Berlin teen convicted of murder in Wicomico County

A Berlin teen has been convicted of second-degree murder.

16-year-old Vershawn Hudson-Crawford was convicted was convicted in the second-degree murder death on Tuesday of 17-year-old Dehaven Nichols, also of Berlin, according to the Worcester County State’s Attorney’s Office.

In May of 2019, Hudson-Crawford and his mother drove to the Berlin Police Department where he told investigators that two days earlier, he had been involved in a fight with his friend, Nichols, and that he had died as a result.

Hudson-Crawford directed investigators located Nichols’ body in a tax ditch on the side of Route 113 near the Decatur Apartments in Berlin.

An autopsy determined Nichols death was caused by a combination of several significant injuries, including blunt force trauma, strangulation and asphyxiation.

Hudson-Crawford faces 40 years in prison.