A high-profile criminal case centered on rising singer David Anthony Burke, professionally known as D4vd, has taken new turns as the family of his alleged 14-year-old victim pushes for the ultimate punishment and moves forward with a parallel civil lawsuit.
The case first emerged in September 2025, when the dismembered remains of Celeste Rivas Hernandez were discovered inside the trunk of a Tesla vehicle registered to an address linked to Burke. The 14-year-old’s killing has shaken Southern California and drawn nationwide media attention, as the defendant built a growing career in the music industry before his arrest.
Hernandez’s family has made clear their stance in recent public statements: if a jury finds Burke guilty of murder, they are calling for him to receive the death penalty. California has held a temporary moratorium on executions for years, but that has not dimmed the family’s demand for the harshest possible sentence. In a statement released Monday, September 2026, which would have marked Hernandez’s 16th birthday, the family described Burke as a remorseless person who inflicted unfathomable pain on their family and their daughter. “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,” the statement read, released via the family’s legal team.
Alongside their call for capital punishment in the criminal case, Hernandez’s parents, Mercedes Martinez and Jesus Rivas, have filed a civil wrongful death lawsuit against Burke in Los Angeles Superior Court. The court filing mirrors many of the claims laid out by prosecutors in the ongoing criminal matter, adding additional allegations against the singer’s professional and personal circle.
The suit lays out a timeline of the pair’s relationship, alleging the two first connected in November 2023, when Hernandez was just 13 years old. Over the following 16 months, the parents claim, the pair exchanged nearly 10,000 text messages and engaged in repeated sexual encounters. The court documents argue that Burke, a full-grown adult at the time, held inappropriate power and influence over the minor victim, isolating her from outside support. According to the allegations, Burke killed Hernandez at his Hollywood Hills residence after she threatened to expose their secret relationship, sending him a message that read, “I will end ur career and ur life.” The suit brings claims of wrongful death, false imprisonment, and childhood sexual assault, and seeks financial compensation to cover the victim’s burial and funeral costs, among other damages.
Notably, the civil suit does not name only Burke as a defendant. It also names several of the singer’s business entities, his managers, his mother, and his live-in security guard, alleging that these individuals enabled Burke’s actions, helped isolate Hernandez, and facilitated the conditions that allowed the abuse and killing to occur. Representatives for Burke’s management firm Mogul Vision and his finance manager have previously stated they had no knowledge of the relationship between Burke and Hernandez, according to reporting from the Los Angeles Times.
The criminal case against Burke has already cleared a major procedural hurdle. Back in July 2026, a judge ruled that there was sufficient probable cause for the case to move forward to a criminal trial on the murder charge. At that time, district attorney officials confirmed they were still weighing whether to formally pursue a death sentence in the case.
In recent weeks, Burke has made changes to his legal team. He has split from his high-profile celebrity defense attorney and is now represented by a public defender, with the case scheduled for a next court hearing on October 19, 2026. The full criminal trial has been pushed back to 2027. Burke has entered a formal plea of not guilty to all criminal charges against him.
Deputy public defender Walid Kandeel, Burke’s current legal representative, noted that Burke has the right to a vigorous defense that carefully examines all evidence and takes his specific circumstances into account. “We are committed to providing him with that defence,” Kandeel said. His office has not yet issued any formal comment in response to the newly filed civil lawsuit.