In 2009 the Maryland Daily Record selected him as one of the ten most influential lawyers in the state, and in 2011 he was one of the inaugural recipients of the James Baldwin Medal for Civil Rights. Prior to coming to work for the ACLU of Maryland, David was a Senior Trial Attorney in the Special Litigation Section of the Civil Rights Division at the United States Department of Justice. At the DOJ, David handled investigations of, and civil suits regarding, police misconduct and conditions in prisons, jails, and state facilities for persons with developmental disabilities.