescue the boy. that alone cost more than $14,000. officials at denver's airport also diverted flights for about 15 minutes because the balloon could have drifted into air traffic. ♪ bagpipes and a color guard as california takes time to remember some of its fallen heroes. the names of 82 firefighters who died in the line of duty were added to a memorial wall in sacramento. they include two firefighters who died battling the massive station wildfire. and yesterday governor arnold schwarzenegger thanked all of the state's firefighters for their service. >> california's firefighters know the risks and they know what they must sacrifice.

still, they not only jump into action, they do it with complete commitment and a great passion. it is not just work for them, it is their calling. california's firefighters are the bravest of the brave. they have proven time over and over that they are the most skilled, the toughest and the most selfless and the best trained firefighters in the world. >> the families of the firefighters who were honored were presented with flags, and in all, there are 1100 names inscribed on that firefighter memorial. reverend al sharpton says he'll sue rush limbaugh if the conservative radio host does not apologize to him. limbaugh says sharpton played a role in two new york race riots. he made the claim in a "wall street journal" op-ed piece. but sharpton was not involved in the incidents limbaugh referenced. limbaugh also blames sharpton for derailing his bid to co-own the st. louis rams.

sharpton says both allegations are false and that limbaugh is out of bounds accusing him of criminal activity. limbaugh has not commented on the threatened lawsuit. homeowners who are having financial difficulty need to act quickly and wisely. and that's the advice of hln money expert clark howard who says you might be able to save your home and your credit. >> i get a lot of questions from people wanting to know if they negotiate a deal with their mortgage lender, how is that going to affect their credit score and credit standing? well, the three major credit bureaus put out a report that says that if you just negotiate a new payment plan with your lender, that the effect on your credit score is actually very small, almost meaningless. but what if you say, i give up, and you negotiate a short sale? the effect on your credit score, getting up there. you lose over 100 points.

let's say instead you just say i give up, here are the keys and you allow yourself to be foreclosed on, the effect is actually just a little worse than doing a short sale. but if you really want to blow up your credit, you file for bankruptcy because then what it will do is drop your credit score -- you're not going to believe this -- but over 300 points. it's better to stay and try to work something out. i'm clark howard. for more ways for you to be smart with your wallet, go to cnn.com slash clarkhoward. and for a lot more ways to save more, spend less and avoid getting ripped off, stay with us for the "clark howard show" which is at 4:00 p.m. eastern right here on hln. the colorado couple that called 911 to report their child had soared away in their makeshift balloon could be soaring away to jail. what charges they're likely to face now that authorities have determined it was all a hoax. also ahead, satellites have

given us a bird's eye view of possible signs of global warming. nasa wants that bird to fly a little lower. 

hello. i'm gerri willis and this is "your bottom line," the show that saves you money. today we'll introduce you to one family that wiped out $123,000 of debt in just 4 1/2 years, and we'll tell you how they did it. major changes coming to your health care in 2010. a step-by-step guide to open enrollment season. and money etiquette. from hostest gifts to birthday dinners, how to handle those sticky social situations. "your bottom line" starts right now. a major move in the senate this week on the future of your health care. let's get the latest on where this reform stands and what it means to your bottom line from

white house correspondent suzanne mafl voe. that senate finance committee, as you know, passed the plan on tuesday. what does this mean for us? >> this really means an overhaul of the health care system from top to bottom. the cost would be about $829 billion over 10 years. it would provide health insurance for an additional 29 million americans. it would make health insurance mandatory for most americans but provide subsidies for low income folks to buy that coverage. it would also force the insurance companies to accept all applicants regardless of a pre-existing condition. the big difference here between the finance committee's plan and the health committee's plan, which was passed over the summer, is whether to allow the government to sell health insurance in direct competition with private companies that sell health insurance. whether to include this so-called public option. the health committee bill says, yes. the finance committee bill says no. >> so you say public option not a part of this bill.

but that's what president obama has been pushing. what are they saying about that? are they willing to endorse this or not? >> right now, the finance committee bill is offering this compromise, this idea that publicly owned privately run co-ops could compete with private insurance plans. that is an idea the administration also supports. the white house also believes in an idea that's pitched by the lone republican senator who voted for the finance committee bill, olympia snowe, she suggested the public option could kick in later if health insurance companies fail to reform. so here's how the president is putting it. >> we are now closer than ever before to passing health care reform. but we're not there yet. now's not the time to pat ourselves on the back. now's not the time to offer ourselves congratulations. now is the time to dig in and work even harder to get this done. >> what is next? the goal is to merge these two bills in a single one that

can at least win 60 votes in the senate. the president's negotiating team, they're taking a much more aggressive position in getting a compromise pushed through this time. among those who met behind closed doors on the hill on wednesday were harry reid, senators max baucus, chris dodd and the white house team involved here chief of staff rahm emanuel, the o & b director, all of them will be working hard, trying to hammer out a compromise on monday. they say this could take at least a couple of weeks. >> suzanne, thank you for that. we know you'll be following it. appreciate your time. >> sure. from what your health care could look like to what it is right now. according to career builder, one in four workers say they don't pay attention to benefit changes when it comes to open enrollment. with employers trying to cut costs, many are changing and even dropping many of the health benefits they once offered.

what should you look out for and how do you decide which plan is best for you? andrew rubin is from the rangone center. great to see you, andrew. co-pays are going up, premium, deductibles, everything going up by 10%. now i hear if you don't participate in open enrollment some employers are going to cut your insurance. what is that all about? >> listen, health care costs going up and up, the economy is really tough, corporations are looking to keep their benefits for their employees, but one of the ways to save money is shift the cost from themselves over on to the employees. that's what you're seeing a lot with the plans. >> ouch. >> it hurts. >> and they are telling some people, at least 10% of companies are saying, if you don't get in the plan, if you don't make a decision, if you are just relying on us to figure out what you had last year and put you in the plan this year, forget about it. >> there could be a lot of reasons for that. one in particular some of the plans have changed.

so it's not going from the same plan from year-to-year anymore to save money they've picked new plans so they want to make sure the employee picks the right plan so they're not on the hook for picking the wrong plan for you. >> define hmo and ppo. what are they and what are the differences? >> that's so funny because they've been around so long but so many people don't understand it. hmo is a plan that's tightly managed health care where you have to pick a primary care physician who manages your health care. so before you can go see any specialist and you certainly can't go out of network in an hmo, the primary care physician directs where you get the care a ppo gives you a little bit more flexibility, you can go out of your health care network, you don't need a primary caregiver to tell you if you are allowed to go to a specialist. so you get a little more freedom. >> you can move around a little more. >> you can move around a little more. still restrictive. the financial incentives are designed in a ppo to keep you in network. >> want to talk about one of the big changes this time around. we're used to co-pays in hmos. 15 bucks, 20 bucks to see your primary care physician. easy peasy if you have a problem. but that's changing.

now they're introducing language called co-insurance. >> co-insurance has always existed. co-pays are going away in some plans and they're applying co-insurance amounts. it's very simple to understand. 10%, 20% of whatever the bill is the individual will pay as opposed to $10, $20 copays that used to apply. you're starting to see that more. it's not universal but introduced in a lot more places. >> more out of my pocket, that's what i say. talk about the high deductible plans because 75% of employers offer these. i'm not sure it's a great deal for most people. >> i always tell people -- i get this question a lot. i'm not a big fan of high deductible plans for people who are working and have other insurance options available to them, but as i say all the time, if it's a matter of going with no insurance or a high deductible plan and have you that choice, you have that option, go with the high deductible plan. at least if something catastrophic happens or you're a young american, at least you have that protection that you're not going to end up with $200,000 hospital bills. these are not easy decisions.

