A disagreement at a children’s basketball game in Baltimore ended in a deadly shooting that took the life of a 52-year-old grandmother and left two other people injured, including an 11-year-old child. Now, Cassandra McRae, the woman convicted in connection with the attack, has been sentenced to 140 years in prison, with the first 25 years to be served without the possibility of parole.
The case centers on the January 22, 2025, killing of Anntoinette Jennings, who had attended a basketball game involving her granddaughter. What began as a confrontation between families later escalated into gunfire on a Baltimore street, leaving Jennings dead and her relatives facing the aftermath of a violent attack.
McRae, 38, was convicted of second-degree murder, four counts of conspiracy to commit murder, four counts of attempted second-degree murder, five firearm-related offenses and reckless endangerment. The sentence was announced by Baltimore City prosecutors in October 2026.
What happened after the basketball game?
According to investigators, an altercation took place at a children’s basketball game involving Jennings’ family and McRae on January 22, 2025.
Surveillance footage reviewed during the investigation showed McRae leaving the game while making a phone call. She then entered a gray sedan that followed Jennings’ Honda CR-V toward the 5400 block of York Road in Baltimore.
Investigators said McRae later got out of the sedan and approached the victims’ vehicle. At the same time, two men approached from the driver’s side.
Prosecutors said McRae pointed toward the vehicle and called out, “There they go right there, there they go right there.”
Within seconds, one of the men opened fire into the CR-V. The suspects then left the scene.
The sequence of events captured on surveillance footage became a key part of the case against McRae, helping prosecutors establish her role in the events that led to the shooting.
Grandmother killed, child among those injured
When Baltimore police arrived, they found Jennings dead inside the vehicle. Four other people had been traveling with her, including children who were caught in the violence.
Two occupants were struck by gunfire, including an 11-year-old child. Two others, including a 6-year-old, were physically unharmed.
The shooting turned an ordinary family outing into a tragedy, with children and relatives forced to deal with the consequences of a confrontation that had escalated far beyond the original dispute.
Jennings was 52 when she died. She was also a prekindergarten teacher’s aide at Waverly Elementary/Middle School, where she worked with young students.
Her death left her family grieving a woman who had been part of their everyday lives and who had been attending a game to support her granddaughter.
What the court decided
McRae’s convictions covered multiple offenses connected to the shooting, including murder, conspiracy, attempted murder and firearm violations.
The 140-year prison term reflects the seriousness of those convictions. Although McRae was not identified as the person who fired the shots, prosecutors argued that her actions helped set the attack in motion.
Baltimore City State’s Attorney Ivan J. Bates said the sentence reflected the lasting consequences of the violence and the risks created for innocent people, including children.
He said the attack demonstrated a disregard for human life and left consequences that would continue to affect the victims’ relatives and the wider community.
The sentence means McRae must serve the first 25 years without the possibility of parole. It is a substantial prison term in a case where the court heard evidence about the events leading up to the shooting and the harm suffered by Jennings’ family.
One co-defendant was acquitted, another suspect remains outstanding
The investigation also involved two men suspected of participating in the attack.
One of them, Tavon Singleton, was charged in connection with the shooting but was ultimately acquitted of all charges. His acquittal means he was not found guilty in the case.
The second suspected male participant has not been apprehended, according to reports available after McRae’s sentencing.
The outstanding suspect remains a significant part of the case’s unresolved criminal-investigation history, even as McRae’s prosecution has concluded with a lengthy sentence.
A dispute with consequences far beyond the game
The shooting highlights how quickly a confrontation can escalate when people respond to a disagreement with violence. A children’s sporting event should be a place for families to gather and support young athletes, but Jennings’ death transformed that setting into the beginning of a fatal chain of events.
The presence of children in the vehicle made the consequences especially troubling. An 11-year-old was injured, while a 6-year-old and another passenger escaped physical injury. Even when someone is not struck by a bullet, witnessing a violent event involving family members can leave lasting emotional effects.
The case also demonstrates the range of criminal charges that can follow an attack when prosecutors establish that several people played different roles in the events leading to a shooting.
McRae’s conviction was based on the evidence presented in court, including surveillance footage and the prosecution’s account of her actions before the gunfire.
For Jennings’ relatives, however, the outcome cannot undo the loss of a wife, mother and grandmother. The sentencing brings a legal consequence for McRae, but the family must continue living with the absence left by Jennings’ death.
The case stands as a painful reminder that a dispute at a family event can have irreversible consequences when it turns into gun violence.
