Alycia Lane, the Philadelphia newswoman who punched a female NYPD police officer, was relieved after appearing at Manhattan Criminal Court today. The Manhattan DA's office basically dismissed her case, for an "adjournment in contemplation of dismissal." Prosecutors said the female cop's injuries "were not serious enough" to support the felony assault charge, so charges were reduced to obstruction of governmental administration and harassment. Lane, who allegedly called the cop a "dyke bitch" during a run-in......

Despite some bizarre behavior during his arraignment earlier this week, David Tarloff has been found fit to stand trial for the cleaver-hacking murder of psychologist Kathryn Faughey. The initial target of Tarloff's wrath was Dr. Kent Shinbach, whose office was next door to Faughey's. Shinbach apparently had Tarloff institutionalized some years ago and the schizophrenic man had undergone electro-shock treatments. Tarloff was examined by two psychiatrists who found him "not incapacitated," meaning he can participate......

The Occupational Safety and Health Administration proposed $464,600 in fines over two contractors' safety lapses at the Deutsche Bank building. Contractor Bovis Lend Lease, which had been retained by the state government, and its former subcontractor John Galt Corporation had been dismantling the building when a seven-alarm fire, caused by a worker's smoking, broke out last August. Two firefighters died during the blaze, it was revealed pieces of the standpipe (which lets water for firefighters......

As David Tarloff is held in the murder of therapist Kathryn Faughey, the Manhattan DA's office is planning on showing how the crime was premeditated. Tarloff was charged with second-degree murder, second-degree attempted murder (when he slashed another doctor, Kent Shinbach), and first-degree assault. One imagines Tarloff, who is schizophrenic, might claim insanity, but the Post reports evidence, like "surveillance video showing David Tarloff scoping out an escape route," may give prosecutors a strong case.......

Update: Police have arrested David Tarloff, a Queens resident and former patient of Shinbach's, for Faughey's murder. The Post reports Tarloff, described as overweight with a bald spot by neighbors, has a history of violent crime. Apparently fingerprints found on suitcases left at the crime scene led the police to Tarloff. Earlier: As the family and friends prepare to say good-bye at a funeral for psychologist Kathryn Faughey today, the police have been questioning a......

A doctor who practices in NJ with admitting privileges at New York Presbyterian Hospital. His 94-year-old mother. Her $832,453 savings. And a wall collapse in Upper Manhattan. In a case Manhattan DA Robert Morgenthau called "a mini-Astor case," Dr. Robin Motz was accused of stealing his mother's savings since 2003. Motz, who pleaded not guilty to grand larceny and money laundering, assumed power of attorney for his mother, Minnie Motz, a retired librarian. According to......

The tragic death of a construction worker at the Trump Soho building has put the spotlight on the spotty history of a contractor on the project. On Monday afternoon, a worker, Yuriy Vanchytskyy (pictured below), fell 42 stories to his death when the molds he and other workers were pouring concrete into broke, causing a collapse into lower floors. The NY Times notes that another worker, also working for subcontractor DiFama Concrete, died when he......

As the police try to reconstruct the events of Thursday night's mugging attack, a little more information is offered about some of those involved. Subway conductor Maurice Parks was walking home when he was attacked by a group of muggers in Harlem, at West 139th Street and St. Nicholas Avenue late Thursday night. When stabbed, Parks took out his own knife to defend himself. By the end, the police arrested a wounded attacker and another......

The Manhattan DA's office really wants to make sure people understand that jumping off the Empire State Building is not legal! Last year, a judge dismissed charges against "daredevil" Jeb Corliss who attempted to jump off the Empire State Building - with a parachute - in April 2006. The Manhattan DA's office appeal notes "it took a number of security guards, police officers, two pairs of handcuffs, and the actual removal of a portion......

We've been following the fallout over the late Brooke Astor's will and estate for a while, but today's in-depth article in the NY Times about lawyer Francis Morrissey's numerous clients who put him in their wills is pretty damning. Morrissey was indicted (along with Astor's son Anthony Marshall) on charges if trying to, essentially, loot Astor's estate last month. The Times explains that he worked with two other lawyers, Wililam Forsythe and Peter Kelly, used......

