Lawyers for the D4vd singer insisted Thursday on forcing prosecutors to show what evidence they have, and a judge set a trial for next week to publicly explain the murder and dismemberment of Celeste Rivas Hernandez.The 21-year-old, whose legal name is David Burke, appeared in a small Los Angeles courtroom dressed in orange jail clothes and sat next to his lawyers, a year after authorities last knew Rivas Hernandez, a 14-year-old from Lake Elsinore, California, was alive.
D4vd makes a court appearance
Burke was taken into court in handcuffs, which were removed when he sat down. He spoke only to say “Yes ma’am” to a procedural question posed by Supreme Court Justice Charlaine F. Olmedo set a four- to five-day preliminary evidentiary hearing to begin on May 1. He will determine whether there is cause to send Burke to trial.
Child pornography found on D4vd’s phone
Deputy District Attorney Beth Silverman said a search of Burke’s iPhone revealed “a large amount of child pornography.” He did not provide details about the images, including whether they were related to the dead girl. It will take time for the prosecution to share the child sexual abuse images taken from Burke’s phone, with an order that must be handled wisely.“I can’t turn around that kind of material,” Silverman said.Silverman said the evidence includes the contents of his phone and iCloud accounts, items seized from multiple search warrants and a large amount of forensic material. And it includes witness testimony given to three different grand juries, the existence of which was publicly confirmed for the first time on Thursday.
D4vd’s hearing should be advanced
But he said prosecutors are fine with working on a very tight deadline for hearings, usually many months after defendants are arrested and charged.“We’ll be ready,” he said.“Today is exactly one year since Celeste died,” said the prosecutor. “We are eager to prosecute this case.”Burke was arrested April 16 and pleaded not guilty Monday to first-degree murder with a person under 14, lewd and lascivious acts and mutilation of a deceased person.
D4vd’s team is confident that the evidence will prove their innocence
His lawyers spoke only about the exchange of evidence during Thursday’s hearing and declined to comment outside court. But at his arraignment, defense attorney Blair Berk told a judge, “We believe the actual evidence will show that David Burke did not kill Celeste Rivas Hernandez.”In a rare move, the singer is exercising his right in California to have a preliminary evidentiary hearing within 10 days of the court date. It is not entirely clear why his lawyers are pursuing this strategy. Berk said in court that they want to be seen with all the secret evidence previously collected in the case.
Death of Celeste Rivas
Rivas Hernandez’s body, with his head and arms severed, was found in two bags in an apparently abandoned Tesla registered to Burke, which had been towed through the Hollywood Hills while on tour.In an autopsy report unsealed Wednesday, the LA County Medical Examiner determined he died of two penetrating wounds to his upper body. The decomposed body made the examination difficult. Investigators did not determine how he sustained the injuries, and no weapon was recovered, the report said.Prosecutors say Burke sexually abused Rivas Hernandez for at least a year, starting when she was 13; He killed her on or about April 23, 2025, after threatening to report the affair; and dismembered his body two weeks later.
Celeste Rivas’ parents make a statement
The girl’s parents, Jesus Rivas and Mercedes Martinez, made their first public statement in the case on Tuesday, calling their daughter “a beautiful, strong girl who loved to sing and dance” and “All we want is justice for Celeste.”D4vd, pronounced “David,” gained popularity among young fans for mixing indie rock, R&B and lo-fi pop. He went viral on TikTok in 2022 with the hit “Romantic Homicide”, which peaked at #4 on Billboard’s Hot Rock & Alternative Songs chart. He released his debut EP “Petals to Thorns” and a follow-up “The Lost Petals” in 2023. His first album, “Withered”, was released in 2025.
