Police have more to worry about than just their lip sync video rehearsals.
Police have more to worry about than just their lip sync video rehearsals. 400tmax / Getty Images

Burien Mayor was the victim of a possible hate crime: Mayor Jimmy Matta was physically and verbally assaulted over the weekend. The suspect was upset that Matta, Burien’s first Latino mayor, had declared Burien a sanctuary city. The man threatened Matta. “He just kept on spouting, 'I am not going to let Latinos take our community. We are not going to have illegals run this community,'” Matta told KING5.

Two SPD officers fired: Last year, two SPD officers fired shots at a stolen car. They failed to follow proper protocol and, after a lengthy internal investigation, were terminated. The investigation found that the officers acted recklessly and could have endangered innocent lives. This is the first major disciplinary action Interim Seattle Police Chief Carmen Best has made. It is also the first significant decision she’s made since Mayor Durkan announced Best as the next police chief last week.

Video of the shooting:

Hungry orcas need all the salmon they can get: Chinook salmon are the main food source of southern resident orca whales. However, the struggling species doesn’t just get chinook from the Salish Sea or the Puget Sound. Chinook salmon from local, urban rivers make up much of the orcas salmon stock. But, these salmon runs aren’t as plentiful as they used to be and it will take a wide recovery effort to supply the orcas' needs.

Three teens arrested for involvement in officer’s death: A high-speed chase turned deadly on Sunday when Kent Police Officer Diego Moreno was struck and killed. Moreno was laying out spike strips to stop the 17-year-old in a red pickup that was screaming down the roads at up to 95 mph. Another officer was in hot pursuit. That officer struck Moreno with his car. The 17-year-old and two other 17-year-olds have been arrested.

Quiet quakes could send us to our doom: Did you know that there are earthquakes we can’t feel? Did you know that some of them last for months on end and could eventually trigger a major quake? Yeah, I didn’t either. These quakes happen deep in the Earth when the oceanic and tectonic plates slip past each other. These swarms of silent tremors move up the coast and can release energy up to the magnitude of a 6.8 quake. Still, we feel nothing.

Congrats, July, you’ve been very warm: Almost the most warm.


Ryan Lochte is not the sharpest tool in the shed: The Olympic swimmer is a talented athlete and he’s not terrible to look at. But he just can’t have it all.


A powerful message and also free advertising for Hulu: Thanks to all the social unrest and life imitating art, Hulu probably doesn’t have to spend a dime on marketing.


To save money, don’t live in downtown: A new study found that home prices drop 11.3 percent when located 15 miles outside of downtown Seattle. That’s the equivalent of about $54,599. Rent drops 6.2 percent (about $125 less). Who woulda thunk?

Greece is on fire: At least 49 people are dead as fast-moving blazes sweep through areas near Athens. Greece has the same dry, scrubby vegetation as the walls of the Southern Californian valley I grew up in. That valley is as fire-prone as valleys come. Greece, with gale force winds topping 50 mph and a scorching heat wave, is a tinderbox.


After years of work, U.S. breaks up fake IRS phone scam: It was the “nation’s first large-scale, multinational telephone fraud operation,” reports the New York Times. Victims would receive calls from the so-called IRS who demanded immediate payment using prepaid debit or gift cards. The “IRS” would threaten the victim with deportation or arrest. Many of the targets, usually older people, believed the scam and coughed up thousands of dollars to the scammers. My 21-year-old friend fell for this two years ago. She stayed on the phone with the fake IRS for hours while she went to Target and bought $2,000 in gift cards to send them. She probably would not like me sharing that information but she’ll be happy to learn that this scam was broken up!

Alex Jones’ bulletproof defamation defense: This motherfucker is finally on blast for creating and exacerbating conspiracy theories about the legitimacy of the Sandy Hook massacre. His current defense is that he was acting as a journalist, calling into question the powers-that-be like Bob Woodward and Carl Bernstein during Watergate. No, Alex. You’re just the asshole that spit in the faces of parents who had lost their children to senseless violence. And, you did it for years!

Tonight's best Seattle entertainment options include: An indie rock show with Stranger Things actor Finn Wolfhard's band of teens, Calpurnia, a showcase of peoples' most cringeworthy adolescent writings at Salon of Shame, and a timely breakdown of the West Virginia Educator Strike.

Reminder to send me a picture of your breakfast before 8 a.m. tomorrow for a chance to be featured in Slog AM! Send them to ngraham@thestranger.com