Singer d4vd, legally David Anthony Burke, was arraigned Monday on murder and other charges in the killing of 14-year-old Celeste Rivas Hernandez, whose dismembered remains were found in the trunk of his impounded car. The 21-year-old musician pleaded not guilty, and the special allegations filed against him make the case potentially death-penalty eligible.
The charges
Burke pleaded not guilty to first-degree murder, sexual abuse of a child under 14, and unlawful mutilation of human remains. The Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office also filed special-circumstance allegations, including murder of a witness, murder for financial gain, and murder by lying in wait. Those allegations matter procedurally as much as symbolically: under California law, a special-circumstance finding is what elevates a first-degree murder conviction to eligibility for life without parole or the death penalty.
How the case came to light
Rivas Hernandez, reported as a runaway from Riverside County, was last known to be alive on April 23, 2025, when she arrived at Burke’s home in the Hollywood Hills. Her disappearance drew no significant public attention for months. On September 8, 2025, her badly decomposed body was discovered in the trunk of Burke’s abandoned Tesla after the car was impounded and towed to a Hollywood tow yard. The remains had been dismembered, with her head and torso in one bag and her limbs in another. The medical examiner determined she died of “multiple penetrating injuries.”
What prosecutors allege about motive
Prosecutors allege Burke met Rivas Hernandez when she was 11, began sexually abusing her when she was 13, and killed her when she confronted him, to stop her from going public about the relationship ahead of an album release. That theory is what underpins two of the special allegations: murder of a witness, and murder for financial gain. In effect, the state is arguing the killing was a calculated move to protect a career, which is a materially different claim than a killing in the course of an argument, and a harder one to prove.
Where the case stands
A judge ruled in July that there was sufficient evidence for Burke to stand trial. He has been held without bail since his arrest. In a development that could affect the timeline, his private attorneys withdrew from the case and public defenders stepped in ahead of trial, a change that typically means new counsel needs time to come up to speed on a case this complex.
Related from BeezLoop: News Helicopter Crash Covering LA Bus Collision Kills Pilot, Photojournalist Eliana Moreno,…, Stolen Nissan Leads LAPD on Wild Overnight Chase Across Los Angeles Freeways, Ends With… and Menendez Brothers' Parole Hearing Moved Up to March 2027.