>> they're not easy. you really need to reap those open enrollment docs. one thing to mention, get in here quickly. pick the right primary care provider because it will be hard to go out of network. >> it's so important. before you pick the primary care provider, make sure if you're going with an hmo or even a ppo, that your existing doctors are in your network. so if you like the doctor you have today, and you're in an open enrollment period, make sure your doctor is still in that new benefit plan tomorrow. >> andrew, thank you so much for that. >> good to be here. digging out of debt, we'll introduce you to one family that's gotten themselves out of a horrible debt nightmare and show you how you can do it, too.

getting into debt isn't hard to do. but getting yourself out of six-figure debt in less than five years? well, it is possible. and this wisconsin family proved it. open that up for you. >> thank you. >> reporter: the family favorite at the hildebrand's dinner table? egg noodles, crackers. >> this is going to be good. >> reporter: and cream of chicken soup. >> this is mama's cracker casserole. >> reporter: a meat little dish. one small way the family of five dug themselves out of a mountain of debt, more than twice their annual income, $123,000. the result of 16 years of overspending. >> it didn't happen overnight. it was just a few thousand every year. >> reporter: the tipping point? >> we had been assessed about $1544 in finance charges just for one month on those 11 credit cards. >> to be honest with you, i was ashamed i let it get to that point. you know, we've always been big dreamers. >> reporter: but the dreamers didn't take the easy way out. ruling out bankruptcy and opting

instead to pay off their debt. >> it was my debt. i made the mistakes. i made the responsibility. >> reporter: candy cut the budget so much that at the end of the month, she often had less than $5 to spare. plenty of people have $1,200 worth of debt, lots of people have $12,000 worth of debt, but to have $120,000 worth of debt, how can you possibly pay that back? >> we quit eating out and that was right away. we quit buying some of our favorite brand name things that were costlier. we would go down to the generic, and actually as i was kind of running out of my favorite brand name thing, i would add water to stretch it. >> reporter: the hildebrandts saved $70 a month doing their own car repairs, $2550 by stretching out leftovers. saved $150 a month by buying at thrift stores, $200 by cutting

their own hair. no more cds and dvd purchases, only essentials. russell got a second job working nights as a janitor in addition to his day job as a chemist, sleeping only a few hours a night. >> some nights i admit i don't think i was going to make it, but i knew one thing. whether i made it or not, i was going to give it the best try i could give. >> reporter: to save on gas money, he slept in his car. >> i put my hood on and i would just, my pillow over and snuggle in for the night. >> reporter: twin daughters holly and heidi put together a newsletter and sold it to relatives. >> that's what they like is the topping. >> reporter: dinnertime became family time. >> we would sit here for two hours and tell stories and laugh and just, i think that was our funnest time, and even though i would be dog tired, i just enjoyed it because that was time i'd get to spend with my family. >> reporter: and having a common goal brought everyone together. >> it isn't so much what's on the table as much as what took place while we were here.

>> so the hildebrandts did it and you can do it, too. they used a credit counseling service to help them organize their debt and reduce interest charges. after just 4 1/2 year, they were debt-free. and they even bout their first house. it's possible to get rid of this debt. gale cunningham will tell you how to do it. she's with the national foundation for credit counseling. gale, i think for a lot of people out there, they want a credit counselor, they don't know how to find a legitimate one. how do you do that? >> that's a valid question because there are unscrupulous among us in our industry, but i think if you reach out to an agency that's affiliated with a national body such as the national foundation for credit counseling, it adds another layer of security, along with being a non-profit, that's what i would seek. >> what are the red flags out there? because there are some people who say that some of these outfits collect your money and keep it. how do i not get involved with a group like that? >> oh, absolutely. it is critical that the consumer do his or her homework in advance of any financial decision, ask the right questions and make sure you get

the right answers. find out about fees. what fees are charged and get the answer in writing, make sure that you don't pay for a service prior to any service being delivered. make sure that the company is willing to work with you regardless of the amount of your debt. if they screen you in advance to find out if you have x amount of debt or x number of credit cards, you hang up and keep calling. >> i think that's great advice. let's talk about what exactly these counselors do. what do they do that i couldn't do myself? >> well, that's a great question. sometimes people frankly just feel overwhelmed. the average consumer debt came to an nfcc member agency last year, had six credit cards and as a matter of fact, their credit card debt, unsecured debt accounted for 62% of their household income. they are overwhelmed. they say i can't tell my story to six different creditors, six different times and negotiate six different repayment plans. help me. and so the nfcc counselor is trained to step in, do a

thorough intake, review that budget, make suggestions for changes where necessary and then negotiate with the creditors for a lower monthly payment, lower interest rate, and late fees and overlimit fees stopped or lowered. >> of course in the case of the hildebrandts, rates decreased to 15, 20, 32% down to 2% in some cases and that went a long way helping them pay back their debt. >> absolutely. unfortunately it's not uncommon for us to see interest rates in the 30% range now. so, as you can imagine, it's very difficult to make any headway paying that kind of interest each month. so the nfcc counselors can help get that interest rate reduced to 2% or even 1.75% in true hardship cases. >> that's excellent. gale, thank you for that. >> you bet, thank you, gerri. making the most of what you've got. we'll show you how to get organized and maximize your storage space. plus as we approach the holiday season how to avoid the sticky social situations.

who wouldn't like more space, whether you live in a studio or you have square feet to spare? our next guest is here to show us all about maximizing your storage space without spending a ton of money. danny lipford is a home

improvement expert and host of "today's homeowner with danny lipford." you've got a lot of great ideas. >> thank you. >> we're starting in a funny place. i think the closet you've already got the space you need, no? you'll help us maximize that space. >> when you think about a house you don't need to think about it talking about storage as square feet, think of it as cubic feet. that's what you have -- >> the space up and down and sideways and everything. >> exactly. and like in a closet, so many times there's areas in there but when you look at a closet situation you'll see that there's a lot of ways that you can change it. >> we're looking at it right now. >> right. you can utilize different types of systems that are available or have a cabinet or closet company come in and kind of customize the different cabinets for the individual that's using the closet. that will make sure you're using every single bit of it. >> you have a shoe rack you want to show us. >> right. but you can also do some very simple things. this is something that everybody can use. this is a canvas shoe rack that hangs on the back of the door. it's space that's available. think of all the shoes you could

put in this type of arrangement. it really saves a lot of space. >> that's inexpensive. >> yeah, this is just a few dollars. it gets all those shoes up off the floor behind the door where you can see them but not taking up a lot of space. >> let's talk about something that drives me crazy. i have a pedestal sink in one of my bathrooms. it's really pretty, but there's no storage. are people taking those out? >> quite a bit. people are putting in vanities. they're reasonable at the home centers. in different bathrooms, trying to remove a lot of the different pieces of cabinetry. you can install a lot of pullouts like this even in existing cabinetry. >> nice. >> and again, this used to be pedestals and these were replaced with those great cabinets. >> that's a lot of storage. >> the toilet topper. also a lot of space that you can utilize a lot of that space that's just there not being used right now. >> neighbors of mine have this garage that is packed full of stuff. they never park their car in it because there's no space. could they use that space better?

>> without a doubt. i wonder how many people in america actually use their garage for parking cars. but the idea here is to get everything up off the floor as much as you possibly can. develop some racks on the walls that you're able to hang and ta big difference so that you free up that space and so many ways of organizing it, so many systems available now. >> do you have to buy a whole system? i have seen some and they're expensive. >> you can spend a lot of money in the garage but a few things here and there and the hooks like that on the ceiling to allow you to hang bikes or other things is such a simple way. >> there you are right there. >> i can do some of this work and then being able to display things to where you can see what you have and again, it is not taking up the space is a nice, neat way and just, you know, the hooks here, these things are so inexpensive. make sure you're screwing them into a stud or a rafter. hang it up overhead. >> you can see what you have.

