• CA's controversial gig-economy bill—which allowed such companies like Lyft and Uber to keep workers on as independent contractors—has been ruled unconstitutional. Passed in November, the contentious law has been the center of work labor disputes, was ruled by California Superior Court Judge Frank Roesch as illegal because it “limits the power of a future legislature to define app-based drivers as workers subject to workers’ compensation law"; Roesch later added that "the entirety of Proposition 22 is unenforceable—before citing that it was unconstitutional that the law required any future amendments to have a seven-eighths vote of approval to pass the legislature; the court is still out as to how affected tech companies will proceed forward with payouts and the lukewarm incentives they offered to independent workers under the guise of benefits from Prop 22’s passing. [Verge/Washington Post]
  • Oakland Symphony Director Michael Morgan has died at 63 years old. Morgan's death was confirmed by Oakland Symphony publicist Marshall Lamm on Friday; Morgan had a successful kidney transplant earlier this summer, but last week developed a severe infection and was admitted to the ICU at Kaiser Permanente in Oakland, which ultimately took his life; Morgan held to transform the Oakland Symphony into a model for both community involvement and activism, all while remaining incredibly astute at his task conducting the renowned orchestra. [Datebook]
  • More details are coming out about how the "San Francisco cowboy," whose real name is Darren Mark Stallcup, helped defend a 56-year-old man from an assault earlier this month — Stallcup calling it a "crazy time to be alive." [KPIX]
  • As the Cache Fire continues burning through Lake County, animal control officers from North Bay Animal Services traveled to Clearlake to look for any lost pets amid the rubble; hundreds of pets and livestock have likely been displaced by the fire. [KRON4]
  • Now that the Castro Merchants has cut ties with IDK Events, the fate of car-free weekends along Castro's 18th Street remains uncertain. [Hoodline]
  • San Jose is joining other Bay Area metros in calling for residents to conserve more water (or face potential penalties and fines). [ABC7]
  • Hurricane Henri is expected to make landfall along the East Coast, more specifically along Long Island and the southern end of New England, Sunday... and could cause hundreds of thousands of people to evacuate vulnerable areas, should it continue to strengthen. [New York Times]

Image: Getty Images/gahsoon