Maryland Briefing

Manslaughter Plea in Shooting of Student

A Prince George's County teenager yesterday pleaded guilty to voluntary manslaughter and other offenses in connection with the fatal shooting last year of a student as she walked home from high school.

Jeffrey D. Boddie, 18, pleaded guilty in the Jan. 8, 2008, drive-by shooting death of Cherrese Richardson. Richardson, 18, was shot near Charles H. Flowers High School in Springdale.

Prosecutors said Boddie and Terrance R. Martin, 18, were in separate cars when each fired at a rival from another neighborhood. Defense attorneys said Boddie and Martin thought that they were being fired on, but prosecutors said there was no evidence of that.

Boddie is scheduled to be sentenced April 10. Under the terms of his plea agreement, he faces a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison. Last Friday, a Circuit Court judge sentenced Martin to 25 years in prison. Last September, a jury convicted Martin of second-degree murder, a weapons violation and other charges.

-- Ruben Castaneda

Transit Officer Injured in Beltway Hit-and-Run

A Metro Transit Police officer was injured in a hit-and-run incident yesterday evening when his motorcycle was struck on the Capital Beltway in Prince George's County, authorities said.

The incident occurred just after 6 p.m. near the Pennsylvania Avenue exit, Maryland State Police said. The officer's injuries were not considered life-threatening.

-- Elissa Silverman and Martin Weil