Judge Orders Singer D4vd to Stand Trial for Murder of 14-Year-Old Celeste Rivas Hernandez

Los Angeles Judge Charlaine Olmedo ordered 21-year-old singer D4vd (David Anthony Burke) to stand trial for the murder, sexual abuse, and dismemberment of 14-year-old Celeste Rivas Hernandez on July 28, 2025, following a five-day preliminary hearing. Olmedo determined prosecutors presented sufficient evidence to establish probable cause for charges of first-degree murder, continuous sexual abuse of a minor under 14, and illegal mutilation of human remains. Burke pleaded not guilty and showed no visible reaction to the ruling.

Prosecutors presented extensive evidence spanning years of interaction between Burke and Hernandez. Detective Corey Farrell testified that Burke's phone contained dozens of sexually explicit images of Burke and Hernandez together from November 2023 to March 2025, when she was between 13 and 14 years old. Text messages introduced in court showed that Hernandez became pregnant at age 13 and underwent an abortion in January 2024. In one exchange, Burke asked when she would "get it done" regarding the abortion. After she confirmed the child was his, Burke later wrote: "Let this abortion be the last until we have the real one." Hernandez later expressed regret in messages, saying she lamented "taking the life of a literal innocent baby."

According to prosecutors' timeline, on April 23, 2025, Hernandez sent her final text message as she approached Burke's Hollywood Hills home in an Uber he had arranged: "girly pop i'm almost there open ur door if ur home." Her phone went silent shortly after she arrived. The night before, she had sent Burke an angry message threatening to tell her father lies about him and stating "i will end ur career and ur life." Prosecutors allege Burke fatally stabbed Hernandez upon her arrival, then dismembered her body in his garage.

Medical examiner Grant Ho testified that Hernandez died from two stab wounds to the upper body—one penetrating the liver and another damaging the ribs on the left side of the chest. Ho acknowledged difficulty in determining the precise time of death due to the body's decomposed state. Her remains were discovered September 8, 2025, in the trunk of a Tesla registered to Burke, nearly five months after her death.

Defense attorney Marilyn Bednarski argued that prosecutors had not presented sufficient evidence of intentional murder, noting the absence of witnesses, camera footage, or direct evidence of Burke's presence at the time of death. Bednarski also questioned whether toxicological findings and the state of decomposition ruled out alternative causes. The defense emphasized that no evidence indicated Hernandez ever threatened to involve police or pursue legal action against Burke.

Olmedo noted that the probable cause standard for preliminary hearings is lower than the threshold required at trial. Deputy District Attorney Beth Silverman stated: "With base in the mountains of evidence presented, all the accusations have been demonstrated well above the required standard." Judge Olmedo ordered Burke held without bail. A preliminary arraignment is scheduled for August 31, 2025, and prosecutors are evaluating whether to seek the death penalty.