Seattle: Boeing machinists end talks with mediator

Boeing Co.’s union ended talks with federal mediators Friday night, blaming the aerospace company for failing to budge on any key issues in its contract offer.

The machinist union said it would soon schedule a new vote on the company’s offer from Aug. 27, and would urge members to reject the proposal and vote to strike.

“Boeing refused to seriously engage on any of the key issues,” said Tom Buffenbarger, Machinists International president. “Our members hold the key and will vote as soon as practicable on Boeing’s final offer.”

The company’s largest union represents 25,000 Boeing production workers in Washington state, Portland, Ore., and Wichita, Kan. Union members have been working without a contract since Sunday.

Montana: Hunter’s death raises ‘mad elk’ concerns

A Montana fishing guide who hunted and occasionally ate wild game has died of the brain-wasting Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease.

There are two types of Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease. One type strikes one in a million people for no apparent reason. The other, more infamous variant is caused by eating bad beef.

Although medical experts believe Gary Padgham’s death had nothing to do with eating elk infected with a disease closely related to bovine spongiform encephalopathy better known as mad cow disease an autopsy is being conducted.

Results from the tests being conducted at the University of California at San Francisco, the nation’s top Creutzfeldt-Jakob research center, are still weeks away.

No such case has ever been reported in the United States, and scientists insist there’s no evidence that eating infected elk and deer can kill people.

Houston: Police chief steps down after indictment

The city’s police chief stepped down at least temporarily after a grand jury indicted him Friday for allegedly lying during a disciplinary hearing for another officer.

C.O. Bradford, Houston police chief since 1996, denied charges that he lied when he testified he never used profanity toward subordinates.

“There is just no motive for me to go under oath and perjure myself,” Bradford said at a City Hall news conference. Bradford said he would contact a defense attorney, arrange to turn himself in and post bond.

Standing by Bradford was Mayor Lee Brown, who defended the only police chief he’s had during five years in office. The mayor said Bradford would be on administrative leave beginning today, with his duties assumed by an assistant chief.

The indictment followed an investigation by the Harris County District Attorney’s Office.