Keisha

A Severn teenager will be sentenced to 15 years in prison as a result of his plea yesterday in the fatal shooting a 15-year-old runaway girl for no apparent reason. Deante Littlejohn, 17, entered an Alford plea to second-degree murder before Anne Arundel County Circuit Judge Philip T. Caroom, meaning that he did not admit guilt but conceded that prosecutors had enough evidence to convict him of shooting Keisha Lane on Aug. 17, 2005. The girl had run away from foster care in Hagerstown to the home of a friend near Severn.

Two young children reported kidnapped from a Southeast Baltimore elementary school were found unharmed last night in Beaufort, N.C., along with a 14-year-old boy believed to have taken them."

A pregnant Baltimore woman who police say admitted this week that she shook to death her 2-month-old baby was on probation for child abuse at the time of the infant's death, court documents show. Keisha Carr, 23, of the 800 block of W. Fayette St. was ordered yesterday to be held without bail by a District Court judge. She is charged with first-degree murder, assault and child abuse. Carr, who is two months' pregnant, was arrested Tuesday night after police said she described to them how she killed her infant, David Allan Carr, who died Feb. 12, court documents show.

A 41-year-old Baltimore mother pleaded guilty yesterday to killing her 18-month-old daughter, but city prosecutors said she did not bear sole responsibility for the death of her baby. Monalisa Mackey was not supposed to be left alone last February with the girl, Alicia Cureton, prosecutors said. A city juvenile court judge had given custody to the baby's biological father and ordered him not to leave the baby in Mackey's care. But prosecutors said the judge knew the parents lived together in a Southeast Baltimore rowhouse.

A graduating class that teachers and administrators say was among Hammond High School's most polite and goal-oriented bid farewell to the school yesterday at a commencement ceremony that filled the University of Maryland Baltimore County's field house.Parents, grandparents and friends cheered as the last of the 245 graduates received a diploma, a handshake and a yellow flower marking the end of four years at the school.Throughout the ceremony, students reminisced about their high school careers and talked about the future.

Keisha Blackwell took all mighty No. 1 Connecticut could hand out Sunday in an 85-61 Big East loss for Providence College, but when it was over the gifted freshman from Seton Keough was still standing as the Friars' starting point guard. "I've been told I'm the starting point guard for the rest of the season," the 5-foot-6 Blackwell said yesterday. "Of course, things could change. But I've gained confidence in my ability to create scoring opportunities for my teammates." Blackwell was making her third straight start at point guard and seventh start of the season Sunday.

With five starters missing between the two teams, it seemed yesterday's Seton Keough-Milford Mill game might be remembered for the players who weren't there rather than for those who were.Itxaso Mallaviabarrena made sure that didn't happen.The six-foot exchange student from Spain scored 27 points to lead the No. 2 Gators to a 57-47 victory over the No. 8 Millers. She scored all 13 of the host Gators' first-quarter points and finished with nine rebounds and four assists.The Gators (23-5) needed a big day from the senior guard because they were playing without their junior class, all of whom were on retreat.

Three weeks into the girls basketball season and a few things are clear in Howard County. It's all about the guards this season; three-time defending champ River Hill with All-Metro senior guard Keisha Eaddy looks a notch above the rest; and any of a number of teams - including Mount Hebron, Atholton and Long Reach - could emerge to present a challenge. Which team moves to the front is the most interesting question. Mount Hebron (5-0) is off to a fast start with an impressive 55-32 win over Atholton last Wednesday serving as its high mark to date.

LAUREL, Del. - Before dawn Thursday, a dark and frightening vigil took place in Teresa DeShields' tidy apartment as her daughter's boyfriend fell apart. For seven hours, DeShields, daughter Keisha, 25, and a friend watched Allison Lamont Norman cry and writhe on the living room floor. Norman spoke of wanting to kill his mother and a man who he said had repeatedly molested him as a child. "He fell on the floor and said, 'Help me, help me,'" DeShields said yesterday. "He just lay there, moaning and groaning."

First came the swarming defense from No. 1-ranked Seton Keough last night. The baskets soon followed, one after another in a near-flawless third quarter that turned a tightly contested first half against No. 5 Archbishop Spalding into a 56-30 win for the Gators. Just how dominant was Seton Keough after going into halftime down 24-23 at home? The Gators, now 12-2 overall and 5-0 in the Interscholastic Athletic Association of Maryland's A Conference, forced 10 turnovers to start the third quarter with hassling double teams that made inbounding the ball a difficult chore for the Cavaliers.