>> right. >> not trying to find something amidst -- >> main thing, go in there and throw stuff away you don't need. get rid of that stuff. >> now you sound like my husband. talk about the kitchen for a minute because you can maximize space there. and sometimes the systems are not very well organized. >> no. and again, you have space inside the cabinet. looking at the cabinets, there's so much space. you can utilize the different racks. >> i like this. >> tons of them are available. they use every square inch of the cabinet. >> can i tell you how much easier to bend down and access that stuff? >> a whole lot better. here's something that you can have the cleaning supplies and carry it. this is a project to grab the one foot of space above existing cabinets. had a little cabinet right on top. out of the way, perfect for some of the maybe seasonal holiday

dishes. >> you have to have a step stool. >> right. >> it is great stuff and fantastic information. danny, great to have you' good to be here. >> we have all been there. who picks up the check and do you need a gift? how to handle the sticky social situations is next. you bring af

wine. >> although don't expect it to be drunk. bring flowers, bring them in a vase. if you bring food or drink, don't expected it to be consumed during the meal. and you if you don't know the hostess, bring something they can regift like candles. 50% said yes and others say you don't need to. >> i think it is about how well you know the person. >> oh, yeah, exactly. >> let's talk about birthday dinners. how many us have been in the situation? you're invited to a birthday dinner, who is paying? we're paying? i didn't know that. i've had that happen. what's the right course of events? >> according to our respondents, almost 80% thought that the person who does inviting is not necessarily on the hook for paying for the dinner. what we did you was when we

talked to restauranteurs, they said they see an age difference here. among 20 and 30 somethings, they find there is a lot more bill splitting. when you get, when people are older and presumably they're a little more financially able to foot the whole bill, that they see more older patrons paying for the whole party. it depends on the group. >> let's get to a couple more. because we have some really sticky situations coming up. baby or bridal showers. okay. if you can't go, you still have to give a gift. >> if you're gerri, you give a gift. 50% of the population doesn't gave gift. the reason we did this is because there's so little that's hard and fast about etiquette anymore. experts are really divided and say it depends on your relationship. >> in new york, everybody talks about, what they paid for their house and rent. it is an open secret. in some places, it is not the same. do you ask for that information? is it a faux pas to do that?

>> according to experts, it is a faux pas. strangely, 47% of our respondents said it is okay to ask. experts say no, it's rude. fl you want to get around it, looking for that something in that area, you say, what do things go for in this area and then you can get a rough estimate. >> somebody comes you to you, asks you to you write a letter of recommendation from someone. you don't really feel like you can recommend them. >> right. >> what do you do? >> the thing you don't want to do is write a mediocre recommendation. because that's worse than no recommendation at all. you don't want to lie either although 9% said lie and say you're too busy. what you want to do is to divert them. send them in the direction of someone who can write a better recommendation than you can. tell them it is to their advantage to use someone who knows them better and then you're off the hook. >> that is a creative solution to a difficult problem and that's what we've come to expect of you. >> thank you. thank you for spending part of your weekend with us. you can catch your bottom line every saturday and sunday right

here on hln. don't go anywhere. "clark howard" is next. have a great weekend.

ever since i can remember, i have been fascinated by money. by the time i was 31, i'd earned enough to retire. so i embarked on a new mission, helping you take care of your money. so you can save more, spend less and avoid getting ripped off. recently, people in several southern states suffered enormous, heartbreaking damage from floods. the media coverage has been all about the flooded houses. but you know what else got flooded? peoples' cars.

we don't know how many hundreds or thousands of cars were flooded and just as what happens after every hurricane, a lot of those flooded cars end up being marketed as perfectly clean, e used cars. and if you buy one of them, you're buying junk. here's the thing you need to know. when you buy a used car, it doesn't matter what the salesperson says to you. all that matters is that on the window sticker it says, as is, no warranty. you can't rely on anybody's words or promises, sadly. if you're going to buy a used car, not just because of floods or the condition it might be in, whether it's been an accident, how good and the engine and transmission is, make any deal for purchase of a used car subject to having it checked out by a mechanic prior to buying it. a lot of places won't let you have it checked out by a mechanic. my question for them? what do they have to hide? protect yourself.

how is it i can help you protect your wallet? what is your question for me? jim joins us. hi, jim. >> caller: hey, clark. how are you? >> great, thank you. you are in a mix that is high income and high debt. is that a fair statement? >> caller: there it is. that's a pretty much on the money. >> lay out the background for me. if you could. >> caller: well, credit card debt is primarily what we're trying to deal with here. we've got an excessive amount of probably close to $85,000. >> $85,000 in credit card doubt versus an annual income of how much? >> caller: probably combined around 150. >> all right. you know you're above the danger zone. because once you cross having 50% of your income in credit card debt, for most people it is not going to be -- it will be actually a pretty rocky road

getting that 85 down to zero. >> caller: i've just been working the numbers and i have come up with a plan that seems workable. we borrow from ourselves, in essence the 401(k), 50,000. that's the limit, the other part of the scenario is to take $42,000 as a withdrawal. >> let me stoup you right there. based on your income, if you take federal and state tax plus penalties, you'll lose 40 cents of each dollar of that $42,000. so i'm going to propose a compromise. okay? >> caller: all right. >> let's say you do the $50,000 loan. >> caller: right. >> you reduce the amount of credit card debt down to 35,000. >> caller: okay. >> that 35,000 becomes more manageable for you to pay against. if you can see yourself paying

off and you can come off with realistic numbers where you and your wife can pay off that remaining $35,000 in 36 or 42 months, i would say that's a go. caution, partial green light for doing the loan from the 401(k). i can't believe i just said it. cheryl, you carry no debt in this world at all? >> caller: no. we own both our cars free and clear. we paid off our mortgage a few years ago, and we're well past school loans so we're all set. my question now is we need to do a lot of work to our house. everything had been redone when we moved in 15 years ago, and we're looking at a roof and windows and flooring and a kitchen and just a money pit at the moment. and i'm wondering if we can get another first mortgage.

>> if you were to take the cost of the roof, the windows, the flooring and the new kitchen, what would you guess that would add up to? >> caller: 50. >> okay. >> caller: yeah. >> all right. so if it's $50,000, 50,000 is not an amount that usually is a good amount to do on a mortgage because of the closing costs involved. so as an alternative, are you and your husband a member of a credit union yet? >> caller: we could be. i know that there are credit unions in the area we could join. i've looked into that option. >> shop around for a credit union that is known as a five-year home equity loan. they carry extremely low rates from a credit union and usually extremely low closing costs. so that would be the right loan product for the five years that is instead of a floating rate

and avoid the costs of a closing on a very small mortgage. next on "clark howard" -- >> i think i'm at the point where i should started reducing the amount of risk slowly over each year, i suppose. >> is this one of those hotel ballroom kind of things? >> caller: after talking to some friends about it who had been to something like that, yeah. >> warning, warning. there's something strange on the radar screen. >> that is your money blowing up.

fredericka, you have a soon to be college child, yes? >> caller: yes, i do. >> that's a very affordable four years, isn't it? >> caller: yes. and that's why we're looking at different opgs. we don't have too much to go with. and i'm not sure how this particular company i'm calling you about got our phone number. it's possible that my son signed up something in school. and they called us and set up an appointment for a presentation to which we went. >> is this one of those hotel ballroom kind of things? >> caller: after talking to some friends about it who had been to something like that, yeah. >> alert, alert. >> something strange is on the radar screen. >> that is your money blowing to smithereens. did you go yet, or are you going? >> caller: no, we went. >> please tell me you did not sign a contract.

