D4vd's cellphone contained "significant amount" of child pornography, LA County prosecutors say
During a court appearance on Thursday, Los Angeles County prosecutors said that they've recovered more than 40 terabytes of digital evidence, including a "significant amount of child pornography," in their case against singer D4vd, who was charged with murder in connection with the death of 14-year-old Celeste Rivas Hernandez.
The proceeding was initially scheduled as a preliminary hearing to determine if there was enough evidence for a D4vd, whose real name is David Anthony Burke, to stand trial. Instead, both sides discussed the next steps in the case and scheduled a secondary status update conference for Wednesday, April 29. The preliminary hearing is tentatively scheduled for May 1.
On Thursday, one year to the day that Rivas Hernandez was believed to have been killed, Deputy District Attorney Beth Silverman told a Los Angeles County Superior Court judge that Burke's iPhone contained a "significant amount of child pornography" and that three grand juries have heard evidence in the investigation thus far. Prosecutors said that the images were uncovered during a series of search warrants, but did not elaborate on the content.
Silverman said that there was a "voluminous amount of data" that had been recovered and estimated that they have over 40 terabytes of data acquired from Burke's iPhone and iCloud account.
Defense attorneys asked that prosecutors provide as much "basic discovery" as possible during the proceeding. CBS News is awaiting a response from Burke's legal representation for comment on the new allegations and evidence discussed by prosecutors.
The attorneys representing the Rivas Hernandez family declined to comment on Thursday's proceedings.
Burke appeared in court on Thursday, wearing an orange inmate jumpsuit and shackles. He did not speak aside from saying, "Yes, your honor," when asked if he understood the meaning of the proceedings.
Thursday's court appearance comes just a day after the Los Angeles County Medical Examiner released the results of Rivas Hernandez's autopsy, which revealed that she died of "multiple penetrating injuries" to the torso. The autopsy was performed in September 2025, days after the body was found decomposing in the Tesla's trunk at a Hollywood tow yard, but the results were ordered sealed by a judge as the Los Angeles Police Department and the county's District Attorney's Office built their case.
The chief medical examiner said that the cause and manner of death were determined by December.
After Burke was arrested last week at a home in the Hollywood Hills and charged with first-degree murder, among other charges, in connection to Rivas Hernandez's death, the order was lifted.
Attorneys representing Burke pleaded not guilty on his behalf during his initial court appearance on Monday. At the time, they also requested an expedited preliminary hearing, during which a judge will determine if there is enough evidence to move forward with the murder trial.
"Let us be clear — 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," Burke's attorneys said in a statement on Monday. "There has been no indictment returned by any grand jury in this case and no criminal complaint filed. David has only been detained under suspicion. We will vigorously defend David's innocence."
Los Angeles County District Attorney Nathan Hochman on Monday alleged that Burke, who is 21, killed Rivas Hernandez in April 2025, months before her body was found, after she threatened to expose his criminal conduct, including the "repeated lewd and lascivious sexual relations" he was having with her.
Along with the first-degree murder charge, which includes special circumstances of lying in wait, committing the crime for financial gain and murdering the witness in an investigation, Burke was also charged with lewd and lascivious acts with an individual under 14 and mutilating a body.
The Medical Examiner's Report revealed that Rivas Hernandez's body had been dismembered. Her head and torso were found in a cadaver bag inside the Tesla, while other body parts were found in a second bag, authorities said.
The teenager was reported missing from Lake Elsinore in April 2024, a year before she was last seen at Burke's Hollywood Hills home on April 3, 2025.
If convicted as charged, Hochman said that Burke could face the maximum sentence of life without the possibility of parole or the death penalty.
When Rivas Hernandez was identified as the victim found in the Tesla, Burke was on the "D4vd Withered 2025 World Tour." He canceled a scheduled show in Seattle that night, which was followed by the cancelation of subsequent shows.
