MARYLAND
Man accused in killing of officer
A 21-year-old man whose record includes at least 17 arrests was charged with first-degree murder in the killing early yesterday of an off-duty Baltimore police detective in an apparent robbery attempt. The suspect was wounded in the leg. pg 1a
Teen testifies against teacher
A teenage girl took the witness stand yesterday in city Circuit Court to testify against a teacher at a Baltimore Christian school who is accused of raping her - and who had served six years in prison on a 1995 conviction for second-degree murder. pg 1b
WORLD
Death toll in Somalia airstrike
Somali officials said yesterday that dozens of people were killed in a U.S. airstrike on Sunday, most of them Islamist fighters fleeing in armed pickup trucks across a remote, muddy stretch of the Kenya-Somalia border. pg 8a
U.S., Iraqis battle insurgents
More than 1,000 American and Iraqi troops, backed by Apache attack helicopters and F-18 fighter jets, battled insurgents all day yesterday and late into the night in downtown Baghdad, in one of the most extensive operations in the capital since the invasion nearly four years ago. pg 8a
TODAY
Baltimore dance a hot Web item
Once nearly unknown outside city nightclubs, the Baltimore SpongeBob dance is reaching young people across the country, thanks to video-friendly Web sites such as YouTube and MySpace. pg 1c
Dressing up in medieval attire
Baltimore-area residents who dress up in medieval costumes and meet in area parks are the subject of a new film making its debut on aol.com. pg 1c
SPORTS
Ripken elected to Hall of Fame
Orioles great Cal Ripken Jr., who played in 2,632 consecutive games and had more than 3,000 hits and 400 home runs, was elected by the Baseball Writers' Association of America to the Hall of Fame with the third-highest vote percentage in history. pg 1a
Terps returning to ACC play
The Maryland men's basketball team, which is 11-0 at Comcast Center this season, will host Miami tonight as the Atlantic Coast Conference part of the schedule starts up again. pg 1d
BUSINESS
DOW -- DOWN
- 6.89
12,416.60
NASDAQ -- UP
+ 5.63
2,443.83
S&P; -- DOWN
- 0.73
1,412.11
SUN INDEX -- UP
+ 0.67
360.14
Bad news for cable customers
Sinclair Broadcast Group warned cable customers in the Midwest and South that it expects to block network affiliates for a "long time" because of a dispute over the worth of local programming. pg 13d
Court rules for MedImmune
The Supreme Court sided with MedImmune Inc. yesterday, ruling that the Gaithersburg biotechnology company can sue over the validity of a patent - while paying user fees to the patent holder. pg 13d
NATIONAL
What new troops face in Iraq
The troops that President Bush is expected to order to Iraq will join the fight largely without the latest armored vehicles that withstand blasts better than widely used Humvees, military officers said. pg 1a