D4vd Allegedly Killed 14-Year-Old Latina Celeste Rivas Hernandez to Silence Her and a Judge Is Now Deciding if There Is Enough Evidence to Go to Trial

D4vd Allegedly Killed 14-Year-Old Latina Celeste Rivas Hernandez to Silence Her and a Judge Is Now Deciding if There Is Enough Evidence to Go to Trial
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David Burke, the 21-year-old artist known professionally as D4vd, is facing a preliminary hearing in which a judge will determine whether sufficient evidence exists to send his case to trial on charges of murder, continuous sexual abuse of a minor and illegal mutilation of human remains. The victim is Celeste Rivas Hernandez, a 14-year-old girl from Lake Elsinore, California, whose remains were discovered in September 2025. Her parents immigrated to the United States from El Salvador, and their daughter had her entire life ahead of her when she died.

Prosecutors allege that Burke stabbed Rivas Hernandez to death after she threatened to expose their relationship and damage a music career that, according to testimony from a witness, had generated over 10 million dollars in a span of roughly two years. Burke has pleaded not guilty to all charges, and his attorneys have stated that he did not cause her death.

What the Detective Testified

Homicide detective Joshua Byers took the stand on the first day of the preliminary hearing and testified that Burke ordered a body bag, chainsaws, an inflatable pool and a shovel online in the days following Rivas Hernandez’s death. According to Byers, Burke used the alias Trayvion Davis to place the orders but paid for them using his own credit cards and had the items delivered to his Hollywood home.

Prosecutors allege that Burke used those items to dismember Rivas Hernandez’s body after killing her. The combination of items described in the testimony, and the timeline of when they were ordered relative to her death, forms a central part of the prosecution’s argument that the killing was followed by deliberate steps to conceal what had happened.

The Allegations Against D4vd and What His Defense Says

The charges Burke faces are among the most serious that can be brought in a California court. The murder charge is accompanied by allegations of continuous sexual abuse of a minor under 14 and illegal mutilation of human remains, a combination that reflects the full scope of what prosecutors say occurred. Burke’s legal team has pushed back on the core allegation, maintaining that he did not cause Rivas Hernandez’s death, though the defense has not yet presented its full case at this stage of the proceedings.

The preliminary hearing is a threshold moment in the case, with the judge tasked with determining whether the evidence presented by the prosecution is sufficient to proceed to a full trial. The testimony from Detective Byers about the online orders, placed under an alias but paid with Burke’s own financial accounts and delivered to his own address, represents the kind of detail that prosecutors typically use to establish a pattern of behavior in the aftermath of a crime.

Who Celeste Rivas Hernandez Was

Celeste Rivas Hernandez was 14 years old, a girl from Lake Elsinore, California, whose parents had come to the United States from El Salvador to build a life and a future for their family. Her remains were found in September 2025, and the case against Burke has unfolded in the months since then as investigators pieced together the circumstances of her death and the events that followed it.

The prosecution’s account places her death in the context of a relationship she allegedly threatened to reveal, one that Burke allegedly believed posed a threat to his career and his public image. The case raises questions about the vulnerability of young people in proximity to fame and about what is owed to a 14-year-old girl whose life was taken before it had barely begun. Her name deserves to be remembered alongside whatever verdict this case ultimately produces.

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