>> caller: no, we did not. no, we did not. i wanted to find out more about it. and i told them i would like to get more information. >> this is a very, very sleazy underbelly of the college market. the sleazy part is doing the whole hotel ballroom thing about how we know all this secret money. pay us this money, and we'll help you. because what happens is, they don't. they may do the clerical stuff, but it is just an overpriced, glorified clerical service. that you would be paying for. now there are some legitimate websites. and i actually have a full list at clarkhoward.com where you can get info legitimately on money that might be available for your child. one in particular i want you to look at. you may have already been there, is financialaid.org.

have you been there? >> caller: no, i have not. >> a very good clearinghouse site for money that might be available for your child or grants and scholarships. do you have a question you'd like me to answer? well, all you do is go to my website. what's that? cnn.com/clarkhoward. and submit a video question to me. and who knows, maybe i'll answer your question just like i'm doing for will. >> hi, my name is will, and i need a money coach. i'm concerned about retirement. i have a 401(k) from my old job that i never rolled over. i have a 401(k) from my current job. i was putting in the maximum which was right around that irs limit. and then i lowered that amount temporarily in order to pay off my credit card faster. now that the credit card is almost paid off, i'm going to have the money back to do something with.

so do i put it back in the 401(k)? or are there other options so i can diversify my retirement? >> will, i know so often i sound like the man from roth. but if it were me, and you're now ready to beef up your savings again, i would look instead of putting the money into a 401(k), put it into what's known as a roth account. you're allowed to put up to $5,000 a year into a roth. which is a tax-free savings account. you're not going to get the tax deal up front that you get with a regular ira, but all your money grows tax-free and it's spent tax-free. who should not do a roth? well, will obviously is a real disciplined guy. he took the money that was going towards the 401(k) and then he used it over time methodically to wipe out credit card debt. you should, instead, though do a 401(k) or the equivalent at your place of work.

if you know you lack the discipline to get the money into the account every month because it's not like a 401(k) where they deduct the money. with a roth, you're the one who actively has to go through the process of putting the money into the account. it is sometimes difficult to be enthusiastic, especially when you don't have a job. but you have to keep going forward and moving and always keep open to learning new things. how much credit card debt are you carrying at this point? >> would it be bad if i told you i really didn't know? >> that would be really bad. >> catch that and a lot more this sunday at 4:00 p.m. on "clark howard."

let me get you to complete this form right here. i need youk name and social right here.

i need you to give this back to me. >> a lot of people are experiencing unemployment for the first time in their lives. and they don't know exactly how the process works. i'm at a state unemployment office. we're going to hear what people experience when they walk in. plus, what unemployment has been like for them. how are you today? >> all right. i put your advice to work. >> all right. we're here with elizabeth who is a real brainiac. you have just completed a degree in -- >> physics. >> physics. >> from emory university, my masters, actually. >> your university where you just got your masters, are there services available to you there to help you network and look for opportunities? >> yes, there are. the career center at emory university is available for two years for any graduate. i came here just to expand my number of opportunities, to look for jobs. >> and you seem pretty energetic and enthusiastic about this.

>> it is sometimes difficult to be enthusiastic, especially when you don't have a job. but you have to keep going forward. and moving and always keep open to learning new things. >> how long have you been unemployed? >> six months. six months. >> has it been really hard? >> it's been hard. >> how have you been putting food on the table this six months? >> food stamps. >> have you ever been through a time of unemployment that went on for a long time like this? >> never, never. no, this is the first time i ever seen it like this. it's never been like this before, never. and then there are saying that if you don't have good credit background checks and stuff like that, you can't work. so there's a lot of obstacles in the way. >> so speaking of that challenge, what do you say to somebody who is well-educated, never faced unemployment before and it has stretched into month

after month of unemployment with seemingly nobody hiring? >> you have to be flexible. look at your skill sets, but also, be willing to seek additional training and education. if there are no jobs available, it's a great time to go back to school, to a technical college or a two-year or four-year institution. flexibility is the key. not just looking for the job you lost, but looking for new careers and opportunities as well. >> what about you, bob? what's going on with your job search? >> back in april i was let go of my employer. i had been with them for about 11 years all total. i had seen the writing on the wall. >> you kind of knew this was coming? >> yeah. >> so knowing that the guillotine might fall on you, had you done things in advance to prepare for that? >> i had done everything i could. of course i laid out my resume, got it updated. started networking with former colleagues. >> so in terms of the clerical

side of this, you come in and you do what? >> they have all sorts of different positions in there. if you see something that is suited to you, then you put your name in for it. the website is laid out fairly well. i've actually had had quite a few interviews but so far i haven't been the one they've picked but i'm optimistic. >> i got to tell you how impressed i've been with the people i've talked with who are faced with unemployment. from short cycles to long cycles. we as a people are far more resilient than really most of us expect us to be in this situation. and we're more versatile in what we're going to do next. evelyn is with us. evelyn, how are you? >> caller: i'm fine, clark. how are you? >> wonderful, thank you. you are cutting a deal with a friend or family member? is that right? >> caller: yes, we're in california. and we have a home to sell. and we have a family member who wants to buy it. and despite the falling housing

market, we have a relatively agreed price on it that we're both happy with. and because we've lost so much market value, we're trying to save money and find it difficult to have someone actually sell this. we don't need a real estate agent to list the property. we don't want it on mls. >> if you're selling to a relative, you don't need to do any of that. let's talk about a couple of things. one, if you're selling to a relative, you are held to a higher standard in that the selling price needs to be considered to be an arms-length price. are you giving a real gift to the relative? or are you selling it what would be considered by a stranger to be a fair price on your home? >> no, we're not completely giving it away. although it's been -- we've been trying to talk about the process for the whole year so the price keeps slipping. >> all right. so as far as what i would normally recommend in this case, when you have an identified buyer, whether it's family, friend or stranger, but you're

doing your own deal is that i recommend that what would be a relatively low cost that you have a real estate lawyer draw up the paperwork. and that way you would protect your interest. you would protect the interest of the relative buying the property. everything would be done properly. >> reporter: right. actually, i called two real estate lawyers and they were coding 250 to $350 an hour. >> how many hours of clock time, were they thinking it would be two hours? >> caller: they couldn't tell me. >> you need to nail that down because just as in states where real estate lawyers do closings, they will state to you a price for them to do the closing. and it is a fixed price. you should have that same right in california even though that's not normally the procedure that's followed. next on "clark howard" -- >> you're hiring somebody? >> caller: yes.

>> well, the big problem you're going to have is once you post almost anywhere is, how are you going to deal with the enormous numbers of applicants you're going to get right now?

ever since i can remember, i've been fascinated with money, making it, saving it, studying it. by the time i was 31, i had earned enough to retire. so i embarked on a new mission. helping you take care of your money so you can save more, spend less and avoid getting ripped off. the other day i was in a discount store, and not one, but two people in front of me wrote checks. it seemed like i had not one but two more birthdays while i waited for their checks to be approved and then it was my turn. well, you know what? not only is it a pain for me but

it's a pain for the retailer because they take that check from you. they don't know if it's going to be good. it's almost like they're making you a loan. well, whole foods is now experimenting in a handful of stores with refusing to take checks. that's right. you can pay with cash, debit or credit. period. and you know what? this is actually a good thing for you. because it is turbo dangerous for you to carry a checkbook. did you know that having your checkbook stolen is the worst form of identity theft? because a criminal steals your checkbook, you rush to your bank. you shut down the account. the criminal writes the checks. next thing that happens, the police might be at your door arresting you for having written bad checks. that's a bad nightmare. so that checkbook? keep it at home and stay out of harm's way. and you won't hold people up in line behind you. and now, let's see what's on your mind.

what questions do you have for me? kevin, you're facing a financial crossroads in your life, aren't you? >> caller: yes. >> what's going on, kevin? >> caller: i'm trying to reach out to the mortgage company, but they're giving us a really hard time. so my question is, if i go into foreclosure, what are the implications in terms of, you know, i'm just responsible for? and do they go after, like, my savings and stuff like that? how does foreclosure work? >> let's go back a couple of steps. you said that you have reached out to your lender and you're just getting a big blow-off? >> caller: right. they just give me the run-around. i mean, my first option was to sell the house and pay off the remaining balance. >> what you're referring to now is doing a short sale. you're upside-down in your mortgage by how much would you guess versus what the market would pay for your house? >> caller: right. >> how much?

