.Tuesday Must Reads: Drought-Caused Algae Bloom Creates Sour Tasting Water in East Bay; Gunfire in Oakland Plunges

Stories you shouldn’t miss:

1. A drought-related algae bloom in East Bay MUD’s primary reservoir in the Sierra is resulting in sour-tasting water throughout the East Bay, the Chron reports. East Bay MUD officials say that testing of the water in Pardee Reservoir, which is fed by the Mokelumne River, has revealed that it’s safe to drink — although it has an acrid taste. Algae blooms may become more common as the drought intensifies.

2. Gunfire in Oakland plummeted last year by 26 percent, the Trib$ reports, citing new data from OPD’s ShotSpotter system. The decrease in gunfire coincided with significant drops in the number of homicides and nonfatal shootings in the city.

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3. San Francisco police crime lab technicians who are suspected of falsifying results failed a key DNA proficiency exam and were barred from processing evidence, the Chron reports. It’s just the latest scandal to rock San Francisco law enforcement. On Monday, San Francisco District Attorney George Gascón announced that he was creating a task force to probe SFPD and the sheriff’s department for widespread wrongdoing.

4. The purported kidnappers of a Vallejo woman earlier this month have been sending emails to the Chronicle, demanding that police and the FBI apologize to the alleged victim — Denise Huskins. Law enforcement officials have said that they believe that there was no kidnapping and that Huskins and her boyfriend had perpetrated a hoax.

5. Researchers have linked an outbreak of paralysis cases among children in California and Colorado to a polio-like virus, the Chron reports.

6. And scientists say that the warming of the world’s oceans could lead to a sudden mass die-off of marine species — much like what occurred during the last warming period thousands of years ago, the Chron$ reports.  

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