BROOKLYN

PROSECUTORS WILL SEEK DEATH PENALTY FOR MASSINO

Federal prosecutors will seek the death penalty for Mafia kingpin Joseph Massino, making the man known as “The Last Don” the first mob chief in decades to face death at the hands of the government. Federal prosecutors told Massino’s lawyers yesterday that they intend to seek the death penalty in the 1999 killing of Gerlando Sciascia, a captain in Massino’s crime family who spoke ill of one of Massino’s friends, among other infractions. Sciascia was found shot three times in the head on a Bronx street in a slaying meant to look like a drug-related hit. Massino attorney David Breitbart said the prosecutors’ decision was a “parting gift” from U.S. Attorney General Ashcroft, who announced his resignation Tuesday. “It seems absolutely absurd,” Breitbart said yesterday. A spokesman for U.S. Attorney Roslynn Mauskopf in Brooklyn declined to comment on the case.

– Associated Press

MANHATTAN

FANS OF MICHAEL JACKSON PROTEST EMINEM VIDEO

Angry Michael Jackson fans – about 16 in total – demonstrated yesterday outside the Times Square studios of MTV over the network’s airing of an Eminem video that pokes fun at their perpetually strange singing idol. Mr. Jackson’s supporters were surprised by a message from the self-proclaimed King of Pop, who called in to Fox News to “thank my fans for their strong support over the years.” The phone call was played for the fans via loudspeakers on the street. In the video, “Just Lose It,” Detroit rapper Eminem impersonates Mr. Jackson, appearing with a group of boys in the background. “Come here, little kiddie, on my lap. Guess who’s back with a brand new rap,” he sings. Later in the clip, the Jackson character’s nose falls from his face to the floor. The Jackson fans said MTV shouldn’t air it.

– Associated Press

TERROR LAWYER AWAITS JURY VERDICT

After nine days on the witness stand defending herself against terrorism charges, lawyer Lynne Stewart said she returned home to make turnip soup yesterday and to hope that jurors found her to be honest. “I really do feel that my integrity is my strongest attribute in this kind of a matter,” Ms. Stewart said. The government is trying to prove that Ms. Stewart is more of a terrorist than a civil rights crusader, willing to deliver a message from an imprisoned Egyptian sheik to followers who had threatened to carry out terrorism on his behalf. If convicted of providing material support to terrorists while serving as a lawyer for Sheik Omar Abdel-Rahman, Ms. Stewart, 65, could face as much as 20 years in prison. The blind sheik is serving a life sentence in America after he was convicted in 1995 of conspiring to blow up five New York City landmarks, including the United Nations.

– Associated Press

STATEWIDE

SCHUMER COULD BE NEAR DECISION ON RUNNING FOR GOVERNOR

Senator Schumer may have less than a month to decide if he’s serious about running for governor in 2006, based on a game of musical chairs currently being played among Senate Democrats. Mr. Schumer is reportedly considering an offer from Senate Democrats to chair their national fund-raising operation, a prominent position, but one that would divert his energies from a statewide race for governor. New York’s senior senator has not ruled out such a run, which could entail a tough primary contest between Mr. Schumer and Attorney General Eliot Spitzer. The New York Post reported that Mr. Schumer has been offered the job chairing the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee, and as an extra incentive, a spot on the powerful Senate Finance Committee. According to Democratic party sources speaking on condition of anonymity, Mr. Schumer is mulling whether to jump at the boost in Washington prestige or keep alive his Albany ambitions.

– Associated Press

REGION

NEW DIRECTOR OF PORT AUTHORITY TO GET PERKS

NEWARK – A former chief of staff for Governor McGreevey is getting a lot more than a $206,000 a year salary thanks to his new post as deputy executive director of the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey. The Star-Ledger of Newark reported yesterday that James P. Fox also will receive a $30,000 annual housing allowance, as well as a car and an unlimited gasoline credit card if he chooses. Mr. Fox is the agency’s first deputy executive director to receive a housing allowance, the newspaper reported. Agency spokesman Steve Coleman defended the allowance for Mr. Fox and for Kenneth Ringler Jr., the agency’s executive director. Mr. Coleman told the newspaper that neither man lives near the agency’s Manhattan headquarters. Mr. Fox lives in Lambertville, N.J., about 55 miles southwest of New York City. Mr. Coleman added that Mr. Fox is expected to move to Manhattan.

– Associated Press

CITYWIDE

N.Y. MOTHER OF TWINS MAY BE SURPASSED AS OLDEST

A 59-year-old great-grandmother living in south Georgia is set to give birth to twins next month, which would steal some of the limelight, and a purported record, from a 56-year-old New York City woman who gave birth to twins this week. Frances Harris, of rural Sylvester, Ga., says she wasn’t trying to get pregnant. She didn’t even know she was carrying a child – let alone two – until she visited a doctor in August while trying to figure out some unusual weight gain over the summer. “A lot of things changed about me,” said Ms. Harris, a homemaker whose twins are due December 21. “I started craving grapes and apples, things I don’t usually crave. By then I was four months pregnant.” When the doctor broke the news, “They had to sit me down. I couldn’t even talk,” Ms. Harris said yesterday.

– Associated Press

POLICE BLOTTER

POLICE SEEK ATTACKER OF HOMELESS MAN

A homeless man who was knocked to the street at Greenwich Village on Halloween was pronounced dead on November 7, according to police, who are seeking the man suspected of pushing him. Police identified the victim as Jose Cantue, 61, who last resided on Bleecker Street but was homeless at the time of the incident. The victim was pushed by a white man in his 20s in front of 108 Seventh Ave. South at 1:23 a.m. on October 31. The victim fell, banging his head on the pavement, police said. The victim was taken to St. Vincent’s Hospital, where he was initially listed in critical condition. Police said they have not identified the suspect, who was accompanied by three white females at the time of the incident. A police source said there was no dispute leading up to the incident, and it took several days to identify Cantue.

– Staff Reporter of the Sun