>> caller: about $50,000. >> versus a house that has a mortgage on it of how much? >> caller: about 270. if i would sell it at the market, it would probably bring around 220 or 230. >> well, that is potentially doable as a short sale. the loss the lender would suffer allowing you to sell it at market is so much less than what they would suffer in a foreclosure that it would be a win for them and a win for you if they allowed you to maintain the house, market it successfully and get it sold. somewhere in that $220,000 to $230,000 range. >> caller: does a short sale affect your credit? >> short sale affects your credit much less than a foreclosure. and much, much less than a bankruptcy. that's why it's much better to be persistent. see if you can work something out. and it could be any of the things. it could be where you work out a

modification where you're able to stay. if that's something you're interested in. it could be that they work with you on doing a short sale. who knows what it is they'll do with you? but i can tell you the one thing they don't want to do is to have to clean up after you have walked away and been foreclosured on. ray is with us. hello, ray. >> caller: hello, clark. thank you for taking my call. >> sure. you want to ask me a question about the conundrum about when you cash in retirement money, versus the tax rates you have to pay on it. >> caller: yes, clark. i've heard you say a couple of times about that you expect the tax rates to go up. and i agree with you. i think it's almost a certainty that that will happen. i'm wondering, would it be better to cash in my retirement

accounts and pay the penalty or -- >> oh, no way, no way. because the loss of sheltering the money over the years -- this is money that you have in iras? >> caller: yes. >> in the ira, there is a long-term benefit to allowing the money to grow sheltered from tax. there is, though, a very exotic way for to you do something halfway in between what you're thinking of doing and what i just said. you ready? there's something known as the actuarial method of withdrawal that allows you an exemption from the tax penalty. and you take money out year by year from your ira penalty-free but you pay the tax. so you would have money that you can then invest in a taxable account however you want.

spend as you wish, whatever. but you're never subject to penalty, as long as you do the actuarial method properly each year. it would be a method of hedging. because you take some of your money and you'd move it over. or another alternative is you know next year, if you can afford to pay the tax next year, you are allowed to migrate all of your ira money, regardless of income, into a roth account. pay the tax but no penalty. and then that money will never be taxed again. as i think of the alternatives, that would be the best thing of all. is just wait until the calendar turns to 2010. and then make that switch and you don't have any tax problems to consider. next on "clark howard" -- >> my financial situation is i've managed to save some money and put some money away in the bank. but it's just sitting there. >> caller: i can't bring myself to buy a new car. >> you said the word -- lease. >> caller: is that a -- >> oh.

it makes me choke!

we're speaking now with j.t. hello, j.t. how are you? >> caller: i'm well, sir. how are you? >> great, thank you. you're thinking of getting a car? >> caller: yes, sir. i am in the market for a car and my question is, i'm all about margins and i want to see,

what's going to be more cost-effective? lease a car or to get a used car? i just couldn't -- i can't bring myself to buy a new car. >> you said the word "lease." >> caller: is that a -- >> it makes me choke! don't say the word lease in my presence because i start having a heart palpitations and have trouble breathing. i can't speak a clear sentence. leasing is poison to your pocketbook. >> caller: okay. >> it is really, really awful. compared -- buying a new car versus leasing a new car, almost 100% of the time, you're better off buying than you are leasing. the sweet spot in the market is buying a two-year, 3-year-old or 4-year-old used car that may have been a return from a lease or it could have been a car that nobody liked any more.

that's where the real money is saved because you know in the first three years of ownership, do you know typically a car loses from 40% to 55% of its value in those first three years? >> caller: right. and that's why i can't bring myself to buy a new car. >> but except, you know, if you lease a car, you're the one paying that depreciation in that two- or three-year lease. but my real bias is if you find a couple of year-old used car has 25,000 to 45,000 miles on it, if you can buy one at a huge discount from what a new one would cost, i think that from strictly dollars and cents, i know there's fun having a new car, but if you look at it just from money, j.t., it's a better deal to buy that used car almost always versus buying the new.

it's time for "money coach." that's where you get to ask me your money questions. right now we're going to visit with mike who's got a question for me about how to make his wallet fatter and fatter and fatter. mike? >> hi, my name is mike. i need a money coach. my financial situation is i've managed to save some money and put some money away in the bank. but it's just sitting there. i know it can be more valuable somewhere else. i think it would be a great thing to set up some retirement plan or some 401(k) plan. and kind of prepare for my future as well as invest my money into something that i could potentially be very profitable for me. i believe that with some general direction, i can save money, learn to budget my money better. my question is, is what are the different avenues i can take in investing my money to make it profitable? >> all right, mike. first, you need to congratulate yourself on something.

you have virtually zero dollars of debt. so often when i'm talking to somebody who is younger, it's so hard to juggle the balls in the air. do you save for the future? do you pay off debt? because you essentially have no debt, you have the whole marketplace open to you. as far as saving for retirement, especially when you're young, my favorite way for you to do it is an account called a roth account. a roth is where you can put $5,000 each year into a tax-free account that earns tax-free for as long as you want to leave the money in there. and you can use it for retirement. all the money in the account plus everything it earns flows to you free of any income tax whatsoever. a great choice for you. now, the thing is, how do you open one of these things? you can open a roth most anywhere. you can do it at a mutual fund company.

you can do it at the bank. you already have your money sitting in earning like zip. but because you're so young, my goal for you is to put the money either in stocks or my favorite, index funds where you own a little tiny slice of hundreds of companies across american capitalism. now, the easiest, easiest answer for you is to go into a target retirement fund with that roth where you put the money into an account based on your likely year to retire. and then as you get closer and closer to retirement, the money is invested more and more conservatively for you. next on "clark howard" -- >> caller: i have some preexisting medical issues so there is risk for need of cash for either medical expenditures or even living expenses potentially. so i've got to plan for both. to live to 90 and to plunk it out here soon.

jackie joins us. hello, jackie. how are you? >> caller: i'm fine. how are you? >> great, thank you. >> caller: my question has to do with a potential identity theft with a recently-deceased mother. >> first, let me tell you i'm sorry that you lost your mom

recently. >> caller: well, thank you. i received a letter from a national bank asking me to contact them because -- it was very brief. it just said, please contact us immediately if you have applied for a credit card recently. if not, then one has been applied for in this name. because i'm executor for her estate, as well as i had power of attorney before she died, i just open all mail. when i contacted the bank, they said, okay, we'll notify anybody in our bank that this person is deceased and no more applications will be received in that name. but i asked, what should i do? that means that information is out there. it could be used elsewhere. >> right. >> caller: and they didn't really have any real concrete recommendations. >> there is a trick i have. and that is, what if you, as

executrix went on the credit websites of the three largest credit bureaus, because the credit bureaus must not know yet that your mom is deceased. you'll be able to freeze the credit because you'll have the info you need to be able to do that with each biorow. what that would do is that would prevent anybody from attempting to open accounts as if they were your late mom. >> caller: okay. so i can do that online? >> that's right. and then -- >> caller: okay. >> then you would have the info. so essentially, you're impersonating her but you're legally allowed to as her executrix. >> how can i be of service? >> caller: i have two issues i'm looking at. i'm trying to secure my retirement at this time. i'm state official employed. i have some preexisting medical issues. so there is risk for need of cash for either medical expenditures or even living expenses, potentially.

so i've got to plan for both. to live to 90 and to pluck it out here soon. >> that is a very, very difficult mix. that is a very hard mix. do you have medical problems of a nature that you can end up with medical bills that could potentially bankrupt you? >> caller: i'm self-employed so i don't have good insurance. yes, it has a cap on it. >> what's the lifetime cap? >> caller: one mill. >> which $1 million sounds like a huge amount of money but for serious medical conditions, it's not a lot at all. of the $1 million in lifetime cap, how much have you used? >> caller: not significant. a drop. >> all right. so it is a possibility, but a remote one, that you will exhaust your medical benefits? >> caller: yes. >> so that switches the emphasis more to the long-term, socking money away for the future.