New Jersey police have arrested a number of members of the Lucchese crime family. In the process of breaking up a multi-billion dollar betting organization, cops discovered that the old school mafia family had also teamed up with the more street-level gang the Bloods. The two groups were working together to smuggle things like iPods, cell phones, and drugs into the East Jersey State Prison. The betting ring was fairly sophisticated, utilizing Internet sites, an......

Robert Morgenthau's stranglehold on the position of Manhattan District Attorney has lasted 33 years but today's Post tittered that he was mulling an "early exit." Page Six reported that a "well-connected legal source" said the 88-year-old DA was orchestrating a retirement to have Cyrus Vance Jr. installed for a few years. Apparently Morgenthau wants Vance Jr., once an assistant DA, in place to block his former protegee and 2005 Democratic primary opponent Leslie Crocker Snyder,......

David Lemus, who was convicted in the 1990 killing of Palladium bouncer Marcus Peterson in 1992, was found not guilty yesterday at the conclusion of his retrial. His mother screamed when the verdict was read and Lemus' lawyers reportedly appeared stunned. The jury took only two days to deliberate and the foreman of the jury from the 1992 trial was present during much of the retrial. Before his original conviction for the 14th St. club......

Shawn Kovell, who was arrested in an undercover drug sting in October, was released from jail yesterday to head into a drug treatment program. She was able to get out by making a deal with the Manhattan DA's office: Kovell pleaded guilty to charges that she sold cocaine with her boyfriend, Robert Chambers, the infamous "Preppy Killer" in the 1986 death of Jennifer Levin. Kovell was originally held on $25,000 bail, and Kovell's lawyer had......

Anthony Marshall, the son of the late Brooke Astor, might have chosen a different lawyer if he suspected that he'd be eventually accused of looting his mother's estate. Or perhaps Francis X. Morrissey was the perfect man for the job. Papers are reporting today that Marshall's lawyer has a long history of profiting from soon-to-be-deceased clients. He was in court yesterday, arriving handcuffed, but leaving free on bail.It would seem to be the darkest moment......

What's today's salacious claim about Anthony Marshall, who was recently indicted for allegedly mishandling his mother Brooke Astor's estate? That he hated his mother's dear dogs so much, he wanted them dead! Rush & Molloy spoke to a source who claims Marshall "wanted to put them to sleep." "Them" being Astor's dachshunds Boysie and Girlsie. When Marshal's own son originally claimed his father was not properly caring for Astor, it was mentioned that Marshall wouldn't......

Anthony Marshall, the only son of New York society legend Brooke Astor, pleaded not guilty to 18 counts of criminal activity related to the handling of his mother's finances. The 83-year-old former Marine spoke in court once (to utter "not guilty") and, after his bond was approved, left the courthouse using a cane. He also apparently cried. Among the accusations the Manhattan DA's office made against Marshall and his former lawyer Francis Morrissey (a PDF......

Dare we say that Brooke Astor is rolling in her grave? Yesterday, it was reported that her son Anthony Marshall and his former lawyer Francis Morrissey would be indicted for criminal activity over the handling of her will. And this morning, Marshall turned himself in at the Manhattan DA's offices, to face charges of fraud, forgery and grand larceny. Or, as DA Robert Morgenthau said, "The indictment charges that Marshall and Morrissey took advantage of......

Ten years ago today, Camden Sylvia and Michael Sullivan left their rent-stabilized loft in downtown Manhattan, went for a jog, rented a video and were never seen again. Today, the Daily News revisits the mystery and speaks to Sylvia's mother. Laurie Sylvia says, "I want to know what happened. Each year that goes by I think, maybe this year. I never imagined I would be doing that for 10 years." Sylvia, then 36, and Sullivan,......

Anyone looking for closure in the Diddy SoHo slapfest case, look no further. Reports are that prosecutors aren't pursuing criminal charges against Mr. Combs anymore because "Stephen Acevedo appeared to stop cooperating with police - after accusing the rap star of sucker-punching him inside the exclusive SoHo club on Oct. 13 after the two quarreled over women." Of course, Acevedo's lawyer says he is taking the "high road" and declining to talk further about the......

