MARTINSBURG, W.Va. — Guilty of murder was the verdict handed down Tuesday from a Berkeley County criminal jury in the case of 16-year-old Brooklyn Zavion Johnson.
The Washington, DC teenager was found guilty of felony offenses including Murder, Conspiracy to Commit Murder, and Use of a Firearm During the Commission of a Felony in the August 23, 2019 shooting death of Thomas Dove, Jr., 40, along Paynes Ford Road south of Inwood.
Berkeley County Prosecuting Attorney Catie Wilkes Delligatti announced Johnson faces life in prison but will be eligible for parole after 15 years since he is a juvenile.
Johnson was one of four facing charges in the slaying.
Nashaun Malick Howard, 19, also of the District, was charged with murder and conspiracy. Jennifer Nicole Thomas, 31, of Martinsburg, was charged with conspiracy and accessory after the fact.
Deana Abrecht of Luray, Virginia, 22, pleaded guilty to accessory after the fact in relation to Dove’s and was sentenced Tuesday to five years home confinement with specific parameters, as the victim’s family petitioned for rehabilitation for her.
Johnson and Howard reportedly called themselves the “DC Boys.” Thomas told police the pair were accusing Dove of taking money from them, according to an earlier report in the Herald Mail.
Johnson remains incarcerated. A sentencing hearing is scheduled for June 15.