MR GRADY'S DAILY BLOG: AMERICAS EARLY BIRD NEWS

EXCLUSIVE: Attorney general investigating why swanky Standard Hotel denied Navy officer in uniform over dress code during Fleet Week

In a letter shipped Wednesday to hotel CEO Andre Balazs (right), an investigator for AG Schneiderman (left) said the episode suggested the hotel may have failed “to ensure equal access and equal treatment.”

Woman, 33, tried to fight off three Brooklyn teens who allegedly attacked, raped her in Chinatown: prosecutors

A barely conscious 33-year-old woman who was savagely raped by three Brooklyn teens tried to fight them off in a Chinatown cafe, prosecutors detailed in court papers Wednesday.

2 women stabbed, 6 suffer chemical burns in Brooklyn: cops

Cops say two groups of four women ranging set on each other after agreeing to meet up and settle a beef in Crown Heights on Wednesday.

INTO THIN AIR! Woman vanishes at world's busiest airport during Atlanta layover: cops

Anna Giannini has been missing since Sunday when she flew into Atlanta's Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport but never reached her final destination, Atlanta police said.

Caitlyn Jenner gives Kim a Kar-bashin' in Web traffic

PICTURED Oklahoma man’s apartment wall turns red from the blood of his dead neighbor

Thomas Kennedy’s wall was bleeding. But Kennedy, living in an apartment complex in the Oklahoma City suburbs, simply wiped the vertical red rivers off and didn’t think twice.

Student cleared of ‘Fifty Shades of Grey’ rape case back in court for allegedly sending photos of incident

A University of Illinois at Chicago student who was cleared in March for an alleged rape inspired by the kinky film was back in court for allegedly sending explicit pictures of the incident to friends.

'IT WAS DEFINITELY A LOOGIE': DNA tests prove waiter spit in customer's drink at Chili's in upstate New York

A waiter at a Chili’s restaurant in upstate New York got caught spitting in a customer’s drink — after a state police crime lab tested his DNA to prove it months later.

De Niro takes home award, but has no idea what it's for

HE 'WANTED IT': Convicted sex offender in Michigan says kids can’t resist him, according to report

Jason Michael Spencer, who is already doing prison time for one child sex crimes, admitted to sexually assaulting a boy but claimed the child “actually had approached him and he ‘wanted it.'"

Motorcyclist, 34, dies after being thrown from bike in Brooklyn collision

Ashmeade Rohan was driving a Suzuki motorcycle north in Canarsie with a woman on the back when he collided with a Volvo late Wednesday.

California pipeline was severely eroded before it burst, causing massive oil spill: report

$Plastic buckets with oil collected from the beach are placed at the side at Refugio State Beach, north of Goleta, Calif., Thursday, May 21, 2015. More than 7,700 gallons of oil has been raked, skimmed and vacuumed from a spill that stretched across 9 miles of California coast, just a fraction of the sticky, stinking goo that escaped from a broken pipeline, officials said. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong)$ The California pipeline that spilled more than 100,000 gallons of crude oil in Santa Barbara County last month was so severely eroded that it was less than one-fifth its original thickness.

EXCLUSIVE Advocacy groups charge City Hall with not doing enough to help New York's struggling immigrants, report says

City Hall is not doing enough to help New York’s struggling immigrants and needs to commit more for adult literacy programs, protections against abusive employers and legal assistance.

'OITNB' stars talk 'No A-hole' policy in Rolling Stone

Texas Gov. Rick Perry to announce 2016 presidential bid Thursday, senior adviser says

The senior adviser tells AP that Perry will announce to supporters in Dallas on Thursday that he's in the race for the Republican nomination. The adviser also requested anonymity.

Ghana gas station explosion kills 73 people, leaving a gruesome scene with charred bodies: authorities

A gas station in Ghana's capital blew up while many people were sheltering there from a rainfall and flooding, killing at least 73.

Man who spent past 27 years in prison on double homicide conviction could be free by end of week

The Brooklyn DA has decided not to retry or appeal the case of Shabaka Shakur, who was granted a new trial Tuesday due to disgraced ex-NYPD Detective Louis Scarcella’s involvement in the case.

SEE IT 1,500-pound bull saved from Georgia well after it FALLS IN, then takes a nap

A 1,500-pound Boy fell down a well. No bull! Actually, it was a bull named Boy that got trapped in the 15-foot well in rural Georgia.

New York

NYCHA manager hit with $2,500 fine over Greek wine, olive oil from contractors

Gerald Jones, a construction project manager, took the freebies from Housing Authority contractors in violation of city rules, the board found in a ruling released Wednesday.

EXCLUSIVE NYPD policy change on sex crimes speeds up order of protection for victim

A change in NYPD policy does away with desk appearance tickets for some misdemeanor sex offenders, reducing the time it takes for victims to get orders of protection, the Daily News has learned.

De Blasio's plan to extend tax break for developers would cost city $2.7 BILLION: report

Mayor de Blasio's plan to extend a huge tax break for developers would take a nice chunk out of the city’s coffers — an extra $2.7 billion — a new report found.

EXCLUSIVE City borough presidents push state to renew mayoral control of schools

The missive to Gov. Cuomo, Senate leader John Flanagan and Assembly Speaker Carl Heastie says mayoral control should be made permanent or at least extended by three years.