and as a self-employed individual, have you been doing a s.e.p. plan. >> caller: no. >> is your business profitable at this point? >> caller: yes. >> so the s.e.p. lets you put ip to $49,000 a year on this formula into a retirement account, which is the best vehicle available to the self-employed. the other thing is something you may have heard me talk about before which is a roth account, and a roth works differently than a sep. a sep reduces your current taxable income, but it's ultimately taxed when you would spend it in retirement. a roth account works backwards. you can put five grand in it teach year but you get no tax benefit up front but all the money in the roth is tax free at time of retirement.

how about santa coming with his sleigh ultraearly and having it packed with deals? i had already told you this was going to be the most promotional christmas we could ever remember, promotional is retail meaning everything is going to be treat. walmart stores is responding to the competitive threat that toys r us are posing with temporary retail stores that they're going to offer low, low prices on toys. walmart's response? 100 popular toys, brand name toys, for 10 bucks. i tell you, i would push off your christmas shopping for kids and get it done before october's over, because these toys are so affordable compared to what they would be otherwise. and there are so many people who want to buy for kids for christmas, i would buy early, now.

next -- >> that's not going to be an issue. my girlfriend's family lives there, so -- free housing? free? you beat me, didn't you? knew new

it has been determined that this is a hoax. that it was a publicity stunt. >> the jig is up for the heene family. it's the unbelievable story that started with that dramatic balloon chase followed by a frantic search for a little boy and ending as authorities say, they found the truth. breaking news from larimer county, colorado, where the sheriff is preparing criminal charges against the family in the balloon boy incident. he says his office is likely to recommend felony counts, including conspiracy and contributing to the delinquency of a minor.

he outlined for the media how the story started to unravel. >> the morning this occurred, it was obviously chaotic. we responded as a number of other rescue personnel responded to what we believed was a life-threatening event with a 6-year-old boy's life in jeopardy. we responded in a rescue mode. after the balloon landed and it was determined the boy was not in there and determined that he was not in the house, we went into a body recovery mode. so clearly emotions were running high. at that time, and i've made a big point of saying, talking about the emotional condition of the family, their body language, their nonverbal communications. everything that we experienced with the family to that point was very consistent and believable, although certainly a number of people, including the media and including the viewers,

were skeptical about this thing. we remained somewhat skeptical but we have to operate on facts and what we can prove as being facts. so the fact that the information we had it was plausible to believe that this event occurred. >> he says additional interviews with richard heene and other members of the family convinced investigators there entire episode was a sham. he says of the heenes, they're actors and put on a good show. the larimer county district attorney will make the final determination if the heenes should be prosecuted for reporting their 6-year-old son was trapped inside that balloon. deputies searched the hope last night and left with several boxes and a computer. investigators also questioned richard and his wife about whether they knew their 6-year-old was hiding. despite calling 911 to report he had floated away. the sheriff says he'll likely charge them with making a false

report, child endangerment and possibly even federal charges. the sheriff says during the investigate then, he learned they met in acting school. three men died while running a marathon today. this is a shot of the paper's website. organizers say two of the men collapsed at the finish line. the third collapsed at the 12-mile mark. all three were pronounced dead at detroit hospitals and all apparently died of cardiac arrest. the university of connecticut is mourning the death of jasper howard, killed in a stabbing just hours after last night's winning game. this is his profile on the uconn website. he was stabbed during a fight after the team's victory over louisville and police are still looking for the perpetrator.

he was a junior. the university president called the stabbing a tragedy for the entire university community. a third person has died after taking part in a sweat lodge ceremony in arizona. liz neumann died yesterday. 10 days ago she was among more than 50 people in a sweat lodge during a retreat run by james arthur ray. authorities are treating the deaths as homicides but have not filed charges yet. ray says he's hired his own team to investigate what went wrong. his spokesman says ray's team is cooperating with police. two weeks after the fact, investigators are still not sure about the sequence of events that ended with the death of a florida teenager. police say officer jerald ard was in his police cruiser chasing 17-year-old victor steen on a bicycle. the police officer wanted to question the teen because he was acting suspiciously. the police officer fired a stun

gun and missed but ran over steen with his cruiser accidently. >> the fact that an officer was using poor judgment and shoot a taser gun from a moving vehicle to a suspect that ended up causing the untimely death. >> it's just saddened the entire community. >> my prayers are that the truth will come out. >> officer art is now on paid leave while the investigation continues. hurricane rick is now a strong category 5 pacific storm. the national hurricane center reports the storm's maximum winds at 175 miles an hour. although they were up to 180 miles per hour earlier. forecasters expect rick to lose some steam and turn towards baja, california and mainland mexico later this week. right now rick is the second strongest hurricane in the eastern north pacific in more than a decade.

hurricane linda's top winds hit 185 miles per hour in 1997. a suicide bomber killed at least 29 people in iran today, including five senior commanders of the country's revolutionary guard. the deputy head of the ground forces was one of them. state run media says a man wearing an explosive belt blew himself up during a conference between shia and sunni groups in southeastern iran. although no one claimed responsibility, tehran is accusing the sunni minority group. a gun fight that lasted for hours in rio yesterday. by the time it ended, at least a douzen were dead, including two police officers. the police who died were onboard this helicopter when it caught fire. the chopper crashed on a soccer field. rio was selected as the host

city for the 2016 summer olympics. the parents of the so-called balloon boy could be going to jail. but what charges they're likely to face and why so many people questioned their story from the beginning. also, defense secretary robert gates is headed overseas to seek help for the mission in afghanistan.

breaking news out of colorado where the larimer county sheriff has announced that the balloon boy saga was a hoax. sheriff jim alderman released new pictures of the balloon. he says he'll likely charge them with making a false report, child endangerment and federal charges. evidence now shows they staged the situation that had millions believing their 6-year-old son, falcon, floated away on a

balloon. he says during the investigation, he learned the heenes met in acting school and their acting skills made their stories seem more credible. >> it wasn't until the larry king show where the family was interviewed by wolf blitzer that we had the first ah-ha moment. you all know what i'm talking about when he asked why didn't you come down? and he said, mia said we did it for the show. if you look at the non-verbal responses as well as some of the very calcus, not only from him but from the family, from the children, the reaction, it became very clear to us at that point, that they were lying. you know, you picked up on it, we picked up on it. >> police, the military and the faa were all involved in trying to capture that balloon. many of you thought this was a

hoax, even as the balloon was still in the air. and that's when we began to learn that the family had been on "wife swap" and was trying to get the networks to buy a reality show about them. susan kaiser told hln just yesterday the odd circumstance and the inconsistencies in the heene's behavior helped fuel those rumors. people became skeptical when wolf blitzer asked falcon why he hid and he answered "we did this for a show." more than 3,000 u.s. troops scheduled to go to iraq are staying home. they were supposed to relieve another brigade unit this coming january. but military officials say iraqi security forces will be able to handle that patrol. one lingering challenge is to get iraq's political factions to compromise. >> reconciliation is a tough business. i mean, i've been in some of these meetings with people. they don't like each other, you have to get them to work

together, get them to understand their futures are together and then you get a bombing, which makes it even tougher. again, i think the iraqi people have really signaled that they are really sick and tired of this stuff. >> yesterday, iraq's security forces were the targets of militant attacks. four iraqi soldiers died in an assault against a convoy just outside fallujah. and in ramadi, a suicide bomber blew up a highway bridge. the u.s. military used that bridge to transport equipment out of iraq. defense secretary robert gate also spend the next week trying to convince u.s. allies they need to stay the course in afghanistan. gates will visit japan and korea, then meet with nato defense ministers in slovakia. japan is planning to roll back its support for afghanistan combat operations in january. south korea currently provides non-combat support in afghanistan. the nato meeting may be pivotal. gates is expected to ask the

alliance to maintain its commitment to the mission while the u.s. decides whether to increase troop strength in afghanistan. president obama won't decide whether to change the number of troops in afghanistan until he knows there's a stable government in that country. at least that's word from white house chief of staff rahm emanuel. he's telling cnn that it would be reckless to decide about force levels right now, especially since no one knows the outcome of afghanistan's disputed presidential election. >> there's basically two roads there or two basically -- one is a runoff election between the two top candidates. or a negotiation between those candidates. but the end result must be a legitimate and credible government to the afghan people. >> and senator john kerry is making the same point. the chairman of the foreign relations committee says it would be irresponsible to commit more troops to the country without knowing who will be running the government.

