Celeste Rivas Hernandez: The full case timeline explained

The killing of Celeste Rivas Hernandez remains one of the most closely watched criminal cases in recent California history. The 14-year-old from Lake Elsinore was reported missing three times in early 2024 before her dismembered remains surfaced in the trunk of a Tesla registered to musician D4vd, and the timeline that followed now stretches from those first alerts to formal charges in 2026.

First missing reports filed

The Riverside County Sheriff’s Department received the initial missing-person report on February 15, 2024. Two more reports followed on March 19 and April 5, each filed by family members who noted repeated absences from home.

Investigators contacted David Anthony Burke, known professionally as D4vd, after the first report. He acknowledged recent contact but told deputies he had not realized she was underage.

Those early contacts produced no immediate arrest and the case remained open as a missing-person investigation.

Last confirmed sighting

Cellphone records place Celeste Rivas Hernandez at Burke’s Hollywood Hills residence on April 23, 2025, after arriving by Uber. Activity from her phone stopped that same evening.

Prosecutors later alleged a text sent around 10:30 p.m. asking her whereabouts was intended as a cover story after she was already dead.

Her death certificate lists the cause as multiple penetrating injuries, with toxicology results showing certain drugs present in her system.

Discovery of remains

On September 8, 2025, a Los Angeles tow-yard employee opened the front trunk of an impounded 2023 Tesla Model X and found two cadaver bags containing dismembered remains. The car was registered to Burke.

The discovery occurred one day after Celeste Rivas Hernandez would have turned fifteen. Authorities immediately classified the case as a homicide.

Burke’s tour dates were canceled within days, and his management team issued no public comment at the time.

Early investigative steps

LAPD Robbery-Homicide Division and Riverside County detectives began tracing movements linked to the Tesla. Records showed three trips to a Santa Barbara County location on April 23, May 8, and May 31, 2025.

During a search of that site, investigators recovered Celeste Rivas Hernandez’s U.S. passport card.

Receipts for chainsaw purchases and body bags surfaced in later court filings, though the defense has not yet addressed those documents in open court.

Defense retains counsel

In October 2025, Burke hired veteran Los Angeles defense attorney Blair Berk. She has represented high-profile clients in previous entertainment-industry cases.

Berk told reporters that evidence would show Burke did not commit the murder and was not the cause of death.

The defense team later asked the court to seal portions of the evidentiary record; the request was denied.

Grand jury convenes

A Los Angeles County grand jury began hearing evidence in November 2025. Prosecutors presented phone records, location data, and autopsy findings during closed sessions.

The panel returned an indictment that included first-degree murder with special circumstances, continuous sexual abuse of a child under 14, lewd acts with a person under 14, and unlawful mutilation of human remains.

Media outlets obtained limited portions of the charging documents through standard court channels.

Arrest and arraignment

Burke was taken into custody on April 16, 2026. Four days later he entered a not-guilty plea during a brief arraignment at the Clara Shortridge Foltz Criminal Justice Center.

Prosecutors alleged the sexual relationship began when Celeste Rivas Hernandez was thirteen and that she had threatened to expose it before her death.

The updated death certificate noted uncertainty about a possible pregnancy in the year before she died, though no further medical details have been released publicly.

Preliminary hearings begin

Early motions focused on discovery timelines and the admissibility of digital evidence. Both sides filed routine requests for additional time to review terabytes of phone and location data.

Local stations carried short segments from the courtroom steps, but coverage has remained measured while the case is still in pretrial stages.

No trial date has been set, and the next scheduled hearing centers on unresolved discovery disputes.

Case status today

The investigation continues to draw national attention because it involves a rising music figure and a minor victim. Public records remain the primary source for verified dates and charges.

Future proceedings will test how much of the prosecution’s timeline survives defense challenges and whether additional evidence surfaces before trial.

Observers expect the case to remain in Los Angeles courts for months, with each filing offering incremental updates rather than dramatic reversals.