A federal appeals court ruled yesterday that checkpoints set up by District police in neighborhoods beset by violence are unconstitutional, effectively ending a crime-fighting tactic that officials say was used in only the most dire circumstances to protect residents.
The District man charged this week in the killing of an 8-month-old boy as he sat in his car seat is believed to have been the lookout in the crime, and Prince George's County police are still seeking the suspected gunman, authorities said yesterday.