the town of percel, virginia is mourning stefan mace, who died in afghanistan earlier this month. audrey barnes of wusa talked to friends and family of the 21-year-old about the kind of man he was. >> reporter: relatives and friends walked through an arch of honor to pay their respects to a soldier who lived and died with it. >> anybody who goes over there is a hero. >> reporter: the dad of a childhood friend put back on the uniform he never thought he would to talk about stefan mace who shared stories about afghanistan with him on a recent trip home, a place they both served and feared. >> definitely had a tough challenge ahead of him. there was no question, if he said it once, he said it a thousand times, that he wanted to go back, he wanted to be with his friends and brothers and he did exactly what he was trained to do. i don't think he would change it

even now. >> reporter: gridiron tough since birth. speaker after speaker said. his former football coach says everybody wanted stefan on their team. >> he wasn't the biggest, the fastest kid i ever coached, the strongest, but he was, no question, one of the toughest. he took defeat as well as he took victory and never backed up. >> reporter: if he could take two things, his friend said he would have enlisted with him and would have wanted him speaking at his funeral rather than the other way around. >> that was audrey barnes of hln affiliate wuas reporting. and that october 3rd attack that killed mace and seven other soldiers was the deadliest single battle for u.s. forces in afghanistan in more than a year. the military says more than 100 taliban fighters and two afghan soldiers were also killed that day. the balloon boy hoax, what

it could cost falcon heeney's family and what it did cost emergency agencies. california lost 80 firefighters within the line of duty in the past year. people across the state paused to remember their sacrifice. how governor arnold schwarzenegger paid tribute to them.

breaking news from larimer county, colorado, where the sheriff is preparing criminal charges against the family involved in the so-called balloon boy hoax. investigators have determined that richard heene staged a publicity stunt when he reported his 6-year-old son falcon was trapped in that runaway balloon. the sheriff will recommend conspiracy and other felony charges. then there's the matter of how much it cost. no one knows the exact total yet. the sheriff says he hasn't seen any cost estimates for the resources his office committed, including more than four hours

deputies spent looking for falcon before finding him at the family's home. the runaway balloon was in the air for about two hours. local law enforcement, rescue agencies were involved in keeping track of it. the colorado coast guard also launched two helicopters, which cost more than $14,000. officials at denver's airport also diverted flights for about 15 minutes. bagpipes and a color guard as california takes time to remember some of its fallen heroes. the names of 82 firefighters who died in the line of duty were added to a memorial wall in sacramento. they include two firefighters who died battling the massive station wildfire. yesterday, governor arnold schwarzenegger thanked all of the state's firefighters for their service.

>> california's firefighters know their risks and they know what they must sacrifice. still, they only not jump into action, they do it with complete commitment and a great passion. it is not just work for them, it is their calling. california's firefighters are the bravest of the brave. they've proven time over and over that they're the most skilled, the toughest, the most selfless and the best trained firefighters in the world. >> the families of the firefighters who were honored were presented with flags and in all there are 1,100 names on that memorial. don't plan on last-minute travel deals for thanksgiving. unlike last year when airlines slashed fares, this year ticket prices are already on the rise. not only are you going to pay more for a ticket, but many airlines are also hitting you with a $10 peak travel charge.

reverend al sharpton says he'll sue rush limbaugh if he does not apologize to him. limbaugh says sharpton played a role in two race riots. sharpton was not involved in the incidents that limbaugh referenced. sharpton says both allegations are false and that limbaugh is out of bounds accusing him of criminal activity. limbaugh has not commented on that lawsuit. al sharpton says he will sue if he doesn't apologize to him. limbaugh says sharpton layed a role in two new york race riots. sharpton was not involved in the incidents that limbaugh referenced. limbaugh also blamed sharpton for derailing his bid to co-own the st. louis rams. the colorado couple that called 911 to report their child

soared away in their makeshift balloon could be soaring away to jail. what charges they're likely to face now that authorities are determined it was a hoax. and satellites have given us a bird's-eye view of possible global warming.

this is -- it has been determined that this is a hoax. that it was a publicity stunt. >> the jig is up for the heene family. it's the unbelievable story that started with that dramatic balloon chase followed by a trantick search for a little boy and ending, as authorities say, they found the truth. breaking news from larimer county, colorado, where the sheriff is preparing criminal charges against the family in the balloon boy incident. alderman says his office is likely to recommend felony counts, including conspiracy.

he outlined for the media how the story started to unravel. >> the morning this occurred, it was obviously chaotic. we responded as a number of other rescue personnel responded, to what we believed was a life-threatening event with a 6-year-old boy's life in jeopardy. we responded in a rescue mode. after the balloon landed and it was determined he was not in there and determined he was not in the house, we went into a body recovery mode. so clearly emotions were running high. at that time, talking about the emotional condition of the family, the body language, the non-verbal communications, everything we experienced with the family was very believable. although certainly a number of people, including the media and

the viewers, were skeptical about this thing. we were somewhat skeptical, but we have to operate on facts as what we can prove as being facts. so the fact that with the information we had, it was plausible to believe that this event occurred. >> he says additional interviews with richard heene and other members of the family convinced investigators this entire episode was a sham. he says of the heenes, they're actors and put on a good show. the district attorney will make the final determination if the heenes should be prosecuted for reporting their 6-year-old son was trapped inside that runaway balloon. deputies searched the home last night, and left with several boxes and a computer. investigators also questioned richard and his wife about whether they knew their 6-year-old was hiding. despite callinged 11 to report he had floated away in that balloon. the sheriff says he'll likely charge them with making a false

report, child endangerment, and possibly federal charges. he says during the investigation he learned the heenes met in acting school and their acting skills made their stories seem so much more credible. three men died while running a marathon today. this is a shot of the paper's website. race organizers say two of the men collapsed at the finish line. the third collapsed at the 12-mile mark, less than halfway through the race course. all three were pronounced dead at detroit hospitals and that is all apparently died of cardiac arrest. the university of connecticut is mourning the death of one of their star football players. 20-year-old jasper howard was killed in an on-campus stabbing just hours after last night's winning game. this is his profile on the uconn website. he was stabbed after the team's victory over louisville and police are still looking for the perpetrator. he was a junior and starning corner back from miami. he led the big east in punt

returns last season. the university president calls the stabbing a tragedy for the entire university community. a third person has died after taking part in a sweat lodge ceremony in arizona. she was among more than 50 people in the sweat lodge. authorities are treating the deaths as homicides but have not filed charges yet. ray says he's hired his own team to investigate what went wrong. his spokesman says ray's team is cooperating with police. two weeks after the fact, investigators are still not sure about the sequence of events that ended with the death of a florida teenager. police say officer jerald art was in his police cruiser chasing 17-year-old victor steen. art wanted to question him because he was acting suspiciously around a construction site. they say art fired a stun gun from his car to stop steen.

he missed but accidently ran him over with his cruiser. the death has prompted community protests. >> we're troubled by the fact that the officer would use poor judgment and shoot a taser gun from a moving vehicle to a suspect that ended up causing the untimely death. >> it has just saddened the entire community. my prayers are that the truth will come out. >> officer art is now on paid leave while the investigation continues. hurricane rick is now a strong category 5 pacific storm. the national hurricane center reports the storm's maximum winds a t 175 miles an hour. although they were up to 180 miles per hour earlier. forecasters expect rick to lose some steam and turn toward baja, california and mainland mexico later this week. right now, rick is the second strongest hurricane in the eastern north pacific in more than a decade.

