In Los Angeles, a judge has determined that enough evidence exists to bring singer David Burke — known professionally as D4vd — to trial for the murder and dismemberment of 14-year-old Celeste Rivas Hernandez, whose life ended in September 2025 after years of alleged sexual abuse at his hands. The case asks not only how one person could commit such violence against a child, but how an entire web of adults — parents, guardians, an industry — allowed the conditions for that violence to persist unchallenged. What stands before the court is not merely a criminal proceeding, but a reckoning with th
Judge Orders Trial for Singer D4vd in Death of 14-Year-Old Girl
A 14-year-old girl was murdered and dismembered by an adult with whom she had been sexually abused for approximately two years, beginning when she was 13 years old.
Nothing in this case sounds like an accident
Mark
How did this relationship exist for so long without intervention, given that both families apparently knew about it?
Mimi
That's the question that haunts this case. The detective testified that both sets of parents were aware. Her parents even gave consent for her to travel with him to London. It suggests a catastrophic failure of adult responsibility—the people who should have protected her either didn't understand the gravity of what was happening, or chose not to act.
Mark
The text messages seem to be a crucial piece of evidence. What do they reveal about the dynamic between them?
Mimi
They show a young girl who was becoming aware of her own exploitation. She was jealous, angry, threatening to expose him. She had been pregnant. These weren't the messages of someone in a consensual relationship—they were the messages of someone trapped and desperate. And they appear to have sealed her fate.
Mark
Why would he keep the body in the car for weeks? That seems almost deliberately reckless.
Mimi
It does. He bought the incinerator, tried to plan the disposal, but then just... drove around with her remains. Maybe he panicked. Maybe he was waiting for something. But it's the kind of choice that suggests someone who believed he was untouchable—a young man with millions of followers online, perhaps convinced that normal rules didn't apply to him.
Mark
The album release two days after her death is striking. Was he performing while she was still in his trunk?
Mimi
That's the timeline, yes. He was at Coachella in April, released "Withered" days after she was killed. It raises the question of what was happening in his mind during those weeks—whether he was compartmentalizing completely, or whether the performance and the music were part of the same performance of innocence.
Mark
What happens now with the death penalty question?
Mimi
That's still being decided. It's one of the heaviest questions the district attorney will face. The crime itself—the premeditation, the cover-up, the dismemberment—all of it points toward the most severe penalty. But these decisions involve factors beyond the facts of the case itself.
The Pulse
- A 14-year-old girl's dismembered remains were found in the trunk of a Tesla registered to her alleged abuser, a rising music star who had known her since she was 11.
- Prosecutors spent five days laying out a methodical cover-up: false-name purchases of chainsaws, a shovel, an inflatable pool, and a portable incinerator — all pointing to premeditated concealment rather than accident.
- Text messages sent after her death, in which Burke feigned concern for her whereabouts, are being used by prosecutors to dismantle the defense's suggestion that the killing was unintentional.
- Both families reportedly knew of the illegal relationship, and her parents had even allowed her to travel abroad with Burke — a detail that has cast a long shadow over questions of systemic failure and complicity.
- The district attorney has yet to decide whether to seek the death penalty, leaving the full weight of the state's response still unresolved as the case moves toward trial.
In Los Angeles, a judge has determined that enough evidence exists to bring singer David Burke — known professionally as D4vd — to trial for the murder and dismemberment of 14-year-old Celeste Rivas Hernandez, whose life ended in September 2025 after years of alleged sexual abuse at his hands. The case asks not only how one person could commit such violence against a child, but how an entire web of adults — parents, guardians, an industry — allowed the conditions for that violence to persist unchallenged. What stands before the court is not merely a criminal proceeding, but a reckoning with the failures of protection that surround the young and the vulnerable.
A Los Angeles judge has ruled that singer D4vd — legally David Burke, age 21 — will stand trial for the murder and dismemberment of 14-year-old Celeste Rivas Hernandez. Following a five-day preliminary hearing, the court found sufficient evidence to proceed on charges of murder, continuous sexual abuse of a child under 14, and unlawful mutilation of human remains. Burke has pleaded not guilty, and prosecutors have not yet determined whether to pursue the death penalty.
