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Attorneys quit singer D4vd's murder case, victim's family calls for death penalty
David Anthony Burke, a singer known as "D4vd," is on trial for the murder of 14-year-old Celeste Rivas Hernandez, who had reportedly been groomed by Burke starting when she was only 11 years old. His attorneys have resigned, and Hernandez's family is calling for the death penalty.
Burke rose to fame on TikTok and got a record deal. He had been set to go on a world tour, which was cancelled after Hernandez was found murdered at just 14 years old.
Burke allegedly began grooming Hernandez when she was 11 years old; at 13, she got pregnant and had an abortion.
Burke is charged with Hernandez's murder.
His lawyers have all resigned, and have been replaced by public defenders.
Hernandez's family is seeking the death penalty.
After going viral on TikTok, Burke was signed by Interscope Records, and had been set to go on tour, which was cancelled when Hernandez was found dead in the trunk of Burke's car.
Hernandez had been missing for weeks, and it had taken so long for her to be found that her body had begun to decompose. She was just 14 years old when she died.
Previously, Burke had engaged in a sexual relationship with Hernandez, beginning when she was just 13. He had allegedly been sexually grooming her since she was 11, and their relationship led to at least one abortion.
Text messages between the two seem to indicate Hernandez may have felt pressured to abort, and afterward was deeply affected by it, writing, “I don’t like talking about it because it gets me really upset, but I’d do anything to have [the baby] back.”
Text messages also revealed that she had threatened to expose their illegal relationship before she went missing in April of 2025.
According to prosecutors, Burke killed Hernandez on April 23, 2025, stabbing her twice in a blue kiddie pool in his garage. After she slowly bled to death, he allegedly left her body there for several months, and then dismembered her with a chainsaw, placing her body in black trash bags, and leaving the bags in the trunk of his car.
According to the Associated Press, Burke's three private attorneys have all resigned from the case. He had been represented by Blair Berk, Marilyn Bednarski, and Regina Peter, but all three filed a request with the judge to withdraw from the case. No reason was given for their exit.
“We continue to support David and his defense against these serious charges,” they said in a statement.
He is now being represented by the Los Angeles County Public Defender's Office. ABC7 reported that his new attorney is Walid Kandeel.
"We recognize the loss of life underlying the allegations and extend our sympathies to those who are grieving," Kandeel said in a statement. "At the same time, David Burke is entitled to a defense that takes his circumstances seriously and carefully examines the evidence. We are committed to providing him with that defense."
Hernandez's family is calling for Burke to receive the death penalty. In a statement released on what would have been Hernandez's 16th birthday, they said:
If the death penalty were activated, it would be perfect for this kind of human being, devoid of feelings and emptiness inside, and without conscience, who only caused pain to our daughter, our family, and the world that supports our precious daughter.
But that’s not in our hands, but rather in God’s, and the California justice system.
Los Angeles County District Attorney Nathan Hochman said California's previous ban on the death penalty had been rescinded, but only in "exceedingly rare" cases, and that he had not yet decided whether to pursue it in Burke's case.
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·Attorneys quit singer D4vd's murder case, victim's family calls for death penalty
David Anthony Burke, a singer known as "D4vd," is on trial for the murder of 14-year-old Celeste Rivas Hernandez, who had reportedly been groomed by Burke starting when she was only 11 years old. His attorneys have resigned, and Hernandez's family is calling for the death penalty.
Burke rose to fame on TikTok and got a record deal. He had been set to go on a world tour, which was cancelled after Hernandez was found murdered at just 14 years old.
Burke allegedly began grooming Hernandez when she was 11 years old; at 13, she got pregnant and had an abortion.
Burke is charged with Hernandez's murder.
His lawyers have all resigned, and have been replaced by public defenders.
Hernandez's family is seeking the death penalty.
After going viral on TikTok, Burke was signed by Interscope Records, and had been set to go on tour, which was cancelled when Hernandez was found dead in the trunk of Burke's car.
Hernandez had been missing for weeks, and it had taken so long for her to be found that her body had begun to decompose. She was just 14 years old when she died.
Previously, Burke had engaged in a sexual relationship with Hernandez, beginning when she was just 13. He had allegedly been sexually grooming her since she was 11, and their relationship led to at least one abortion.
Text messages between the two seem to indicate Hernandez may have felt pressured to abort, and afterward was deeply affected by it, writing, “I don’t like talking about it because it gets me really upset, but I’d do anything to have [the baby] back.”
Text messages also revealed that she had threatened to expose their illegal relationship before she went missing in April of 2025.
According to prosecutors, Burke killed Hernandez on April 23, 2025, stabbing her twice in a blue kiddie pool in his garage. After she slowly bled to death, he allegedly left her body there for several months, and then dismembered her with a chainsaw, placing her body in black trash bags, and leaving the bags in the trunk of his car.
According to the Associated Press, Burke's three private attorneys have all resigned from the case. He had been represented by Blair Berk, Marilyn Bednarski, and Regina Peter, but all three filed a request with the judge to withdraw from the case. No reason was given for their exit.
“We continue to support David and his defense against these serious charges,” they said in a statement.
He is now being represented by the Los Angeles County Public Defender's Office. ABC7 reported that his new attorney is Walid Kandeel.
"We recognize the loss of life underlying the allegations and extend our sympathies to those who are grieving," Kandeel said in a statement. "At the same time, David Burke is entitled to a defense that takes his circumstances seriously and carefully examines the evidence. We are committed to providing him with that defense."
Hernandez's family is calling for Burke to receive the death penalty. In a statement released on what would have been Hernandez's 16th birthday, they said:
If the death penalty were activated, it would be perfect for this kind of human being, devoid of feelings and emptiness inside, and without conscience, who only caused pain to our daughter, our family, and the world that supports our precious daughter.
But that’s not in our hands, but rather in God’s, and the California justice system.
Los Angeles County District Attorney Nathan Hochman said California's previous ban on the death penalty had been rescinded, but only in "exceedingly rare" cases, and that he had not yet decided whether to pursue it in Burke's case.
Live Action News is pro-life news and commentary from a pro-life perspective.
Our work is possible because of our donors. Please consider giving to further our work of changing hearts and minds on issues of life and human dignity.
Contact editor@liveaction.org for questions, corrections, or if you are seeking permission to reprint any Live Action News content.
Guest Articles: To submit a guest article to Live Action News, email editor@liveaction.org with an attached Word document of 800-1000 words. Please also attach any photos relevant to your submission if applicable. If your submission is accepted for publication, you will be notified within three weeks. Guest articles are not compensated (see our Open License Agreement). Thank you for your interest in Live Action News!
Cassy Cooke
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