Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Charlaine Olmedo ordered alternative pop singer D4vd to stand trial for murder, continuous sexual abuse, and corpse mutilation following a five-day preliminary hearing. Prosecutors allege the 21-year-old artist killed and dismembered 14-year-old Celeste Rivas Hernandez in April 2025 to cover up their relationship.
Preliminary Hearing Details and Murder Charges
Following a five-day preliminary hearing featuring more than 10 witnesses, Judge Charlaine Olmedo ruled Monday that prosecutors met the legal burden of evidence to move forward with a criminal trial. The 21-year-old musician, whose legal name is David Anthony Burke, pleaded not guilty to first-degree murder, continuous sexual abuse of a child under 14, and mutilating human remains.
Olmedo upheld all three special circumstances filed by prosecutors: that Burke ambushed Hernandez, killed her to cover up a crime, and killed her for financial gain. Because of these special circumstances, Burke faces life in prison without the possibility of parole or the death penalty if convicted. The judge ordered Burke held without bail and set his arraignment for August 31.
Disputed Evidence and Crime Scene Testimony
The preliminary hearing brought forward graphic testimony regarding the discovery of the victim’s remains. Celeste’s dismembered remains were found last year, a day after what would have been her 15th birthday, inside the trunk of Burke’s abandoned Tesla at a Hollywood tow yard.
Family attorney Patrick Steinfeld noted that Celeste’s parents attended the proceedings to show strength. When prosecutors displayed an image of the victim’s torso and head found inside two bags in the vehicle’s trunk, the teenager’s mother lowered her head and started crying.
D4VD Murder Case: Prosecutors reveal GRISLY and GRAPHIC photos of dismembered teen
Defense attorneys questioned the collection and physical integrity of the evidence. Attorney Blair Berk asked why several items found at the residence where Burke stayed, including two chainsaws, were not kept as evidence. Los Angeles Police Department Det. Joshua Byers testified that the two chainsaws were tested and showed no indication of blood, noting that if those chainsaws were used to dismember a body, there would be no way they couldn’t have blood on them. Court records indicate Burke purchased a third chainsaw, which was never recovered.
Prosecutors also presented records pointing to a blue inflatable pool, which they allege Burke used to prevent blood from spilling onto the garage floor, alongside DNA test results from potential blood samples that showed a high probability of matching Celeste.
Text Message Timeline and Threat Evidence
Court exhibits detailed a turbulent text message history between the singer and the teenager. Prosecutors presented evidence showing the pair exchanged over 1,200 text messages in the 24 hours leading up to the killing. Roughly 24 hours before prosecutors say Burke killed the teenager, Celeste Rivas Hernandez sent threats following an argument regarding Burke’s relationship with another woman.
Photo: nbclosangeles.com
“oh my f— god I swear to GOD I will kill u she was in my dam seat i will strangle u to f—ing death bro, I will tell my dad so many f— lies about u dead ass i will end ur career and ur life I will damage anything.”
Photo: cnn.com
Celeste Rivas Hernandez, via Los Angeles Times evidence filing
Investigators established a strict timeline for the night of April 23, 2025. According to text messages presented in court, Burke arranged an Uber to bring Celeste from her Lake Elsinore home to his Hollywood Hills residence. At 10:10 p.m., Burke texted that the front door was open.
On cross-examination, defense attorney Berk confirmed with the detective that no witnesses saw Burke or Celeste between 10:10 p.m. and 10:31 p.m., and that no individual directly witnessed the alleged killing. Los Angeles County District Attorney Nathan Hochman noted outside the courtroom that prosecutors methodically presented a yearslong timeline of interactions that eventually led to Celeste visiting Burke’s house, from which she never returned alive.
Samira Rahman is the editorial identity for TellingPointy's World desk. Her coverage follows diplomacy, conflict, migration, security, climate, and global institutions through the decisions that change people's lives. Rahman's desk resists distant, map-level reporting: it identifies the actors, interests, evidence, and human consequences behind each development, distinguishes verified events from claims, and keeps historical context close enough to make breaking news intelligible.