LATEST FROM AROUND NEW YORK

Four Seasons restaurant co-owner charged with sexually abusing 28-year-old daughter of business associate

Julian Niccolini, 62, was accused of groping the woman’s breasts, hips and butt, scratching her back while trying to remove her bra and forcibly touching her over her underwear.

Motorcyclist dies after being thrown from bike in Brooklyn

Ashmeade Rohan was driving a Suzuki motorcycle north in Canarsie with a woman on the back when he collided with a Volvo late Wednesday.

Good Samaritans subdue purse-snatcher who left woman bloodied in Midtown

A group of Good Samaritans brought down a bandit who bloodied a woman while ripping off her bag in Midtown on Wednesday, witnesses and video of the incident shows.

Kathie Lee & Hoda: It’s only the beginning for Caitlyn Jenner

Ghana gas station explosion kills 73 people

A gas station in Ghana's capital blew up while many people were sheltering there from a rainfall and flooding, killing at least 73.

SERIOUSLY? Family faces jail time for cheering 18-year-old grad during commencement — 'You did it baby'

A Mississippi teen’s graduation this month came with a twist - four of her family members were asked to leave and are now facing charges for disturbing the peace after they cheered for her.

Ariz. grand jury will NOT indict woman who allegedly showed off new boobs to room of boys at bar mitzvah — then performed sex act

An Arizona grand jury declined to indict a yoga instructor accused of flashing her new breasts to roomful of teenage boys at a bar mitzvah.

Texas dad allegedly beat son, 3, to death for not being potty trained — charged with capital murder

Anthony Trakemon Powell, who's accused of cracking his son's skull, was charged with capital murder, potentially facing him with death.

State Senate, Assembly introduce bills requiring some developers to pay workers union-like wage

The issue is at the heart of the dispute between Cuomo and de Blasio over the best way to extend an expiring law authorizing the 421-a tax break program for developers who have affordable housing.

EXCLUSIVE PIC NICE BEARD! Retirement grows on Dave Letterman

Scaffolding collapse kills worker at National Museum of African American History and Culture

A construction company says a worker was fatally injured in an accident on the roof of the new National Museum of African American History and Culture.

Convicted sex offender pleads not guilty to accusations of raping a 23-year-old woman in Manhattan bar

Rodney Stover was hit with multiple counts of predatory sexual assault and a sex abuse charge in his latest case in Manhattan Supreme Court.

Elderly woman critically injured after being struck by MTA bus in Manhattan

A woman was critically injured when she was slammed by an express MTA bus in the Financial District Wednesday night, police said.

Nearly 1 in 10 motorists at 50 NYC intersections caught blowing through red lights: study

Red meant go for nearly one in 10 drivers spotted blowing through a stop light in a Hunter College survey released Wednesday.

Texas inmate Lester Bower Jr., 67, executed for killing four men in hangar after stealing airplane

A 67-year-old man convicted of killing four men more than three decades ago was executed Wednesday .

Sports

Myers: Rex Ryan brings bluster from Buffalo

Rex Ryan drove six hours from Bills practice for Boomer and Carton’s charity softball event at Yankee Stadium.

Coffey: Mubtaahij could spoil American Pharoah's Belmont

He has traveled the world and raced horses in most corners of it, but somehow Mike de Kock never made it to New York City until now.

Vermette leads Blackhawks over Lightning for Game 1 victory

-Teuvo Teravainen and Antoine Vermette scored in the third period, and the Chicago Blackhawks rallied for a 2-1 victory.

Bondy: Unlike men, U.S. women expected to win World Cup

The Women's World Cup is different. The game is a full-step slower, the keepers less acrobatic and the forwards generally less selfish.

Autos

Photos Art in motion: 40th anniversary of BMW Art Cars

Lamborghini Urus: 12 insights into this super-sport-utility

This 600+horsepower Lamborghini SUV will have supercar-levels of style and performance wrapped in a sport-utility shell.

2015 Volkswagen Tiguan review and test drive

The Tiguan may be showing its age, but it’s still a fun-to-drive, refined, compact SUV.

Daily News Video

VIDEO Mattel Unveils New Toys for Holiday Season

Mattel releases its new toy lineup, including an Imaginext Ultra T-Rex and a Barbie Saddle 'N Ride.

VIDEO First Mike Francesa, now Michael Kay? Baloney!

Last week Bob Raissman called Mike Francesa retirement talk baloney. Now Raissman says Michael Kay is trying similar game.

‘Aloha’ means I’m sorry: Director Crowe apologizes for Emma Stone

Baltimore Prosecutor Marilyn Mosby wants to block release of Freddie Gray autopsy: report

Mosby revealed her intentions in court filings Monday as she pursues charges against six police officers in the 25-year-old man's April 19 death while in police custody, the Baltimore Sun reported.

Off-duty NYPD officer arrested for trespassing at NYU dorm

Officer Anthony Villalon, 23, refused to leave Greenberg Hall, a 10-story residence for medical students on First Ave. near E. 30th St. in Kips Bay that's affiliated with NYU Langone Medical Center, cops said.

Anti-Muslim blogger Pamela Geller says it’s a ‘showdown for American freedom’ after it’s revealed terrorist wanted to behead her

Usaamah Abdullah Rahim (right) wanted to kill Geller (left), who recently hosted a Prophet Muhammad cartoon contest that was attacked by two gunmen in Garland, Tex., CNN reported