A judge in Los Angeles has ruled that singer D4vd, whose legal name is David Burke, will stand trial on multiple criminal charges, including murder, continuous sexual abuse of a child under the age of 14 and unlawful mutilation of human remains.
The decision followed a five-day preliminary hearing, during which prosecutors presented evidence they said established probable cause for the case to proceed to trial.
Judge Charlaine Olmedo ruled on Monday that prosecutors had met the legal threshold required at the preliminary stage, stressing that the standard for probable cause is significantly lower than the burden of proof required to secure a conviction at trial.
“The people have met their burden on all counts,” the judge said, ordering that Burke remain in custody without bail.
Burke has pleaded not guilty to all charges and reportedly showed no visible reaction as the ruling was delivered.
According to prosecutors, 14-year-old Celeste Rivas Hernandez was allegedly killed after threatening to expose what they described as a relationship between her and Burke, which they claimed could have damaged his music career.
Prosecutors allege the teenager travelled to Burke’s Hollywood home in an Uber arranged by him on April 23, 2025, and sent a final text message shortly before arriving.
They further allege that Burke fatally stabbed the teenager after she entered the residence.
During the hearing, prosecutors claimed the pair had exchanged messages the previous night in which Rivas Hernandez allegedly threatened to expose their relationship.
The prosecution also alleged that Burke met the teenager when she was 11 years old and began sexually abusing her when she was 13.
According to prosecutors, he later dismembered her body in his garage using chainsaws. They told the court investigators recovered purchase records for chainsaws and plastic wading pools allegedly connected to the case, while DNA matching the victim was reportedly found on bloodstains recovered from the garage.
Prosecutors further alleged that the victim’s remains were kept inside the boot of a Tesla registered to Burke for several months before the vehicle was towed in September 2025, leading to the discovery of the body.
They also claimed surveillance footage would show Burke was the last person to drive the vehicle and alleged he attempted to conceal the crime by sending messages from the victim’s phone after her death.
Deputy District Attorney Beth Silverman argued that the prosecution had presented overwhelming evidence.
“Based on the mountains of evidence presented, all of the allegations have been proved way beyond the standard required,” she told the court.
However, Burke’s defence team argued that the evidence presented was insufficient to support a murder charge.
Defence attorney Marilyn Bednarski told the court there was no evidence demonstrating that Burke acted with deliberate intent to kill.
She also challenged the medical examiner’s findings regarding the cause of death and argued that communications between Burke and the teenager did not establish homicidal intent.
The defence further presented text messages in which the teenager allegedly threatened to expose Burke’s relationship with her, contact his family and share information about him publicly.
During cross-examination, Detective Farrell acknowledged there was no indication that Rivas Hernandez had threatened to report Burke to law enforcement or pursue legal action.
Farrell also testified that both families were aware of the relationship, and that Burke had attended church with the teenager’s family and travelled with them to London.
Prosecutors additionally presented evidence they alleged showed the teenager became pregnant in 2024, later underwent an abortion, and that investigators recovered years of messages and explicit photographs documenting the alleged relationship.
The graphic evidence presented in court reportedly caused the victim’s mother to leave the courtroom in tears before later returning.
The Los Angeles District Attorney’s Office said it is still considering whether to seek the death penalty if Burke is convicted.
Burke is scheduled to be arraigned on August 31.
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