"Guilty Pleas Expected in Balloon Hoax Case"

The New York Times story is here. Mom is pleading to the misdemeanor of false reporting to authorities, and Dad is pleading to the felony of "attempting to influence a public servant." Before you Coloradans stop writing to your Senators, though, be aware that the crime entails more than its title suggests: according to FindLaw, the crime entails

using deceit or a threat with the intent of changing how a public servant performs his or her function. In this case, it could relate to allegedly using deceit to cause many public servants (from various departments of government) to swing into action to find and rescue young Falcon.