Man Charged in Killing of Queens Imam and Aide Pleads Not Guilty

Here is the latest from The New York Times ‘Focus NY’.

New York Today: New York Today: So Long, Sweaty Summer
Friday: Hurricane Hermine, activities over Labor Day weekend, and the derechos of 1998.

Man Charged in Killing of Queens Imam and Aide Pleads Not Guilty
During the arraignment, a prosecutor said there was ample evidence against the defendant, Oscar Morel, but Mr. Morel’s lawyer raised concerns about how the investigation had been handled.

Anthony Weiner Confirms Child Welfare Agency Is Investigating Him
Mr. Weiner, facing another scandal over lewd online messages, originally said he had not yet been contacted by the New York City Administration for Children’s Services.

Attack Ad Among First Salvos Against Mayor de Blasio in 2017 Race
The first contours of the negative campaign against the mayor are emerging, including a critical ad and a “Stop de Blasio” ballot line, even if no challengers have yet done so.

Committed to Rebuilding the World Trade Center, for 15 Years and Counting
Frank Hussey, a superintendent for Tishman Construction, has worked on four towers in the complex since the attacks on Sept. 11, 2001.

Some Rikers Island Guards Will Get Tasers, de Blasio Says
The arming of correction officers with electric stun guns was among new security measure unveiled by Mayor Bill de Blasio for New York City’s jail complex after a series of attacks on guards.

Neighborhood Joint: For the Sake of Art: Risk and Reward at 2,000 Degrees
UrbanGlass in Fort Greene, Brooklyn, gives glass blowers access to the space and expensive equipment they need to practice their craft.

Under New Policy for Homeless Families, Children Can Miss Less School
New York is changing a rule that requires an entire family to be present at the city’s intake center when reapplying to get a spot in a shelter.

Inside UrbanGlass
A workspace in Brooklyn provides ample room for glass blowers to create their works.

Summer at the Silver Gull: ‘A New York Game’: Where Paddle Ball, Trash Talk Included, Is King
For some members of the Silver Gull Beach Club, the perfect summer is spent not at the beach, the pool or the cabanas, but on a hot concrete court.

New York Today: New York Today: Wonders on Our Walls
Thursday: Must-see murals, a unicycle festival and cicadas in the city.

Brooklyn Man Recalls 2013 Beating and His Pleas for Help
“I was kicked in the face. I was dragged,” Taj Patterson, who says he was beaten by a group of Hasidic Jews in the Williamsburg neighborhood, testified in State Supreme Court.

De Blasio and Police Pushing Safety at J’ouvert Celebration in Brooklyn
A year after two men, one a former aide to Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo, were murdered amid the predawn revelry, New York City officials are pledging to reduce violence at the event.

Anthony Weiner, Who Always Had Something to Say, Goes Silent
After being caught for a third time sending lewd messages on social media, the former congressman is uncertain about his future, friends say.

Recreation and Commerce Collide on New York’s Crowded Waterways
An accident involving a ferry and kayakers on the Hudson demonstrates the increasing demands on the rivers and other bodies of water around the city.

$655.5 Million Terrorism Verdict Against Palestinian Groups Is Thrown Out
A federal appeals court in New York reversed a ruling that had held the Palestinian Authority and the Palestine Liberation Organization liable for their roles in supporting attacks in Israel that killed Americans.

Officials Release Sketch of Possible Witness in Queens Jogger’s Killing
The New York police said the man was not considered a suspect or even a person of interest in the Aug. 2 killing of Karina Vetrano.

3 Dead and 10 Hurt in Queens Crash, Police Say
The accident, on the Long Island Expressway, forced the shutdown of lanes of traffic heading toward Manhattan, the authorities said.

Harley Flanagan, Original New York Punker, Finds His Mellower Side
Mr. Flanagan, 49, has always been a magnet for drama, including an arrest in two 2012 stabbings at a concert. These days, though, he is teaching Brazilian jujitsu to children.

Lead Tests on New York City Schools’ Water May Have Masked Scope of Risk
Officials said that fewer than 1 percent of samples taken had elevated lead levels. But a review of how the tests were conducted raises questions about the accuracy of the results.

New York Today: New York Today: Empire State of Dairy
Wednesday: Prize-winning milk and cheese at the State Fair, snakes on a train, and Gene Wilder’s New York.