Rivas Hernandez's dismembered remains were discovered in September 2025, stored in the trunk of a Tesla registered to Burke. Prosecutors allege he first met her when she was 11, began sexually abusing her at 13, and killed her at 14 after she sent angry messages threatening to expose their relationship and expressing jealousy over another woman. A detective testified that both families were aware of the relationship — her parents had even permitted her to travel with Burke to London for a week. Court evidence also revealed she had become pregnant and obtained an abortion during the period of abuse.
What followed her death was a calculated effort at concealment. Burke allegedly ordered chainsaws, a shovel, an inflatable pool, and a portable incinerator under a false name. DNA matching the victim was found on blood stains in his garage. The incinerator proved too small to destroy the remains, and for weeks Burke drove through Los Angeles with her body still in the trunk of his car, until the vehicle was towed to a Hollywood impound lot where she was finally found.
Burke's defense suggested the death may have been accidental, a claim prosecutors flatly rejected. The case carries an additional layer of cultural weight: Burke had performed at Coachella in April 2025 and released his debut album just two days after authorities say Rivas Hernandez was killed. His breakthrough song was titled 'Romantic Homicide.' As the trial approaches, the question of how years of abuse went unstopped — with the knowledge of those closest to her — remains as urgent as the charges themselves.
A Los Angeles judge has ordered singer D4vd to stand trial for the murder and dismemberment of a 14-year-old girl, ruling after a five-day hearing that prosecutors have presented sufficient evidence to proceed. The defendant, whose legal name is David Burke, is 21 years old and faces charges of murder, continuous sexual abuse of a child under 14, and unlawful mutilation of human remains. He has entered a not guilty plea. The district attorney's office has not yet decided whether to pursue capital punishment.
Celeste Rivas Hernandez was 14 when her dismembered remains were discovered in September 2025, placed in the trunk of a Tesla registered to Burke. According to prosecutors, Burke first encountered Rivas Hernandez when she was 11 years old. When she turned 13 and he was 18, the sexual abuse began. A detective testified that both sets of parents—Burke's and Rivas Hernandez's—were aware of the relationship, and that her parents had consented to her traveling with him to London for a week. Text messages presented in court showed that Rivas Hernandez had become pregnant and obtained an abortion during the course of the abuse.
In the hours before her death, Rivas Hernandez sent Burke a series of angry messages. Prosecutors characterized them as expressions of jealousy toward another woman and threats to expose the illegal relationship. Burke allegedly summoned an Uber to bring her to his home, where prosecutors say he stabbed her to death as soon as she arrived. What followed was a calculated effort to conceal the crime. Burke sent multiple text messages to Rivas Hernandez asking her whereabouts and expressing concern—messages prosecutors argue were designed to create a false narrative of innocence after he had already killed her.
The cover-up escalated into a methodical dismemberment. Prosecutors presented evidence that Burke placed online orders under a false name for chainsaws, a shovel, and an inflatable pool. DNA evidence matching the victim was found on blood stains in his garage, where authorities believe he dismembered her body. He also purchased a portable incinerator marketed as a "burn box," though it proved too small to destroy the remains. For weeks afterward, Burke drove around Los Angeles with Rivas Hernandez's decomposed body still in his vehicle's trunk. The Tesla was eventually towed to an impound lot in Hollywood, where the remains were discovered.
Burke's defense attorney argued that there was no evidence of deliberate intent to kill, suggesting the death might have been accidental. Prosecutor Beth Silverman rejected this characterization directly, telling the court that nothing in the case suggested anything other than intentional murder. Burke, who performs as D4vd, had built a substantial following on social media platforms including TikTok and SoundCloud. His 2022 breakthrough track "Romantic Homicide" brought him significant attention. In April 2025, he performed at the Coachella music festival and released his debut album "Withered" just two days after authorities say Rivas Hernandez was killed.
The case now moves toward trial, with the district attorney still weighing whether to seek the death penalty. The circumstances surrounding the crime—particularly the knowledge of both families regarding the illegal relationship—have raised questions about how such abuse went unchecked for years before it ended in murder.
Notable Quotes
There's nothing in this case that sounds like an accident.— Prosecutor Beth Silverman, addressing the defense claim of accidental death
There was no evidence of deliberate intention to kill.— Burke's defense attorney
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