Police have identified a man killed in a stabbing at a Washington DC hotel on Tuesday 10 February as 30-year old DLA Piper associate David Messerschmitt.
Messerschmitt suffered multiple wounds in an attack at the Donovan Hotel, in Washington DC, and was pronounced dead in the fourth-floor room. Police have ruled the death a homicide and released a surveillance video from inside the hotel showing a person of interest walking through the lobby wearing a hooded jacket. The video was taken the day before, at around 7:45pm, and police are offering a $25,000 reward for information leading to an arrest and conviction.
DLA Piper said in a statement: ‘This is an extremely tragic situation and we send our sincere condolences to David’s family. We are cooperating with the police as they continue their investigation.’
Washington DC-based Messerschmitt joined DLA Piper in April last year as an associate working in the intellectual property and technology team. He had previously spent four years working at Mayer Brown and had worked for Dow Chemical.
Messerschmitt graduated from Boston University School of Law in 2009 and became a member of the Illinois state bar that same year. He then became a member of the Washington DC state bar in late 2012.
The family of Messerschmitt released the following statement: ‘We are deeply saddened and shocked by the loss of David, our beloved husband, son, and brother. We ask that everyone respect our privacy. We will have no further comments at this time.’
‘We ask anyone who has information about this crime to please contact the Washington, D.C. Police Department at 202-727-9099.’
tom.moore@legalease.co.uk