Metropolitan Diary: Grab-Bag Family Bound by Dumpling Steam
A woman recalls the camaraderie of an early job at a Times Square dumpling shack no longer there.

Metropolitan Diary: A Valet Who Parks Dogs
Watching a driver leave both his S.U.V. and his schnauzer in a Midtown garage.

De Blasio Donor Violated City Rules, Conflicts Board Says
A birthday fund-raiser sponsored by a member of the New York City Water Board, who donated the maximum to Mayor Bill de Blasio’s election campaign, was “an honest mistake,” the mayor said.

House Panel Investigating Troubled V.A. Hospital on Long Island
The Veterans Affairs Committee is planning to hold a field hearing next month about the Northport medical center.

Christie Vetoes Minimum Wage Bill, Calling Raise to $15 ‘Really Radical’
The New Jersey governor’s action means that by 2018, fast-food workers in Manhattan could earn $6 more an hour than their peers across the Hudson River.

11 Kayakers Rescued From Hudson River After Collision With Ferry
One of the kayakers was taken to the hospital in serious condition after the episode near Pier 79, the authorities said.

About New York: Crickets, Snakes, Crabs: A Mix of Fact and Fraud in New York’s Subway
The cricket lady whose train stopped on the Manhattan Bridge was a prank, but the Williamsburg-bound passenger with snakes was for real.

After Months of Anger in Hoosick Falls, Hearings on Tainted Water Begin
State lawmakers arrived Tuesday in the village, about 35 miles northeast of Albany, where the public water supply has been contaminated with high levels of a toxic chemical.

New York Court Expands Definition of Parenthood
The state Court of Appeals ruled Tuesday that a non-adoptive, non-biological caretaker of a child could be allowed to ask for custody and visitation rights.

$76 Where There Should Be $600,000: Missing City College Donation Prompts Inquiry
The account is part of the holdings of the institution’s principal fund-raising arm, whose finances, as well as those of the college’s president, are already under scrutiny.

New York Today: New York Today: All Eyes on Tennis
Tuesday: The U.S. Open begins, more superb weather, and equal prize money in Grand Slams.

Anthony Weiner and Huma Abedin to Separate After His Latest Sexting Scandal
The former congressman was said to have exchanged sexual messages with a woman last year, four years after a similar scandal cost him his political career.

In Expansion, New York’s Medical Marijuana Program Will Offer Home Delivery
Moving to address complaints about the program, the state’s Health Department is making substantial changes aimed at easing access to the drug.

Metropolitan Diary: Blink and You Miss It
A poet ponders how quickly summer passes.

Daniel Z. Nelson, Who Put Classrooms in High-Rises, Dies at 86
Mr. Nelson presided over the New York City Educational Construction Fund, a public benefit corporation that helped create classrooms in partnership with developers.

New York Attorney General Settles Inquiry Into Once-Successful Developer
The investigation of Shaya Boymelgreen, whose business practices in New York City were the subject of scrutiny, began in 2013.

Fired Professor Shoots 2 in Chappaqua, Police Say; Revenge May Be Motive
Hengjun Chao, 49, was charged with attempted second-degree murder after he allegedly wounded two men, including the dean of the Mount Sinai School of Medicine, where Mr. Chao once worked.

Family Grieves Sophomore’s Killing in Ithaca, a College Town Thought to Be Safe
Anthony Nazaire, 19, of Brooklyn, was fatally stabbed over the weekend in the upstate city’s first homicide since 2011.

‘The Market Is Saturated’: Brooklyn’s Rental Boom May Turn Into a Glut
With 19 residential towers under construction or recently finished in just one section of the borough, developers worry about oversupply.

Race to Replace Sheldon Silver Reflects His District’s Ethnic Diversity
In the 65th District of Manhattan, one of New York’s most ethnically diverse, six candidates are vying for the Assembly seat that Mr. Silver had held for nearly four decades.

Building Blocks: How the Roof Was Raised at Arthur Ashe Stadium
The stadium, the main court of the United States Open, wasn’t built to bear the extra weight of a roof, so an engineer and an architect approached it from the soil up.

A Record Ride on New York’s Subway
Matthew Ahn has set a new record for the fastest time to travel to all New York City subway stations – 21 hours, 28 minutes and 14 seconds. We rode along with him for his record-breaking trip.