Staten Island Borough President James P. Molinaro was not happy when DA and former aide Daniel M. Donovan Jr. recused himself from the trial of Molinaro's grandson Steven for violating his probation and intimidating a paperboy he'd previously assaulted. Last week, the borough president placed a full page ad in the Staten Island Advance newspaper expressing his displeasure with Donovan punting the case to the Manhattan DA, feeling that it improperly biased the eventual jurors......

Facing numerous drug charges that could put him away for the rest of his life, convicted murderer Robert Chambers pleaded not guilty during a Thursday court appearance. Chambers, 41, and his companion, 39-year-old Shawn Kovell, are accused of selling drugs from Kovell's rent-stabilized one-bedroom apartment on East 57th Street in Manhattan. Earlier this week, the couple were busted by undercover officers. The Manhattan DA's office, no stranger to Chambers after the infamous 1986 murder of......

Robert Chambers, whose privileged Upper East upbringing earned the tabloid nickname "The Preppy Killer" when he killed a woman in 1986, was charged with 14 counts of selling and possessing drugs. Since two of the counts are for first-degree sale, which the Daily News reports carries 15-30 years, Manhattan DA Robert Morgenthau said, "I would expect he would spend the rest of his life in jail." Chambers and girlfriend Shawn Kovell were arrested by......

Police officer Sean Sawyer was released and not charged after confessing to shooting an unarmed man in Harlem during a road argument early Sunday morning. The Manhattan DA's office claimed that Sawyer could have been acting in self-defense, because the other driver, Jayson Tirado, suggested he had a gun when he gestured and yelled at Sawyer. DA Robert Morgenthau said the "case is under investigation and is going to go to a grand jury. When......

A Manhattan dog walker was charged with stealing more than $50,000 from the 84-year-old mother of a client. According to the NY Sun, the Manhattan DA's office says that Daniel Natale, who runs Luna Dog Service, "allegedly used a checkbook, credit cards, and a debit card to steal cash." Natale met Isabel Zakin through her daughter four years ago. Zakin told the Post that her broken hip "made it impossible for her to walk" Tibetan......

Yet another depressing fact revealed about the Deutsche Bank demolition in the wake of two firefighters' deaths. The NY Times reports that contractors had created an emergency exit plan through sealed stairwells, but the firefighters didn't know about the plan. Fire department spokesman Francis X. Gribbon told the Times, “The Fire Department was not involved in creating this plan, specifically — and most importantly — with regard to the sealed staircases. We were not notified......

Two men were arraigned for trying to steal hundreds of thousands of dollars from billionaire Mayor Bloomberg. Manhattan DA Robert Morgenthau outlined the two schemes: Odalis Bostic forged two checks from Bloomberg's personal Bank of America account. One was for $190,000, the other was for $230,000, and both were "issued in the name of the mayor’s financial manager, Geller & Company," according to CityRoom. Bostic deposited them into two different bank accounts, but when Bank......

In this week's NY Times Weddings & Celebrations announcements: There are 50 announcements (49 weddings, 1 civil union) this weekend. There are 26 announcements with photographs of couples and 2 announcements with bride-only photographs. The youngest bride is 25, the oldest bride is 42. The youngest groom is 26, the oldest groom is 56. The Vows column couple had a long, comedic courtship since meeting at Yale; in fact, when the groom dropped to a......

Eighteen-year-old Steven Molinaro, grandson of Staten Island Borough President James Molinaro, was found guilty of criminal contempt of violating an order of protection. His family says that the jury made a bad decision and James Molinaro said, "I think being my grandson hurt him." Maybe so, but Steven Molinaro has been getting into trouble on his own. Last year, Steven Molinaro was arrested after beating up a 14-year-old Staten Island Advance newspaper boy Mark Veras,......

The city has hired a criminal defense lawyer to represent its various agencies who are coming under attack for the Deutsche Bank fire that claimed two firefighters lives. The Manhattan DA's office started a criminal probe, after some disturbing practices by the contractors and questionable omissions by the Fire Department and the Buildings Department came to light. Eventually smoking, by workers hired to help dismantle the WTC-dust contaminated building, was cited as the probable cause......