MR GRADY'S DAILY BLOG: AMERICAS NEWS

EXCLUSIVE NYPD stop-and-frisks drop 99% in high-crime areas of Brooklyn as shootings spike in the same precincts

In the first six months of 2014, there were 126 people stopped by NYPD in East New York and Brownsville precincts. During the same period in 2011, there were 10,540 stops. Shootings have spiked 27% in East New York this year.

Three injured in stabbing at Grand Central Terminal by drunk man on an uptown 6 train: cops

One man was stabbed in the chest, another was slashed in the arm and a third victim was slashed across the stomach during the melee, authorities say.

GUILTY: Pedro Bravo convicted of killing best friend in dispute over a woman in Florida

A jury Friday found Pedro Bravo guilty of killing his longtime friend Christian Aguilar in a 2012 fit of jealous rage after learning his best friend was seeing his ex-girlfriend.

MOTHER-TO-BE'S 'KNOCKOUT' NIGHTMARE: Pregnant woman punched by Brooklyn goon

Suspect Willie Stephens, 33, faces a charge of felony assault after the alleged attack that left the woman lying out cold in the street.

Khloe Kardashian's latest beau has 'coke' connection

Notre Dame investigating four football players for academic fraud

Notre Dame says it is investigating “suspected academic dishonesty” involving several students, including four members of the football team who are being held out of practice.

BOARD TO DEATH: Two die during Chess Olympiad in Norway — including a player in the middle of a game

A 67-year-old member of the Seychelles team collapsed and died during the final round Thursday of the two-week Chess Olympiad in Tromsoe, tournament spokesman Jarle Heitmann said.

BUST-ED: Woman arrested at Madrid airport for carrying cocaine in her breast implants

Spanish police have arrested a 43-year-old Venezuelan woman who landed in Madrid's international airport trying to smuggle 3.7 pounds of cocaine via her breast implants.

Robin Williams seen with wife in last photos before death

AIR SCARE: Jet Airways plane plunges 5,000 feet as commander dozes, co-pilot checks iPad

The Boeing 777-300 suddenly dropped from 34,000 feet to 29,000 feet during a flight from Mumbai to Brussels. The commander claims he was taking a ‘controlled rest,’ while the co-pilot says she was checking flight information on an iPad.

Christian rock star reveals she tried exorcism to stop being gay, comes out at 35: ‘God loves me just the way I am’

Christian musician Vicky Beeching wants her fans to know the truth about who she really is — and perhaps, inspire some to re-examine their convictions.

Ministry group in Texas feeds 809-pound shark to homeless, poor people

An 809-pound tiger shark caught in the Gulf of Mexico earlier this month has been cooked and served to more than 90 poor and homeless Texans.

Mexican mayor arrested for murder-for-hire plot and extortion on behalf of drug cartel

The mayor of a town in the beseiged Mexican state of Michoacan has been arrested for allegedly ordering a hit man and extorting the salaries of her municipal employees.

Emily Ratajkowski smolders in sexy Vanity Fair shoot

'We’re not going to let this one nut stop us': Florida church volunteer beaten by homeless man vows to keep serving needy

Days after getting kidnapped, beaten and robbed by a homeless man, a Florida woman says the gruesome attack hasn’t shaken her calling to help the needy.

At least 44 people overdose on synthetic pot in New Hampshire, state of emergency declared

The man-made bubble gum flavor of "Smacked!" is legally sold as potpourri, but many users smoke it because it mimics the effects of marijuana.

Cops hunt mystery man seen burning a pile of bloodstained flooring in Washingon state

Bloodstained carpeting and hardwood floor planks found partially burned in a wooded area of a Washington state town have cops looking for a possible killer, authorities said.

Hamas negotiators meet with Islamic militant group leaders to discuss long-term truce proposal

Israel and Hamas are observing a five-day temporary cease-fire in an attempt to allow indirect talks in Cairo to continue.

‘I just saw someone die’: Neighbor live-tweeted Michael Brown shooting in Ferguson

A Twitter user who lives along Canfield Ave. in Ferguson, Mo., live-tweeted the police shooting of Michael Brown and the aftermath as an angry crowd assembled at the scene of the killing Saturday.

Ayatollah Khamenei weighs in on Twitter about Michael Brown death

Talk about the pot calling the kettle racist. Iran’s supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei is using the mayhem in Missouri, which erupted after an unarmed black teen was killed by a cop, as an excuse to slam the U.S.

Obama's comments after Ferguson shooting mark third involvement in racially-charged case

Obama has been involved in other high-profile cases with racial overtones: the shooting death of unarmed teenager Trayvon Martin and the arrest of Harvard professor Henry Louis Gates..

