MR GRADY'S DAILY BLOG: AMERICAS EARLY BIRD NEWS

EARLY BIRD

EXCLUSIVE NYPD's most-sued cop, hit with an average of $50K per lawsuit, close to costing the city $1.3M in settlements

Since April, the city has quietly paid out $402,000 to settle six of the eight remaining lawsuits where oft-sued NYPD detective Peter Valentin is a named defendant.

Red Sox fans give Jeter warm goodbye after booing him for two decades

BOSTON — They booed him for two decades, but Red Sox fans, and even one of the team’s bench-warmers, jumped on the Derek Jeter bandwagon Sunday. The perennial Jeter haters threw a 2-faced lovefest for the Captain in the last game of his illustrious career, giving the unfriendly confines of Fenway Park the weird feel of Yankee Stadium.

Bernie Madoff's son was under scrutiny until he died — and questions still surround $16M estate

The court-appointed trustee seeking to recover money for bilked investors began taking aim at Andrew Madoff's money even before his Sept. 3 death from mantle cell lymphoma.

'Shots were flying everywhere': 15 people, including children, hurt in shooting at Miami nightclub

Fifteen people, including at least five teenage girls, were injured following a shooting early Sunday morning at a Miami night club.

'Ozzy and I have suffered in the past year': Dog takes the stand with owner in animal cruelty case

Ozzy, a white West Highland Terrier, sat on Sharon Betts’ lap while she testified at a Northern Virginia courthouse against a man who broke into her house and killed her other Westie in April 2013.

Perry on Tyler fights: Aerosmith's 'dressing room became a battleground'

Truck driver was reportedly distracted by something inside vehicle before crash that killed four Texas students

The driver of a truck that crashed into a bus carrying members of a Texas softball team made no attempt to stop as careened through a median and off the road.

Pet cow dies after getting battered with a dozen softballs hurled from potato-launcher

Sgt. Steve Martos tells KPHO-TV that the family found the animal with severe injuries on their north Phoenix ranch on Friday morning.

Police hunt for two men who shot cop in Ferguson, Mo.

Authorities were searching Sunday for two men suspected of shooting and wounding a police officer in Ferguson, the St.

Lovett: Super PACs in New York in stupor this election cycle

The rise of Super PACs In New York has been anything but super.

Kim and little North wear matching sheer outfits in Paris

Atheist groups fight religious statue at Georgia high school football field

Football is religion in the Deep South, but one Georgia school district is accused of taking it to the extreme. Madison County High School near Athens, Ga. is drawing biblical ire from two atheist groups after the district installed a granite monument inscribed with religious messages at a new football field.

Brooklyn football player, 12, hit by stray bullet attends first Jets game

Seventh-grader Levon Gilliam Jr.'s season with Brooklyn United Football was cut short when he was caught in crossfire while getting off his school bus on Sept. 22. The Daily News secured field access for Levon and his entourage after his coaches decided to take him to the game.

Two skydivers killed after crashing into Massachusetts garage

BARNSTABLE, Mass. — Police in Massachusetts say two skydivers have died after crashing into a building during a tandem jump on Cape Cod.

'THIS IS A DISASTER': Three killed — including child — and dozens injured after monster truck accident sends big-wheeled vehicle into crowd in Netherlands

The moment a giant monster truck crashed into a crowd at a Netherlands show and killed three people Sunday was captured on video by dozens of bystanders.

'Django' actress: Why I didn't cooperate with LAPD cops

NOT LETTING GO! N.J. woman sues Disney for stealing 'Frozen' plot from her life story

A $250 million lawsuit against Disney claims the inspiration for the mega-blockbuster film "Frozen" came from the works of a Peruvian author.

WHAT ARE YOU HIGH? Former UPS employee traded stolen $160,000 diamond for $20 worth of pot: cops

Fired UPS employee Walter Earl Morrison, 20, has been accused of stealing a valuable diamond from a UPS cargo plane and trading the gem, which was valued at $160,000, for $20 worth of marijuana.

Missing Idaho woman found disoriented at her childhood Miss. home

BOISE, Idaho — An Idaho woman who disappeared last week has been found, disoriented but alive, in the small Mississippi town where her father was once a minister in the 1960s.

Colorado cannabis giveaway attracts about 1,000 veterans — 'I just need something to take the pain away'

Marijuana seeds were just one of the items given away for free to Colorado veterans seeking alternative medication to treat physical and mental trauma.

New York

Cuomo wants New York to have ‘most sophisticated homeland defense’ of any state

Traveling in Afghanistan, Gov. Cuomo said he wants New York to develop “the most sophisticated homeland defense system ever designed by any state.”

Cops arrest punk who held up strangers with gun at Port Authority to get free swipes into subway

A punk who was pressuring strangers to swipe him into the subway was also packing a different form of heat — a .22 caliber handgun, cops said.

SUNY colleges report trends in campus sexual violence, harassment

About half of the 29 state-operated campuses within the State University of New York noted discernible patterns — though involving small numbers — that have already influenced training and response.

LATEST FROM AROUND NEW YORK

Upper West Side fire sends one to hospital

One person was hospitalized in a raging fire in an Upper West Side building that took dozens of firefighters to contain Sunday night.

Sen. Chuck Schumer pushes federal ban on synthetic marijuana, also known as 'K2' and 'spice'

The fake weed is already illegal to sell in New York, but Schumer (D-N.Y.) said it’s still being sold in some bodegas and gas stations.

