A 50 percent chance of showers (pretty much 100 percent in downtown Seattle this morning). Mostly cloudy, with a high near 62. Forecast here.
Making headlines around the Northwest:
- Seattle game company PopCap bought for $1 billion?
- Off the wire: Kalebu in and out of hospital; staged ferry jump
- Mayor McGinn supports pot initiative
- Stay off Alaskan Way Saturday, unless running
Seattle game company PopCap bought $1 billion?
Rumors have it that the Seattle game company PopCap will be bought for more than $1 billion, reports TechFlash. It’s still not known who the buyer of the maker of hits like Bejeweled and Plants vs. Zombies will be and PopCap isn’t talking.
"It's company policy not to comment on rumors and speculation," Garth Chouteau, vice president of public relations for the company, told TechFlash
TechCrunch was the first to break the news that the game maker may be in the process of being acquired. Though the deal is merely speculation at this point, the news outlet suggested a few potential buyers, including Electronic Arts and Chinese company Tencent.
Off the AP wire: Kalebu in and out of hospital; staged ferry jump
- A Seattle murder trial defendant has again been treated at a hospital as his trial continues. KOMO-TV says Isaiah Kalebu was taken to a hospital Wednesday morning due to an unspecified medical situation that occurred when he was alone in a cell, and he was later taken back to the hospital after guards found he had part of a brass hinge in his mouth, which doctors removed.
- Renton police who responded to a report of a suspicious item near the downtown library found a small explosive device. A bomb disposal unit from the Port of Seattle neutralized the device.
- The Daily News of Longview says that after refusing to obey commands, 33-year-old Steven V. Peterson of Napavine – who was armed with a knife – charged at Deputy Matt McKnight, who was responding to a break-in at a home Monday and shot him dead.
- A Washington State Ferries spokeswoman says a passenger jumped from the ferry Wenatchee and swam to a nearby kayak in what seems to have been a staged event yesterday afternoon.
- Police are investigating the death of a man whose body was found last evening in a wooded area of Cascade View Community Park in Tukwila. KOMO reports the man appears to be in his 30s or 40s and has not been identified.
- Three concepts for Jimi Hendrix Park in Seattle will be unveiled at a workshop this evening at the Northwest African American Museum. The Seattle Daily Journal of Commerce reports the concepts center on themes of butterfly, guitar and spiral flower. A final design concept will be ready by Aug. 10 for the 6-acre park in the Central District.
Mayor McGinn supports pot initiative
Mayor Mike McGinn supports the comprehensive tax and regulation pot initiative that was filed today, spokesman Aaron Pickus told The Stranger.
"As a candidate and as mayor he supported full legalization, and he supports this initiative," Pickus says. "Our office has reviewed the language the sponsors are proposing, and it looks like a good framework for legalizing marijuana for adults 21 and over."
Airbus trouncing Boeing in Paris
LE BOURGET, France – Airbus is beating Boeing in announced orders and commitments at the Paris Air Show.
- Airbus has announced deals for 730 aircraft worth $72 billion.
- Boeing has announced deals for 142 aircraft worth $22 billion.
The star of the show that ends Sunday is the Airbus A320neo, which Airbus says is 15 percent more fuel-efficient than the Boeing 737. AirAsia ordered 200 neos on Thursday in a deal worth more than 18 billion.
- The Associated Press
Stay off Alaskan Way Saturday, unless running
On Saturday, the city will block vehicle traffic southbound on Alaskan Way from 6 a.m. to 3 p.m. for the Rock ‘n’ Roll Marathon.
All ferry traffic will offload out of the north gate, which will cause schedule and offloading delays.
The city recommends that drivers wishing to go southbound, head eastbound on Marion Street to Sixth Avenue.
