LOS ANGELES — Pop singer David Anthony Burke, known professionally as D4vd, appeared in a Los Angeles courtroom on Wednesday for a preliminary hearing in the capital murder case involving 14-year-old Celeste Abigail Rivas Hernandez. Prosecutors outlined a sweeping set of accusations, alleging that the 21-year-old initiated an illegal sexual relationship with the girl when she was 13, then lured her to his Hollywood Hills residence on April 23, 2025, two days before the scheduled release of his debut album, Withered. They contend Burke stabbed her shortly after she arrived, placed her body in an inflatable pool in his garage, used a chainsaw to dismember her remains, and concealed the body parts in bags stored in the front trunk of his Tesla Model X, which was later impounded as an abandoned vehicle. LOS ANGELES — At the hearing, LAPD detectives and criminalists described gruesome forensic evidence, including a body bag containing a head and torso and garbage bags with severed limbs found in the Tesla on September 8, 2025, more than four months after the teenager disappeared. Investigators said blue plastic fragments near the remains matched an inflatable pool recovered from Burke’s garage, and blood on garage floor mats and other items was genetically linked to the victim. Burke faces multiple felony counts, including first-degree murder, continuous sexual abuse of a child under 14 and unlawful mutilation of human remains, along with special circumstance allegations such as murder of a witness, murder for financial gain, lying in wait and personal use of a deadly weapon. He has pleaded not guilty, while his defense attorney questioned evidence-handling procedures in court, and his legal team has maintained his innocence in prior public statements. The case has effectively ended his entertainment career, with tours canceled and major label and management deals terminated as the judge weighs whether the evidence warrants a full trial and a possible death-penalty or life-without-parole sentence.

Prepared by Emily Rhodes and reviewed by editorial team.