MR GRADY'S DAILY BLOG: AMERICAS NEWS

Liver transplant gives resilient toddler, who endured 21 operations and 200 days in the hospital, a chance to smile — SEE THE VIDEO

Little Riley Nolan has spent some 200 days in the hospital and undergone 300 blood tests and been on 24 medications — all before her second birthday. read full story »

'No punishment is warranted': Defiant bigot Donald Sterling refuses to pay $2.5M fine for racist rant

Disgraced NBA owner Donald Sterling — caught on tape in a shocking racist rant — has no intention of paying the $2.5 million penalty levied against him, and in a letter Thursday made clear his intention to sue the league, Sports Illustrated reported.

'ABSOLUTELY HORRIBLE': New Jersey mother dead after she's kidnapped, bound and buried alive in remote field

Two men in southern New Jersey kidnapped a 41-year-old woman, duct-taped her mouth and eyes and buried her alive in a field after pouring lime on her, authorities said.

Florida military mother convicted of first-degree murder for in shooting death of her teenage kids

Julie Schenecker wiped her nose and eyes, then the bailiffs handcuffed her as the verdict was read after just about an hour of deliberations. She was convicted in the death of her two children, ages 13 and 16.

Massachusetts woman who dreamed of being a mother buried following sudden death hours after giving birth to twins

Funeral services were held Thursday for a Massachusetts woman who wanted nothing more than to become a mother, but died just hours after giving birth to twins.

He threatened to 'cut her up into small pieces and flush her down the toilet': Woman held captive as sex slave escapes booby-trapped Idaho home: cops

Detectives found a house in Idaho rigged with electrical booby traps after a woman said she escaped and claimed Oscar Ayala-Arizmendi chained her up as a sex slave, reports say.

Kim K, Beyoncé bring drama and mystery to NBC Upfronts

'I'm your handler and I own you': Hawaii madam alleges ICE agent raped her, stole $200,000

Malia Arciero, 33, speaks out about the civil lawsuit filed in March, alleging rape and sexual assault by Ryan Faulkner of Homeland Security's U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement division.

Police find body of missing Fort Bragg soldier two years after she vanished leaving bar with registered sex offender: report

Investigators found Kelli Bordeaux's body in a wooded area in Fayetteville, N.C., on Wednesday morning, Police Chief Harold Medlock told North Carolina's WNCN.

Retired tennis pro didn't know family dead in mansion murder, fire; was at home in Connecticut

Former tennis star James Blake was in Connecticut last week and didn’t know the family killed in a gruesome triple murder-suicide at his Florida mansion, which burned to the ground after the horrific slayings.

'Oh my God, it’s going to come this way': San Diego wildfire suddenly roars to life

Winds haven’t reappeared in San Diego County wildfire areas and authorities say it’s a window of opportunity to make gains against flames that have scorched thousands of acres and destroyed homes.

Jenny McCarthy shows off rock hard abs, toned legs

Lupica: How can Derek be Plan B when Kerr was only plan?

This is Madison Square Garden we are talking about, Jimmy Dolan’s Garden, where the agenda with the basketball operation is as often about how things look as it is about what is best for the Knicks and for their fans, while making sure somebody other than the owner, Dolan, gets blamed when everything turns into another spitstorm.

Astorino accepts GOP nod for governor with Gov. Cuomo attack

Westchester County Executive Rob Astorino accepted the Republican nomination for governor Thursday with a withering attack on the incumbent, Andrew Cuomo, and a promise to “save New York.”

Uber's worth could hit $10 billion based on latest financing efforts: report

The app-driven car service plans a new round of financing to scrounge up just under $1 billion —a move that would value the San Francisco-based startup at some $10 billion, sources told Bloomberg.

Boston Marathon bombing suspect wanted to open a Starbucks in Kazakhstan: report

Dzhokhar Tsarnaev allegedly discussed opening a Starbucks in Kazakhstan with friend Dias Kadyrbayev around the time of last year's attack, an FBI agent reportedly testified Thursday.

Jill Abramson pulls no punches in photo after Times ouster

Man stabs wife after marriage counseling session

Jeanwell Napolean, 50, of Port Charlotte, Fla., is said to be undergoing a psychiatric evaluation after allegedly snapping and grabbing a butcher knife moments after a church deacon left him with his wife, Fox4 News reported.

SICKO: Georgia man busted for masturbating outside school, hanging used condoms on door: report

Tarence Wilson, 29, was reportedly collared with his boxers around his ankles Tuesday after his late-night romps at a Columbus elementary school left school officials terrorized, according to a report.

Lists of alleged Columbia University ‘rapists’ scrawled on bathroom walls across campus

Columbia University vigilantes have scribbled the names of alleged "rapists" in bathrooms across the campus as Ivy League institution battles complaints that authorities haven't done enough to stop sex attacks.

NINJA BURGLARS BUSTED: Black-clad invaders suspected in string of Florida home robberies

The group of masked men was collared while allegedly attempting to break into a mansion once owned by 'N Sync member Joey Fatone and featured on MTV's Cribs.

Rihanna accused of cyberbullying young fan

Honest 10-year-old who returned $10,000 unlikely to pocket the cash—even though owner hasn’t stepped forward

The curious boy who found a $10,000 wad of cash inside a Kansas City, Mo. hotel room will likely never be able to take his prize home—even though no one has come forward to claim the money.

Pregnant Sudanese woman faces death by hanging for refusing to recant Christianity

Meriam Ibrahim, a 26-year-old Sudanese woman who is the daughter of a Muslim father and an Orthodox Christian mother, was sentenced to death on Thursday for refusing to deny that she was Christian.

