David Cherry: Attorney, Government Staffer, Federal and Indiana Cases

David Cherry is a name shared by several unrelated people in American public life. The most frequently searched are a Pennsylvania personal injury and workers’ compensation attorney, a Nevada Democratic government affairs professional who spent years working for Senator Harry Reid, a defendant charged as a leader of the Blood Hound Brims gang in a federal racketeering case in New York, and an Indiana man charged with making online threats against Elon Musk. Each has a separate public record, and the sections below take them one at a time.

David R. Cherry, Pennsylvania Injury Attorney

David R. Cherry owns Cherry Injury Law, also known as The Cherry Firm, P.C., with offices in Media, Pennsylvania, and Philadelphia.¹ His practice concentrates on catastrophically injured clients, including people who have suffered traumatic brain injuries, spinal cord injuries, and amputations in workplace accidents and motor vehicle collisions.² The firm also handles product liability, class actions, and criminal defense, and offers discounted fees for union members.³

Cherry earned a bachelor’s degree from Boston University in 1988 and a J.D. from Widener University School of Law in 1995, where he received the Most Promising Civil Litigator Award.¹ He later earned an LLM in Trial Advocacy from Temple School of Law.⁴ He was admitted in Pennsylvania in 1995 and in New Jersey the following year.⁵ He is described as one of the first Medicare Secondary Payer Certified lawyers in Pennsylvania and has lectured on workers’ compensation and liability Medicare Set-Asides.

Among his reported case results:

A $4.6 million workers’ compensation settlement for a 21-year-old landscaper who suffered a traumatic brain injury, a C6-7 spinal injury, and five fractured vertebrae after being struck in a hit-and-run while on the job.¹
A $4.3 million liquor liability settlement in April 2010 in Philadelphia Common Pleas Court, Jane Doe v. Dilworthtown Inn, on behalf of a 46-year-old woman left quadriplegic after her husband, served alcohol while visibly intoxicated, crashed into a tree at a reported.186 blood alcohol level.⁶
A $750,000 workers’ compensation settlement for a lift truck mechanic who became an incomplete quadriplegic after a cervical spine injury on the job, and a $750,000 settlement for a 16-year-old passenger with a traumatic brain injury and spinal fractures, limited by available insurance.¹
A $650,000 wrongful death settlement for the surviving husband of a woman who died from a work-related injury.²

Cherry has been selected to the Pennsylvania Super Lawyers list for the years 2005 through 2010 and 2020 through 2026.³ He holds a 10.0 Avvo rating and has received the Avvo Clients’ Choice Award most years from 2015 through 2025, along with a Distinguished Peer Review Rating from Martindale-Hubbell.⁷

David A. Cherry, Nevada Government Affairs Staffer

David A. Cherry built his career in Nevada Democratic politics. He joined Senator Harry Reid’s staff in 1997 as a deputy press secretary and later served as press secretary for Reid on the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee.⁸ From June 2003 to January 2013 he was communications director for U.S. Representative Shelley Berkley of Nevada.⁹ As of 2022, he was serving as government affairs manager for the city of Henderson, Nevada. Reflecting on his time with Reid, Cherry said he learned to “respect the Senate and to treat public service as an honor, a privilege and a duty.”

David Cherry in the Blood Hound Brims Federal Case

A separate David Cherry was charged in a federal racketeering and gang prosecution in the Southern District of New York. In January 2017, Cherry and twelve co-defendants were named in a superseding indictment in United States v. Latique Johnson, et al., case number S1 16 Cr. 281, assigned to Judge Paul G. Gardephe. The Department of Justice announced that Cherry was taken into federal custody on January 3, 2017, and alleged him to be a leader of the Blood Hound Brims gang.¹⁰

He was arraigned on January 11, 2017, and pleaded not guilty to counts 1, 4, and 5 of the superseding indictment.¹¹ Prosecutors alleged that he acted as the “acting Godfather” of the Brims while Latique Johnson was incarcerated, that he ordered the attempted murder of a fellow gang member in April 2009, that he fired shots at a rival gang member in May 2010, and that he facilitated the smuggling of contraband into prison.¹²

In November 2018, Cherry pleaded guilty to a lesser-included offense tied to carrying and brandishing a firearm during a racketeering conspiracy. That plea was vacated in August 2019 after the Supreme Court’s decision in United States v. Davis (2019) removed the legal basis for treating the underlying racketeering conspiracy as a “crime of violence.” The court held a Fatico hearing in 2019 to resolve factual disputes in the presentence report and overruled most of Cherry’s objections, while sustaining his objection on whether he had been expelled from the Brims in 2010.¹² The docket shows the case was terminated on December 10, 2021. The specific final disposition and sentencing outcome are not detailed in available court records.¹¹

David Allen Cherry, Indiana Threats Case

David Allen Cherry, a 28-year-old from Clarksville, Indiana, was charged with Level 5 felony intimidation for allegedly posting threats against Elon Musk on X. The reported statements included “We’re gunning you down” and “I am going to plant a bomb in Elon Musk’s house.” Indiana State Police, acting on a tip from Texas authorities, arrested Cherry and seized an AR-15-style rifle, a handgun, ammunition, and a ballistic vest from his home. He was released on a $2,500 cash bond, with a jury trial scheduled for August 2025 in Harrison County Superior Court.¹³

1
Cherry Injury Law. About David R. Cherry
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Cherry Injury Law. Cherry Injury Law Homepage
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Super Lawyers. David R. Cherry Profile
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MSP Network. Webinar Presenter Profile
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Cherry DUI Law. David R. Cherry Attorney Profile
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Cherry Injury Law. $4.3 Million Settlement in Dram Shop Case
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Avvo. David R. Cherry Attorney Profile
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Las Vegas Review-Journal. Harry Reid’s People: Former Staffers Carry Senator’s Legacy
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LegiStorm. David A. Cherry Bio
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U.S. Department of Justice. Thirteen Members and Associates of Blood Hound Brims Gang Charged
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CourtListener. United States v. Johnson Docket
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CaseMine. United States v. Cherry
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Fox 7 Austin. Indiana Man Charged With Online Threats Against Elon Musk