D4vd case: Dayslong preliminary hearing set to begin for singer in killing of Celeste Rivas Hernandez

LOS ANGELES () — The highly-anticipated preliminary hearing for singer D4vd, who is facing several charges in the death of a teenage girl, is set to get underway in Los Angeles on Tuesday.

During the key hearing, which is expected to last three to seven days, prosecutors will present their evidence and testimony in court for the first time as they seek to establish probable cause.

The burden of proof prosecutors must establish is lower at a preliminary hearing. One it’s all laid out, a judge will decide if there’s enough to proceed to trial.

The singer, whose real name is David Burke, is accused of murdering Celeste Rivas Hernandez, whose body was found decomposing in the front of his Tesla in a Hollywood tow yard in September 2025.

D4vd was arrested seven months after her body was discovered. He’s been held without bail since.

Prosecutors allege that D4vd and Rivas Hernandez began a sexual relationship in 2023, when he was 18 and she was 13, and that she was threatening to expose their illegal relationship and ruin his career if he would not be exclusive to her.

Just as tickets for his world tour were set to go on sale, it is alleged that the “Romantic Homicide” singer ordered an Uber that brought Rivas Hernandez to his Hollywood Hills home on April 23, 2025, prosecutors said in a nine-page brief filed days after D4vd’s arrest. That was the last time she was seen alive, according to prosecutors.

Court documents also reference text messages between D4vd and Celeste that “contain references to sex, pregnancy, abortion, and use of the Plan B emergency contraceptive.”

Prosecutors say that in the days after the alleged murder, D4vd ordered two chainsaws, a body bag, heavy-duty laundry bags and a blue inflatable pool that investigators say was used to contain Celeste’s blood as she was dismembered.

Burke has pleaded not guilty to charges that include first-degree murder, sexual abuse of a child and unlawful mutilation of human remains.

Prosecutors have not yet decided if they will seek the death penalty.

What type of evidence could emerge during the hearing?

Much of the evidence investigators gathered before ultimately arrested Burke hasn’t been made public. But much of it may come out during this week’s hearing.

Former federal prosecutor Neama Rahmani said one category is video evidence.

According to court documents, prosecutors’ evidence includes surveillance video that they say shows D4vd was the last person to drive his Tesla.

“Also, the home that D4vd rented in the Hollywood Hills apparently has cameras,” Rahmani said.

Cooperator testimony is another category of evidence that Rahmani expects to emerge during the hearing.

“Deputy District Attorney Beth Silverman convened a grand jury. Not to indict D4vd but to put in witneses, so I expect that some of the witnesses that testified before that grand jury were friends, members of D4vd’s inner circle.”

Rahmani said he expects prosecutors to call several witnesses during the hearing.

“I expect several law enforcement witnesses, primarily LAPD detectives, who are going to summarize the evidence in this case,” Rahmani said.

Asked about the strength of the prosecution’s case, Rahmani said the evidence already made public appears compelling.

“I think this is a very strong case for the prosecution, and one that will be very difficult for the defense to overcome,” Rahmani said.

Alex Stone and News contributed to this report.