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D4VD’s Preliminary Hearing Begins: Evidence, Testimony, and What’s at Stake
Added:How you guys doing today? It's Anthony Ganji. Welcome to another episode of Tear Talk, guys. Okay, so in our coverage for D4 VD, I've been trying to follow up on day one. What exactly happened on day one for the prelim, uh, I've been getting stuff from Lauren Colin, who's a big source of what I'm getting stuff from. She's from LA Mag.
has been posting stuff on all her social media outlets, but I also got stuff from CBS, ABC, New York Post, People, TMZ, Associated Press, New York Times, BBC, and this is what I got so far. This I'm able to put together for day one.
So, uh, the proceedings that started today is a preliminary hearing before Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Charlene Almetto, not the actual trial.
The New York Times and ABC7 explained that this hearing is meant to determine whether there's probable cause to believe David Anthony Burke, D4VD, committed the charged offenses in connection with the killing and dismemberment of 14-year-old Celeste Reeba Hernandez. The US Attorney's Justice 101 page describes a preliminary hearing as a mini trial where the prosecution calls witnesses and introduces evidence and the defense cross-examines them. However, the rule of evidence are looser than than at trial and hearsay is allowed. DA Nathan H. Hotchman has confirmed that at this stage they do not have to prove guilt beyond a reasonable doubt, but simply present enough evidence that a reasonable person could suspect Burke committed the crimes. He had said prosecutors intend to call more than 10 witnesses over several days and that they expect the prelim to last three to seven days and that this is the first venue where much of their evidence will be aired publicly in detail. Hman has also emphasized that the death penalty decision will be made after the preliminary hearing, not on day one. Uh the possible sentences if Burke is eventually convicted of first-degree murder with special circumstances are life without parole or death, but the office has not yet chosen whether to seek capital punishment. Every element here, the definition of a prelim, the probable cause standard, hearsay, permissibility, the multi-day schedule, and the deferred death penalty decision is confirmed by combinations of New York Times, ABC7, Justice Gov, and H. Hman's own remarks or Hochman's own remarks. I think it's Hutchman. All right. So, I want to show you a video that he did.
He did a press conference real quick.
Uh, let me just send you uh let me just show you this video real quick. Bear with me because I did have it [snorts] set and then I lost it.
So, bear with me.
Let me share Hold on, guys.
Should be right. It's going through a commercial now, so bear with me, guys. I just don't want to um play the commercial out, but there were breaks today. And during the breaks, Brian Eton was able to come out, speak a little because he was able to get in and Lauren Colin from LA Mag. Lauren Collins is really actively posting some good information out there. So, if you guys get a chance, I would follow her.
Um, all right, let me share this.
>> Good afternoon. My name is Nathan Hawkman. I'm the Los Angeles County District Attorney. Today starts the day of the preliminary hearing of David Anthony Burke, the singer David spelled D4B DD. This preliminary hearing will last approximately 3 to five days at which point the uh we will be seeking to hold David to answer for three felony counts of which he has been charged.
Firstde murder with special circumstances.
uh the count of loot in lascivious acts with a 13-year-old and the count of mutilation of human remains. David will be facing a maximum punishment of life without the possibility of parole or he is also death penalty eligible. The decision on whether or not to seek the death penalty has not been made at this point. Now, the point of a preliminary hearing is somewhat different than you actually perceive in the media, whether it's TV or the movies, because what often happens in TV or the movies is you go from an immediate uh arrest into a trial. But in our system and and in California in particular, you have an intermediate step. That intermediate step is a preliminary hearing where effectively the prosecution's evidence is going to be tested before a judge, not a jury. The standard that we have to meet is not beyond a reasonable doubt at the preliminary hearing stage. It is it is probable cause. We are not obligated, nor will we be presenting all the evidence at a preliminary hearing that we will be presenting at a trial to prove David beyond a reasonable doubt guilty of the three felony charges of which he has been charged. So, at the preliminary hearing, we will call a number of officers. We estimate there will be over 10 different witnesses, both officer testimony, coroner testimony, and there will be individual witnesses as well. And again, we can rely on hearsay and other things that won't be allowed to be relied on in an actual trial. The judge at the end of the presentation of the evidence and again this is evidence that can be cross-examined by a defense attorney and that has already that process has already been done. At the end of the presentation of all this evidence, the question will be will David be held to answer on the three felony charges. We believe we will more than accomplish the evidentiary burden of probable cause at this point to hold David to answer on these three felony charges. At that point, if the judge does hold him to answer, we will file an information that will detail the the the actual three criminal charges. Thereafter, there will be a trial date that will be set and David, if he so chooses, will proceed to trial and we will prove at that point beyond a reasonable doubt that David committed these three crimes.
And when, and we do not predict if, when he is convicted, we will then be seeking the sentence that we are allowed to seek by order of the law. And we will let you know in a future date whether or not that sentence will also include the death penalty. So I wanted to take this opportunity as we're starting this preliminary hearing process to explain where the preliminary hearing fits in the process so people can understand as we are presenting evidence and it is being cross-examined what ultimately the standard is for the judge to determine and that's probable cause not re beyond a reasonable doubt that is a judge that is doing this determination not a jury at this point and that there will subsequently be a trial when the judge holds holds David to answer on these three felony charges. When this uh preliminary hearing is over, I will come back to address you and at that point I will take questions. Thank you very much.
All right, let's go back to my coverage.
All right, so that's from the [clears throat] DA.
Let me um continue with my coverage.
All right. So, there's a lot here, guys.
Um bear with me because I lost my place.
Where am I?
