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UPDATED: A Los Angeles judge has ordered vocalist D4vd (real sanction David Anthony Burke) to guidelines proceedings connected execution charges successful nan sidesplitting and dismemberment of 14-year-old Celeste Rivas Hernandez.
Burke has been charged pinch 1 count each of murder, continuous intersexual maltreatment of a kid nether nan property of 14 and unlawful mutilation of quality remains.
The criminal title besides includes typical condition allegations of execution of a witness, execution for financial summation and execution by intends of lying successful hold arsenic good arsenic a typical allegation that Burke personally utilized a deadly and vulnerable weapon, a crisp instrument, to perpetrate nan crime.
“The group person met their load connected each counts,” Judge Charlaine Olmedo said. She ordered that Burke proceed to beryllium held without bail. He has pleaded not guilty.
If convicted, Burke could look nan decease punishment aliases life successful situation without parole. A determination connected whether to activity nan decease punishment will beryllium made astatine a later date.
“What was presented by our Office complete nan people of nan past week is simply a mini but schematic fraction of nan grounds investigators person accumulated that proves suspect Burke is blameworthy beyond a reasonable uncertainty of nan sadistic execution of Celeste Rivas Hernandez,” Los Angeles County District Attorney Nathan J. Hochman said. “This has been a parent’s worst nightmare, proceeding nan ghoulish specifications of really their kid was killed, dismembered and near arsenic trash.”
Burke is to beryllium arraigned connected August 31.
PREVIOUS, April 20, 2026: Seeking a speedy trial, D4vd entered a not blameworthy plea Monday successful a little quality successful a downtown Los Angeles criminal court.
Facing first-degree execution and continuous intersexual maltreatment charges pinch nan decease penalty complete nan dismembered sidesplitting past twelvemonth of teen Celeste Rivas Hernandez, nan 21-year-old vocalist (whose existent sanction is David Anthony Burke) sat down a solid obstruction this day successful L.A. Superior Court Judge Theresa McGonigle’s courtroom.
“We judge nan existent grounds will show David Burke did not execution Celeste Rivas Hernandez,” defense lawyer Blair Berk told nan judge and attendees aft entering pleas for her client. “We would for illustration to person nan grounds travel into nan ray of day, astatine nan earliest opportunity,” Berk added, requesting a fast-tracked preliminary evidentiary hearing. Berk made a constituent of wanting everything unfastened successful court, noting “there person been 4 months of concealed expansive assemblage proceedings.”
In response, Deputy DA Beth Silverman said that her leader Nathan Hochman and nan prosecution’s agency would beryllium “very happy to put connected nan grounds we’ve collected against Burke. A general felony title (read it here) against D4vd was revenge astatine nan aforesaid clip successful LASC.
Before nan judge, Berk lamented nan deficiency of find nan defense has received truthful far, and astatine nan aforesaid time, arsenic Silverman objected that nan grounds collected truthful acold was “voluminous” noted nan DA’s agency had nan clip for a elaborate property convention connected nan lawsuit earlier Monday. As Silverman formed uncertainty connected location being overmuch worldly disposable for a planned travel up proceeding later this week, Berk asked nan prosecution to endeavor pinch “conscientious earnestness” to get arsenic overmuch find arsenic imaginable to her team.
Amidst each that, Hernandez’s parents were seated adjacent successful nan the Clara Shortridge Foltz Criminal Justice Center during nan arraignment proceedings.
Earlier successful nan time astatine a property convention connected nan case, LA County DA Hochman said nan “Romantic Homicide” vocalist could beryllium executed if recovered blameworthy by a assemblage owed to “special circumstances” that licence nan uncommon usage of nan decease punishment successful California.
Part of that typical circumstance, according to nan DA, is for D4vd “lying successful wait, execution for financial summation and sidesplitting a witnesser successful a criminal investigation” past April. That witnesser was nan then-13-year-old Hernandez, who was allegedly nan unfortunate of activity crimes perpetrated by nan TikTok sensation. Hernandez was past seen April 23, conscionable earlier she went complete to D4vd’s L.A. home.
D4vd is besides facing charges of “lewd and lascivious intersexual acts” pinch an individual nether 14 years of age. Similar to nan alleged execution of Rob and Michelle Reiner past twelvemonth by their youngest boy Nick, nan DA has not made nationalist whether prosecutors will activity nan decease punishment aliases spell for life without parole for D4vd.
After months of investigation, D4vd was arrested past week astatine his rented Hollywood Hills residence. The apprehension came almost 8 months aft Hernandez’s decomposed and mutilated assemblage was discovered successful nan trunk of an impounded Tesla registered successful nan singer’s name. At that time, D4vd was connected circuit and retired of L.A. Through representatives, he promised to cooperate pinch nan LAPD and different rule enforcement connected nan matter.
Now down bars without bail, D4vd is scheduled to beryllium backmost successful tribunal Thursday.
Also successful tribunal today, Judge McGonigle (who is overseeing nan Reiner lawsuit arsenic of correct now) ordered nan L.A. County aesculapian examiner’s agency to merchandise nan autopsy study for Hernandez. The study is not disposable because “the Department of Medical Examiner has not yet received announcement nan tribunal bid sealing nan lawsuit has been lifted,” nan section told Deadline.
That paperwork is expected to get successful 1 shape aliases different astatine nan aesculapian examiner’s agency by Tuesday morning, I’m told.
Denise Petski contributed to this report.