FBI offers $20,000 reward in search for elderly wife of decapitated Georgia man in case with no leads

The FBI is offering up to $20,000 for information leading to the location of an 87-year-old woman who disappeared earlier this month, along with the head of her dead husband.

Appeals court puts Idaho gay marriages on hold

Idaho residents planning to gather at courthouses across the state to celebrate same-sex marriages saw their plans put on hold Thursday by a federal appeals court.

‘Why rub it in my face?’: Bandits steal car from Washington state man, taunt him on Facebook

An aspiring photographer said hours after his car was boosted off a Washington state street, the bandits taunted him by posting pictures of his stolen camera equipment to his Facebook account.

Gangster nicknamed ‘Papa Smurf’ gets one year in prison for ordering men to steal cardboard from trash-hauling competitors

Reputed Genovese mobster Carmine (Papa Smurf) Franco, 78, was sentenced Thursday in Manhattan Federal Court also overbilled customers for his trash-hauling business.

Kansas girl, 8, takes wheel of SUV after mom passes out

An 8-year-old Kansas girl is being hailed for her quick thinking after she took control of the family's SUV when her mom fell unconscious at the wheel during their highway ride to school.

SEE IT Teen on bike seen shooting at passerby in Philadelphia

Philadelphia police have released video from an April shooting where a suspect on a bike shot a pedestrian. The 46-year-old victim was taken to a local hospital in critical condition.

PHOTOS 9/11 Memorial Museum opens with moving dedication ceremony

More than 12 years after September 11, 2001, President Obama joined survivors, victims' families and rescuers to mark the opening of the 9/11 Memorial Museum in a moving ceremony on May 15, 2014.

Hamill: 9/11 Memorial Museum is a powerful shrine to the 2,753 who died

We’ve all seen these images on TV and on our computers, but to view them while standing in this museum, which is an artifact itself, six stories below that vanished lobby, where the workers came to work that day, is as chilling a historical moment as I’ve ever experienced.

Obama: 9/11 memorial is 'sacred place of healing and of hope'

This is a transcript of President Obama’s remarks at the dedication of the 9/11 museum.

Bloomberg at 9/11 memorial: We saw kindness on a colossal scale

This is a transcript of former Mayor Michael Bloomberg’s remarks at the dedication of the National September 11 Memorial & Museum.

Lady Gaga gets make-under in '70s-style outfit

EXCLUSIVE Mayor de Blasio stops immigrants' sponsors welfare repayment requirement, refunding nearly $1M

In a reversal of his predecessor’s policy, Mayor de Blasio has quietly stopped requiring immigrants’ sponsors to repay the city if the people they helped go on welfare.

Hacker pranks San Franciscans with “Godzilla Attack!” digital message board

Go, go, Godzilla! A San Francisco prankster hacked a digital message board Wednesday night and warned passersby of a “Godzilla Attack!”

EXCLUSIVE NYPD Commissioner Bill Bratton removes high-ranking cop from heading city's troubled 911 system

In March, NYPD Assistant Chief Charles (Chuck) Dowd was removed as head of the 911 operations and transferred to oversee the transit division.

Democrats use classic Daily News cover to mock Astorino

Democrats on Thursday used a classic Daily News front page to mock Republican gubernatorial nominee Rob Astorino for charging that he was forced to the back at President Obama’s speech Wednesday.

TGIF! Check out this week's hottest celebrity photos

Ex-911 boss Chuck Dowd’s underlings retire ahead of probe

Two NYPD captains who’d worked for beleaguered 911 honcho Charles (Chuck) Dowd recently retired, the Daily News has learned.

Indianapolis man tortured, forced to play Russian Roulette

A 20-year-old Indianapolis man was kidnapped at gunpoint as two men forced him to strip down to his underwear, beat and handcuffed him, burned him, and even forced the man to play Russian Roulette as part of a sick torture plot, police said.

Rudy Giuliani won’t rule out running for higher office again

The former New York mayor said he’d be open to another campaign, but canned any talk of him running for mayor again.

Oregon woman, 25, shot by police during traffic stop pulled loaded gun on officer: cops

An Oregon woman shot to death during a traffic stop last week pulled a gun on the officer who fired the fatal rounds, authorities said.

Kathie Lee & Hoda: Was Jay Z getting what he deserved in elevator?

Illinois eighth-grader carries twin sister to finish line after track meet fall

When 13-year-old Claire Gruenke watched her twin, Chloe, fall during a Saturday track meet, the Illinois girl picked her sister up and carried her to the end.

Saving kidnapped Nigerian schoolgirls from Boko Haram is top priority: U.S. officials

Freeing 276 Nigerian girls from the terrorist group Boko Haram is now one of the U.S. government's top priorities, U.S. officials declared Thursday.

Stranger returns 4-carat diamond bracelet Massachusetts woman lost during Mother’s Day brunch

A lost 4-carat diamond bracelet was reunited with its owner after its sparkle caught the eye of Mike Carr as he walked through Plymouth, Mass.

FIRST LOOK at 'Hunger Games: Mockingjay'

Brooklyn teen accidentally shot in eye by thug gets standing ovation while singing the national anthem at subway series game

A month after he was shot in the right eye, 13-year-old Gama Droiville (center) sang the national anthem Thursday at Citi Field before the Mets fell to the Yankees.

'Anything is better than nothing': Washington state mom whose child was diagnosed with fatal spine disease pledges to continue pregnancy

Dozens of other unborn and newborn children in several Washington counties have been born with devastating neural tube defects and state officials have so far been unable to figure out why.