Suspicious Device Found in Palo Alto

 A suspicious device found in a Palo Alto neighborhood was determined to be not dangerous after streets were shut down for several hours during the investigation, police said. Police responded to the 700 block of Maplewood Avenue at 2:47 p.m. after receiving reports that the suspicious item was in a front lawn there. The item was described as a cylindrical bottle wrapped in a gauzy material with metal clamps around it. After an initial evaluation of the item, officers requested assistance from the Santa Clara County Sheriff's Office Bomb Squad. Residents of 17 homes were told to stay in their homes and away from windows, but no residents were evacuated. Bomb squad technicians examined the device and destroyed it at 7:42 p.m. It was determined to be inert and a device used to make illegal narcotics. Maplewood Avenue between Seminole Way and Sutherland Drive was shut down for about five and a half hours.