The preliminary hearing against singer David Anthony Burke, known as D4vd, began Tuesday morning with prosecutors displaying graphic images of 14-year-old Celeste Rivas Hernandez for the first time.
Judge Charlaine Olmedo, presiding over the hearing at the Clara Shortridge Foltz Criminal Justice Center, will decide whether prosecutors presented sufficient probable cause for the case to proceed to trial.
Detective Josh Byers of the Los Angeles Police Department’s Robbery-Homicide Division, the lead investigator in the case, testified for the prosecution Tuesday, along with Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Deputy Juan Gonzalez.
According to the Los Angeles Times, Byers stated that LAPD detectives found Celeste’s remains in the back of Burke’s Tesla on September 8, 2025. Police located the vehicle in a Hollywood tow yard while Burke had been on tour.
Byers, while explaining photos shown to the court by Deputy District Attorney Beth Silverman, stated that authorities saw “various limbs of a body, arms, legs that had been severed,” hidden in bags inside the vehicle’s trunk, infested with maggots and flies.
He added that the teen had been so badly decomposed that she had been “unrecognizable.”
Burke was charged in April with:
- First-degree murder
- Lewd act upon a child under the age of 14
Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office stated that Burke also faces facing special circumstances charges include:
- Lying in wait
- Murder for financial gain
- Killing a witness in a criminal investigation
Burke reportedly showed no emotion in court Tuesday while staring at the graphic photos. People magazine reports that he appeared particularly interested in a photo of Celeste’s severed finger, that beared a “shh” tattoo.
David Anthony Burke/Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office
Court documents filed in May outlined what prosecutors believe happened to Celeste, who was found dead a day shy of her 15th birthday.
Burke met Celeste in January 2022, when she was 11 years old, the court filing stated. By the time she turned 13, the then-18-year-old defendant began sexually abusing her.
On February 15, 2024, Celeste’s family reported her missing from Lake Elsinore. Police linked her Burke after finding his contact in her phone records.
In court Tuesday, Silverman played 10 minutes of body cam footage. It showed LA County Sheriff’s deputies visiting Burke’s Hollywood Hills rental home on February 17, 2024.
During the footage, Burke told investigators that he last spoke to Celeste over the phone that month and did not know her real age.
“She told me she was 18,” Burke stated, according to Rolling Stone. “Everybody is saying she’s 13.”
Burke also said that he had only met Celeste one time in person. He claimed that meeting occurred in November 2023.
Gonzalez testified that he was one of the responding officers who arrived at Burke’s home. He described Burke as “extremely cooperative,” allowing Gonzalez and his partner to search the residence.
Gonzalez said there were no signs that Celeste had been staying there.
Celeste returned home on February 19, 2024, but within a few months, Burke allegedly paid a classmate $1,000 to deliver Celeste a burner phone.
Byers stated that investigators later discovered that the pair then traveled to Texas and London together.
In November 2024, the relationship reportedly ended but the pair continued to engage in sex. Later, Celeste became enraged when she discovered text messages between Burke and other women, which prompted threats to expose their relationship, according to the filing.
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On April 23, 2025, Celeste again left Lake Elsinore after Burke ordered her an Uber ride. Her cellphone went silent after she arrived at Burke’s Hollywood Hills home.
Investigators believe Burke murdered Celeste some time after 10:10 p.m. that night, after she arrived at his home.
Burke then allegedly sent a text to Celeste later, asking where she was.
“Knowing he had to silence the victim before she ruined his music career as she had threatened, very soon after her arrival at his home, defendant stabbed the victim to death multiple times and stood by while she bled out,” the filing said.
“In order to distance himself from the victim, he amputated her left ring and pinky fingers because her ring finger contained a tattoo of his name.”
The County of Los Angeles Department of Medical Examiner stated that Celeste had “two penetrating wounds” on her chest and abdomen. Her cause of death has been officially listed as a homicide.
Investigators said Burke bought two chain saws online and took measures to conceal the death by dismembering her in an inflatable pool, inside the garage of the rental home.
Investigators found the victim’s DNA inside the garage, the filing stated.
Burke also purchased two tote bags, a body bag, the inflatable pool, and a laundry bag online, under the name “Victoria Mendez.”
“Defendant took horrifying measures to destroy and discard the victim’s body,” the filing read.
Five months later, Los Angeles officers arrived at the tow yard after residents in Hollywood Hills West contacted police about Burke’s Tesla, left abandoned in the select Bird Streets neighborhood.
Byers said Tuesday that evidence showed that Burke was the last person to drive the vehicle before it had been towed.
The hearing is expected to last around three to seven days, according to ABC 7 Los Angeles.
If convicted on murder and at least one special circumstance charges, Burke could face the death penalty. Los Angeles County District Attorney Nathan Hochman said they would decide at a later date whether to pursue the death penalty.
Burke remains behind bars without bail. He has pleaded not guilty.
Check back for updates.
[Featured image: Celeste Rivas/LAPD]
