D4vd is scheduled to undergo a week-long preliminary hearing to determine whether there is enough evidence to sustain charges of first-degree murder and related offenses against him.
The 21-year-old artist known as the Romantic Homicide, whose real name is David Anthony Burke, was charged in April with the death of Celeste Rivas after she allegedly threatened to derail his music career by exposing their illicit relationship.
Prosecutors opened the hearing on Tuesday by presenting grisly crime-scene photographs, according to Rolling Stone.
They contend that D4vd met Rivas when she was 11 years old, and that their sexual relationship began when she was 13 and he was 18. It is alleged that he dispatched an Uber to bring her to his Los Angeles home on 23 April, 2025, and killed her that night. His debut album, Withered, was released two days later.
D4vd has entered a plea of not guilty to all charges.
“Let us be clear,” the singer’s attorneys said in a statement following his April arrest, “the actual evidence in this case will show that David Burke did not murder Celeste Rivas Hernandez and he was not the cause of her death.”
The preliminary hearing is expected to continue on Wednesday. A judge will evaluate the prosecution’s evidence to determine whether there is probable cause to believe he could be guilty.
During a press conference on Tuesday, District Attorney Nathan Hochman stated his team would present more than 10 witnesses, including police officers and coroners.
“At the conclusion of the presentation of all this evidence, the question will be whether D4vd should be required to answer for the three felony charges,” Hochman explained. “We believe we will meet the evidentiary burden of probable cause at this point.”
D4vd’s murder charge includes a “special circumstances” enhancement, which could lead to a maximum sentence of life in prison without the possibility of parole, or the death penalty.