PEACEMAKER-IN-CHIEF: Capt. Ron Johnson restores order in Ferguson after Michael Brown shooting

Capt. Ron Johnson was tapped by Missouri’s governor to settle things down in a St. Louis suburb that was rocked by five nights of violence.

THE OTHER DARREN WILSON: St. Louis police sergeant mistaken on social media for cop who shot teen

Moments after police identified Officer Darren Wilson as the cop who shot Michael Brown, 18, a longtime St. Louis city police sergeant, who shares the same name, was mistaken as the shooter.

EDITORIAL Tragedy in Ferguson is lesson in how not to handle aftermath of police shooting

At last, the adults have arrived in Ferguson, Mo., six days after a huge, paramilitary police presence further inflamed residents hurting after the deadly shooting of an unarmed young man by a police officer yet to be identified.

New York

Three suspects to face charges in connection with fatal shootings of two livery drivers in Bronx

Three suspects have been taken into custody in connection with the fatal shootings of two livery cab drivers who were slain in the Bronx a week apart, authorities said on Friday.

U.S. court revives challenge to New York City circumcision law

A federal appeals court on Friday revived an effort to block a New York City regulation that requires people who perform a Jewish circumcision ritual on infants that involves oral suction to first obtain parental consent.

As tuition battle at Cooper Union lands in court, mogul's generous offer is revealed

Real estate honcho Jeff Gural once offered to donate millions to Cooper Union to stall — and possibly stop — a plan to impose tuition on students for the first time since 1902, it was revealed Friday.

LATEST FROM AROUND NEW YORK

Sikh Coalition blasts NYPD for turban bias

A group representing the Sikh community accused the NYPD of religious discrimination Thursday.

Couple scams Staten Island target with counterfeit money

A couple scammed a Target store on Staten Island out of $900 worth of electronics, cops said Thursday. The man and woman presented nine counterfeit $100 bills at the Target on Richmond Ave. at 10:30 p.m.

Which dress should this doting wife pick for date night?

Florida girl, 9, was strangled, stuffed in suitcase during alleged sexual assault: cops

Nearly three months after a third grade girl’s naked body was found floating in a river, Florida police claim they’ve finally pinned down her killer.

AFTER GAMMY: Thailand blocks U.S., Australians from leaving with surrogate babies

Severe restrictions to Thai surrogacy are afoot after a global scandal involving an Australian father accusing of neglecting his son, who was born with Down syndrome to a Thai surrogate.

Ebola outbreak that has killed more than 1,000 people could last another 6 months: aid group

The Ebola outbreak that has killed more than 1,000 people in West Africa could last another six months, Doctors Without Borders said Friday, and an aid worker acknowledged that the true death toll is unknown.

Florida man busted stealing TVs before telling cops his name is ‘Ima Thief’

A judge said he would call the man, who said he was 34, "Mr. Ima," before ordering him held without bond on charges of grand theft, resisting arrest and probation violation.

Another Duggar off the market: Jessa engaged to boyfriend

Alabama student sent home for having dying her hair red

Hayleigh Black’s hair is apparently too red for school. The 16-year-old has donned the fiery shade of red hair for the past three years.

Florida 14-year-old dies at football training camp after playing in scorching temperatures

Hot weather stoked by humidity may be to blame for William Shogran Jr.’s death at a military base used by Sebastian River High School for summer practice, according to a TCPalm.com report.

Church employee arrested for molesting children at Sunday Service

Jonathan Macy, 31, was cuffed by California police on Wednesday morning after an investigation into the abuse, CBS reports.

Ukraine destroys Russian military vehicles at border after letting Red Cross deliver Russia-sent aid to rebel-held area

NATO and Ukraine said Russian military vehicles did cross into Ukraine during the night and the Ukrainian president said most of them were destroyed by his troops.

Reese Witherspoon enjoys wild night out in Italy

$35G missing from bank accounts of MH 370 passengers: officials

Mississippi fugitive suspected of child abuse caught in Ore.

THE YOUNGER GAMES: Is JLaw dating Chris Martin?

NASCAR passes new rule on drivers leaving cars in wake of Kevin Ward's death

Wisconsin girl, 13, busted driving drunk in mom's car after taking it for spin without her permission: cops

Sports

Wheeler continues impressive run as Campbell’s HR pushes Mets past Cubs

Aces overpower opponents. They almost always give their teams a chance to win. They stop losing streaks. The Mets’ Zack Wheeler has never been anointed with the “ace” moniker, but he is absolutely pitching like one these days.

JPP will get chance to back up Giant boasts against Colts

For the last few months, the talk has been fast and furious from Jason Pierre-Paul. The Giants’ boisterous defensive end proclaimed that he was “110%” healthy, that he was headed for an absolutely “crazy” year and that all those who doubted his greatness were about to be “shut up.”