hurricane linda's top winds hit 185 miles per hour in 1997. a suicide bomber killed at least 29 people in iran today, including five senior commanders of the country's revolutionary guard. the deputy head of the revolutionary guard's ground forces was one of them. media says a man wearing an explosive belt blew himself up during a conference between shia and sunni groups in southeastern iran. although no one has claimed responsibility, tehran is accusing the minority sunni group of carrying out that attack. fighting between rival drug gangs turned into a gun fight that lasted for hours in rio yesterday. by the time it ended, at least a dozen were dead, including two police officers. the police who died were onboard this helicopter that caught fire when it was hit by gunfire. the chopper crashed on a soccer field eventually. rio was recently selected as the host city for the 2016 summer

olympics. the parents of the so-called balloon boy could be going to jail. why so many people questioned their store yeah from the beginning. also, defense secretary robert gates is headed overseas to seek support for the mission in afghanistan.

breaking news out of ft. collins, colorado, where the larimer county sheriff has announced the balloon boy saga was a hoax. the sheriff has released new closeup pictures of the balloon that showed the compartment where it was believed the young boy could have been inside. he says he'll likely charge the heenes with making a false

report, child endangerment and possibly federal charges. he says evidence now shows they staged the situation that had millions believing their 6-year-old son, falcon, had floated away on a balloon the family made in their yard. he says during the investigation, he learned the heenes met in acting school and their acting skills made their stories seem more credible. >> it wasn't until the larry king show where the family was interviewed by wolf blitzer that we had the first ah-ha moment, if you would. you all know what i'm talking about. when he was asked why didn't you come down and i believe he said, we did it for the show. if you look at the non-verbal responses as well as some of the verbal cues, not only from him but from the family, the children, the reaction, it became very clear to us at that point that they were lying. you know, you picked up on it,

we picked up on it. >> police, the military and faa were all involved in trying to capture that balloon when they thought the child was inside. and many of you thought this was a hoax, even as the balloon was still in the air. and that's when we began to learn that the family had been on "wife swap" and was trying to get the network to buy a reality show about them. the inconsist tens in their behavior helped fuel those rumors. people became skeptical when falcon answered "we did this for a show." >> more than 3,000 troops scheduled to go to iraq are staying home. they were supposed to relieve another brigade this january, but military officials say iraqi security force also be able to handle that patrol. one lingering challenge is to get iraq's political factions to compromise.

>> reconciliation is a tough business. i've been in some of these meetings with people, they don't like each other, you have to get them to work together, get them to understand their futures are together. then you get a bombing, which makes it even tougher. again, i think the iraqi people have really signaled that they are really sick and tired of this stuff. >> yesterday, iraq's security forces were the targets of militant attacks. at least nine people were killed. four iraqi soldiers died in an assault against a convoy just outside fallujah. and in ramadi, a suicide bomber blew up a key highway bridge. the u.s. military used that bridge to transport equipment out of iraq. defense secretary robert gates will try to convince u.s. allies they need to stay the course in afghanistan. he will meet with nato defense ministers. japan is planning roll back

support in january. south korea currently provides non-combat support in afghanistan. the nato meeting may be pivotal. gates is expected to ask the alliance to maintain its commitment to the mission while the u.s. decides whether to increase troop strength in afghanistan. president obama won't decide whether to change the number of troops in afghanistan until he knows there's a stable government in that country. at least that's word from white house chief of staff rahm emanuel. he's telling cnn that it would be reckless to decide about force levels right now, especially since no one knows the outcome of afghanistan's disputed presidential election. >> there's two roads there, one is another runoff election between the two top candidates. or a negotiate between those candidates. but the end result must be a legitimate and credible government to the afghan people.

>> senator john kerry is making the same point. the chairman of the foreign relations committee is in kabul and he says it would be irresponsible to commit more troops to the country without knowing who will be running the government. the town in virginia is mourning the loss of stefan mace who died in afghanistan earlier this month along with seven others. audrey barnes of hln affiliate wusa talked to friends and family about the kind of man he was. >> reporter: relatives and friends walked through an arch of honor to pay their respects to a soldier who lived and died with it. the dad of a childhood friend put back on the uniform he never thought he would to talk about specialist stefan mace who shared stories about afghanistan with him on a recent trip home, a place they both served and feared. >> stefan had a tough challenge

ahead of him. he said he wanted to go back, he wanted to be with his friends and brothers. he went back and did exactly what he was trained to do. i don't think he would change it even now. >> reporter: gridiron tough since birth speaker after speaker said. his former football coach said everybody wanted him on their team. >> he wasn't the biggest or fastest kid i ever coached, the strongest, but he was no question one of the toughest. he took defeat as well as he took victory. and he never one time backed off. >> if he could change two things, stefan's friend, who took him hunting in africa before he went into the military, said he would have enlisted with him and would have wanted stefan speaking at his funeral rather than the other way around. >> that was audrey barnes of wusa reporting. and that october 3rd attack that killed mace and seven other soldiers was the deadliest single battle for u.s. forces in

afghanistan in more than a year. the military says more than 100 taliban fighters and two afghan soldiers were also killed that day. the balloon boy hoax. what it could cost the heene family and what it did cost emergency service agencies. plus, california lost more than 80 firefighters in the line of duty within the past year. people from across the state paused to remember their sacrifice. how governor arnold schwarzenegger paid tribute to them.

breaking news from larimer county, colorado, where the sheriff is preparing criminal charges against the family involved in the so-called balloon boy hoax. investigators have determined that richard heene staged a publicity stunt when he reported his 6-year-old son, falcon, was trapped in that runaway balloon. the sheriff says he'll recommend conspiracy and other felony charges. then there's the matter of how much the escapade cost. no one knows the exact total yet. the sheriff says he hasn't seen any cost estimates for the resources, including more than four hours deputies spent

looking for the boy before finding him at the family's home where he had allegedly been hiding from everyone. the runaway balloon was in the air for about two hours. local law enforcement, rescue agencies and federal regulators were involved in keeping track of it. the colorado national guard even launched two helicopters to try and rescue the boy. that alone cost more than $14,000. officials at denver's airport also diverted flights for about 15 minutes because the balloon could have drifted into air traffic. bagpipes and a color guard as california takes time to remember some of its fallen heroes. the names of 82 firefighters who died in the line of duty were added to a memorial wall in sacramento. they include two firefighters who died battling the sas mif station wildfire. and yesterday, governor arnold schwarzenegger thanked all of the state's firefighters for their service.

>> california's firefighters know their risks. and they know what they must sacrifice. still, they not only jump into action, they do it with complete commitment and a great passion. it is not just work for them, it is their calling. california's firefighters are the bravest of the brave. they have proven time of themselves over and over that they are the most skilled, the most toughest, the most selfless and the best trained firefighters in the world. >> the families of the firefighters who were honored were presented with flags. and in all, there are 1100 names inscribed on that firefighter memorial. don't plan on any last-minute travel deals for thanksgiving because travel experts say unlike last year when airlines slashed fares after a sharp drop in travelers, this year ticket prices are already on the rise. and not only are you going to pay more for a ticket, but many airlines are hitting you with a

$10 peak travel charge. reverend al sharpton says he'll sue rush limbaugh if the conservative radio host doesn't apologize to him. limbaugh says sharpton played a role in two new york race riots. he made the claim in a "wall street journal" piece, but sharpton was not involved in the incidents limbaugh referenced. sharpton says the allegations are false and that limbaugh is out of bounds accusing him of criminal activity. limbaugh has commented on the threatened lawsuit. reverend al sharpton says he'll sue rush limbaugh if he doesn't apologize to him. limbaugh says he played a role in two new york race riots and he made the claim in a "wall street journal" piece. he was not involved in then incidents limbaugh referenced. sharpton says the alwayses are false. the colorado couple that

called 911 to report their childhood had stowed away in a makeshift balloon could be going off to jail. what charges they are about to determine now that it was all a possible hoax. and nasa wants a bird to fly a little lower to see what's going on --  they said it would never last.

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