The honeymooners! Kim and Kanye busy packing on PDA …

Raissman: Fox and CBS analysts join NY Jets fans in ripping Geno Smith

A quarterback under siege cannot purchase thick skin. He can buy a supply of earplugs. Judging by the heat he took Sunday, even before he lost to the Lions and then cursed out a fan, Geno Smith is going to need both — and more — to handle what’s coming his way.

U.S. and 'Crusader alliance' allies bomb ISIS oil refinery in Syria

The U.S. and its allies bombarded an oil refinery controlled by the Islamic State in Syria Sunday — and the war expanded as Al Qaeda’s affiliate there vowed to “use all possible means” to fight back.

Okla. beheading suspect should have been in prison: report

The deranged fiend who beheaded a female worker at an Oklahoma food processing plant should have been in prison, a new report revealed Sunday.

2 arrested trying to smuggle 25,000 diapers into Eastern Europe

Sometimes policing can be dirty work. Officers in Sweden have arrested two people for trying to smuggle 25,000 diapers into Eastern Europe, reports the Expressen newspaper, according to The Local.

… as Jay Z, Beyoncé fuel rumors their marriage is on rocks

Pit bull mauls Delaware pol's daughter leaving her in critical condition after multiple bites and blood loss

A daughter of a Delaware politician is in critical condition and may lose her arm after suffering multiple bites from an aggressive pit bull at the family's home on Saturday.

Bill and Hillary Clinton return to hospital to see Chelsea and granddaughter Charlotte

Bill and Hillary Clinton continued to play the role of excited grandparents Sunday.

Long Island motorcyclist nabbed with license suspended 17 times

Robert Russo, 43, of North Babylon, was headed east on the Long Island Expressway, but changed course when he saw cops between exits 65 and 66 in Yaphank, police said.

Liberia's chief medical officer goes under Ebola quarantine

The chief medical officer overseeing the fight against the deadly Ebola disease in Liberia has placed herself under a 21-day quarantine after one of her assistants died.

GHOULISH NEWS: Michael's 'Thriller' video going 3-D

METS KEEP 'EM DUMP 'EM! Let us know who should remain in Queens and who should just hit the road in 2015

Daniel Murphy? Terry Collins? Matt Harvey? David Wright? Now that the Mets season is officially over, step in to GM Sandy Alderson's chair and tell us who stays and who goes for next season.

Demi: ‘I had to grow up and embrace’ being a role model

YANKEES KEEP 'EM DUMP 'EM! Tell us who should stay in the Bronx and who should follow Jeter out the door

The Captain is gone and there is no coming back. But who else could and should leave the Yankees before 2015? Step in to Brian Cashman's chair and tell us who stays and who goes!

Sports

Coffey: Emotions run deep for Derek Jeter at Fenway Park

His name is Geoff Blankenship and he was 3 years old when Derek Jeter started his career, and he drove all through the night from Morgantown, W. Va., to be here for the end of it.

Harper: Jeter receives unrivaled admiration in enemy territory

If Re2pect has become the best and simplest way to define Derek Jeter’s legacy as he walks away from the game, then perhaps it was only fitting that he take his final bow at Fenway Park.

Madden: Jeter is amazing from beginning to end

At precisely 10:50 Sunday morning, Derek Jeter, wearing a dark blue suit, light blue shirt and a purple tie, entered the compact visitors’ clubhouse at Fenway Park for what was to be the final day of his baseball life.

Mehta: No defending Jets or Rex Ryan for poor defensive performance

Rex Ryan's prized defense blew a gift from the football gods in glorious fashion Sunday, looking every bit like a garden-variety group that isn’t scaring anyone.

The Captain in headlines! Vote for your favorite Derek Jeter Back Page

The Daily News editors have selected a few of our favorite back pages featuring the retiring Yankees captain. Check out our ballot below and vote for your favorite.

Ten moments from Derek Jeter's career that will last a lifetime

Since 1996, Derek Jeter has been building a Hall of Fame résumé with consistent excellence, helping the Yankees to five World Series championships and seven American League pennants. But while Jeter’s career numbers are impressive in their entirely, the shortstop has created his legacy with a series of memorable moments that will last forever.

‘Gone Girl’ author pinches herself over book's success…

Person of interest linked to Wisconsin Amber Alert and double homicide in custody

The body of a woman discovered shot to death on the sidewalk of a small Wisconsin city started a frantic search for her 8-year-old daughter.

VIDEO Cops searching for attempted rapist in Brooklyn attack

A man tried to rape a woman in Greenpoint, Brooklyn, in a horrifying attack early Sunday.

LISTEN 911 audio released in N.J. bear attack that killed Rutgers student

“We were hiking and we saw a bear,” the caller says. “We all started running, and it started chasing us.” The attack occurred last week in the Apshawa Preserve in West Milford, N.J.

… as star Rosamund Pike dishes on love scenes with Affleck

Disgruntled air traffic employee who caused delays in Chicago was being transferred to Hawaii: feds

The alleged arsonist who sabotaged an Illinois airport and bogged up more than 2,000 flights recently found out he was being transferred to Hawaii.

'That vehicle never stopped': Hit-and-run driver kills Los Angeles man in wheelchair

A heartless driver in Los Angeles mowed down a man in a wheelchair, speeding away as the man lay dying in the street, cops said.

Texas mom used daughter, 7, to held handle cash exchange in coke deals

She’s mommy’s little drug dealer. A 7-year-old girl expertly handled the money as her mom sold cocaine outside a Texas nightclub, authorities said.