By Los Angeles County Politics (LACP)
A Los Angeles County Superior Court judge yesterday ordered singer David Anthony Burke, known by his stage name D4vd, to stand trial this week on charges he murdered 14-year-old Celeste Rivas Hernandez, whose decomposed and dismembered body was discovered inside the front trunk of his car last year.
Burke has been charged with one count each of murder, continuous sexual abuse of a child under the age of 14, and unlawful mutilation of human remains.
The criminal complaint includes special circumstance allegations of murder of a witness, murder for financial gain, and murder by means of lying in wait, along with an allegation that Burke personally used a deadly weapon — a sharp instrument — to commit the crime.
“What was presented by our Office over the course of the last week is a small but illustrative fraction of the evidence investigators have accumulated that proves defendant Burke is guilty beyond a reasonable doubt of the brutal murder of Celeste Rivas Hernandez,” said Los Angeles County District Attorney Nathan J. Hochman. “This has been a parent’s worst nightmare, hearing the ghoulish details of how their child was killed, dismembered and left as trash. D4vd allegedly squandered his fame and fortune by brutally killing a young girl because he feared their illicit sexual relationship would ruin his aspiring career. The only headlines that will accompany his stage name from here forward will be about the vicious murder of a young girl.”
Prosecutors called a dozen witnesses over a five-day preliminary hearing to lay out the framework of their case. According to testimony, Celeste arrived at Burke’s home in the Hollywood Hills on April 23, 2025, and was never seen again. The following day, prosecutors allege, Burke ordered a shovel delivered to his home. Over the following days, using an alias, he allegedly ordered three chainsaws, a body bag, and a blue inflatable pool.
Prosecutors allege Burke fatally stabbed Celeste, placed her body in the inflatable pool, and used a chainsaw to dismember her remains. Testimony showed blood matching the victim’s DNA profile was recovered from Burke’s garage. Small blue plastic fragments consistent with the inflatable pool were later found embedded in her remains.
On Sept. 8, 2025, Celeste’s decomposed and dismembered remains were discovered in the front trunk of a Tesla registered to Burke, after the vehicle had been reported abandoned and impounded.
Burke had built a career as a singer and songwriter before his arrest. Prosecutors said text messages exchanged between Burke and Celeste in the days and hours before her death showed the teenager threatened to expose their relationship and end his career.
Burke is scheduled to return to court Aug. 31 for a post-preliminary arraignment in Department 105 of the Foltz Criminal Justice Center.
If convicted as charged, he faces death or life in prison without the possibility of parole; prosecutors have not yet announced whether they will seek the death penalty.
