New York City briefs

Journalist killing a twist in bomb trial

Facing a November terrorism trial in New York, the father of a man who is reportedly a suspect in the beheading of journalist James Foley finds his ex-rapper son's name emerging in an international probe.

It's unfolding just as the father tries to minimize descriptions of terrorism at his Manhattan trial that he fears might hurt his chances for an unbiased jury.

Abdel Abdul Bary was extradited from Britain to the U.S. in 2012 to face terrorism charges in connection with the twin 1998 bombings of two U.S. embassies in Africa. The bombings in Kenya and Tanzania killed 224 people. He has asked that he be tried separately from a man arrested after the 2001 terrorist attacks on the grounds that mention of post-2001 terrorism could taint his jury.

Prison sought for alleged terrorist

The government yesterday called for former al-Qaida spokesman and Osama bin Laden son-in-law Sulaiman abu Ghaith to get life in prison when he is sentenced next month in federal court in Manhattan.

Prosecutors said in a court filing that abu Ghaith, who appeared with bin Laden in a notorious Sept. 12, 2001, video, was a "proud and unabashed supporter" of a global terror conspiracy and argued there was no "fathomable" reason he should get less than life.

Abu Ghaith testified that he merely made speeches articulating Muslim principles and didn't know about or plan attacks. But prosecutors said he lied in his testimony, fully supported al-Qaida's jihadist plots and helped recruit with his fiery rhetoric.

Abu Ghaith was convicted in April of conspiring to murder Americans and providing material support to al-Qaida. His lawyer has urged U.S. District Judge Lewis Kaplan to imprison abu Ghaith for 15 years. Sentencing is set for Sept. 23.

Mayor: Toddler's death a 'tragedy'

New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio says there's going to be a "full investigation" after the death of a toddler at a caregiver's home.

De Blasio said yesterday that the death of 20-month-old Cardell Williamson was "a real tragedy." Williamson died Friday while in the apartment of Bronx child care worker Athena Skeeter, 40. She has been charged with manslaughter.

De Blasio said his understanding was that Skeeter's child care center had both state and city oversight, "so we want to get to the bottom of what happened." According to a court document, Skeeter told police she had been wrestling with the child and threw him to the floor.

She said she then stepped on him multiple times.

Skeeter is due back in court Thursday.

1950 conviction in legal spotlight again

A 98-year-old New Jersey woman convicted of conspiracy in the run-up to the atomic spy trial of Julius and Ethel Rosenberg has come back to a New York court to clear her name.

Miriam Moskowitz said after a brief court hearing yesterday that she needs an official vindication that she was wrongly convicted in 1950. She was sentenced to two years in prison after she was convicted on a charge that she conspired with two men to lie to a grand jury investigating atomic espionage.

A judge directed lawyers to handle the case expeditiously. A government lawyer said he was not yet prepared to say if prosecutors will oppose Moskowitz's request.

She filed the request two weeks ago, saying documents now prove the government withheld evidence that would have exonerated her.

The Rosenbergs were convicted of passing nuclear weapons secrets to the Soviet Union and were executed in 1953.

2-week-old safe after NYPD medical help

Police say a 2-week-old boy who had stopped breathing is safe after two officers used rescue techniques.

The NYPD says the incident happened about 11:15 p.m. Sunday in Brooklyn. Sgt. Michael Dario and Officer Elias Khan were on routine patrol when 911 dispatchers got a call about the baby at a home on 74th Avenue in the Bensonhurst neighborhood.

The baby's 32-year-old mother met the officers as they arrived. They found the boy unresponsive, his face turning blue.

Khan did a finger-sweep of the infant's mouth to make sure his airway wasn't obstructed, then began administering back thrusts after putting the baby in a proper position.

Meanwhile, Dario summoned medical help. But within 10 to 15 seconds, the child began breathing. He's hospitalized in stable condition.

Consumer affairs looks at 'Kidffiti'

The city's Consumer Affairs Department is looking into complaints that a stencil kit sold in toy stores will turn kids into junior graffiti artists, a lawmaker said yesterday.

The agency responded to Queens Assemb. Phil Goldfeder's concern that the stencil kit, called "Kidffiti," encourages vandalism, saying it would work with retailers to discuss the product and "address any rise in graffiti related to stencil availability," as well as potentially inspecting stores that sell spray paint.

"They're glorifying the use of spray paint and graffiti," Goldfeder (D-Rockaway) told amNewYork.

Goldfeder called Kidffiti stencil kits a "training tool" that teaches young children to create aerosol art in public.

"They're not marketing this as art, they're not marketing this as stencils. They're marketing it as graffiti," Goldfeder said. "Sadly, this product is not drawing that distinction."

Jakks, the maker of Kidffiti, which comes with a can of spray chalk and five stencils including a guitar and a dragon, did not return a request for comment. Toys R Us, which sells the kit, deferred comment to the manufacturer.