Hold on, guys. Bear with me because I lost my place. All right. So, again, guys, the significance of day one is that this is the first major public airing of the prosecution's factual theory in open court. That's why the hearing has drawn such close attention from mainstream outlets, local TV crews, legal commentators, and independent reporters posting from inside the courtroom.
All right, I'm going to have to bring it back up.
Let's see.
So, CBS Los Angeles, AP, ABC, and TMZ agree on Burke's charges. He is charged with first-degree murder with special circumstances, continuous sexual abuse, lewd and lascivious acts with a child under 14, and mutilating a body. The special circumstances listed in filings and summarized by CBS ABC are lying in weight, murder for financial gain, and murder of a witness, which makes him eligible for life without parole or death. Prosecutor's motive theory is consistent across CBS Newsweek, BBC, CNN, and H. Hot. Hotchman's remarks, or Hochman's remarks. Uh they allege Burke met Celeste when she was about 11 and began sexually exploiting her when she was 13 while he was 18 and that at his and as his music career accelerated she threatened to expose the relationship and ruin his life or derail his career.
They argue he killed her to protect his future income stream and to eliminate a witness who could testify about criminal sexual abuse, hence the financial gain and witness murder enhancements.
Associated Press and New York Times confirmed that these special circumstances make the case death eligible, although California rarely carries out executions and Ho Homan has said he will decide whether to seek death after reviewing prelim evidence.
So, he's reviewing it as well. So, now as for the courtroom scene, inside the courtroom, multiple sources paint a consistent picture. So, I saw ABC7 and NBC report that cameras are not allowed in the room and seats for the public are limited by a lottery system, which has created heavy reliance on reporters notes and threads for details. TMZ, Fox, NBC, and Lauren Colin all confirmed that Celeste's parents are in attendance, seated in the front row. TMZ says they arrived looking somber and holding hands and refused to look away as gruesome photos of their daughter's dismembered body were displayed. I have a picture of them. It came from TMZ.
Um, I'll show you the picture I saw from TMZ.
They're with their um, it's the Celest's father and mother and they are being escorted by their lawyer.
Uh, this is the picture that's being shared.
father, mother, and the lawyer.
Uh, let's see. Says here in this article, Celeste's parents, Jesus Rivas and Mercedes Martinez, were seen holding hands as they arrived at the downtown LA courthouse Tuesday morning. They looked solemn. I mean, what they're going through is um I I couldn't even imagine.
So Fox Mario Ramirez and NBC's Britney Hope report that Celeste's mother appeared close to fanning during the morning graphic evidence and was fanned by someone in the courtroom.
Judge Omeo asked if the parents wished to leave before more testimony and they chose to stay because at the very beginning it um they did talk about the discovery of her body and they showed pictures.
On restraints, TMZ reported that Burke's attorney, Blair Burke, requested that his handcuffs be removed for the prelim, citing his calm behavior at prior hearings. Collins day one post confirmed that the judge partially granted this.
David appeared in court without handcuffs, but he was still restrained with a waist chain and his ankles remain chained under the table. She described him as appearing calm and relaxed, leaning back in his chair through much of the proceeding. And I think he he was wearing the orange jumpsuit from what I read in other um reports. Collins reporting adds a striking detail about his demeanor as graphic evidence was shown. She writes that as prosecutors displayed crime scene photos from inside the Tesla frunk showing the cadaabver bag, severed limbs, and decomposing remains, David never appeared to look away from the monitors, kept his eyes fixed on the screen for the entire presentation while she and other reporters struggled to look at the image or the images. This observation matches TMZ's framing of him sitting alongside his lawyers while prosecutors laid out their case. But Conland's thread is what explicitly notes his unbroken state.
She also noted that DA Nathan Hochman Hutchman is sitting in the second row personally watching testimony and evidence unfold which aligns with TMZ's day one coverage that highlights his presence in later press remarks. Every element the parents front row presence the mother's nearly figning the mother nearly feigning. Judge Ometo's offer to let them leave the lottery access rules, which Brian also mentioned, Burke's handcuff removal, but continued waist ankle restraint, his calm posture, his fixed gazed on the monitors, and Hutchman's placement all appears consistently across ABC7, NBC, TMZ, Fox, and Conland's Post.
So the discovery of Celeste's remains is described with remarkable consistency by AP, the Associated Press, CBS, New York Post, People, BBC, and Collins courtroom thread. Associated Press and CBS say that on September 8, 2025, workers at the Hollywood Toy reported a strong foul odor coming from a black from a black Tesla registered to David Burke.
Detective Joshua Buyers of LAPD robbery homicide division responded.
Investigators obtained a search warrant to inspect the vehicle. When they opened the Tesla front trunk frunk, buyers testified that they found a partially unzipped black cadaabver bag containing human remains. Common described the photo shown in court in detail.
Reporters saw images from inside the frunk showing the cadaabver bag with severed limbs, arms, and legs covered in blood, insect activity, and decomposing tissue. She says the bags and body parts appeared wet and bloody and that exhibit showed the bag closed inside the frunk then opened on the ground revealing the contents. Buyers testified that the remains include a torso head and severed extremities which Conlin corroborates noting that one bloody photo of the head and torso appeared to show black curly hair.
He also said that blue plastic or fiber fragments were embedded in the cut surface in the cut surfaces of some limbs including near kneecap which aligns with BBC rolling stone and my earlier descriptions of blue plastic from a chainsaw blade and a blue inflat and a blue inflatable pool used to catch blood.
Buyers is quoted in New York Post and Conland's tweets explained that due to advanced decomposition and skin slippage, he could not identify the victim's face from the remains alone. He testified that the victim's left ring finger and left pinky finger have been amputated along with her right index finger, which corresponds to the finger with a tattoo seen in social media images. And in his own booking description, New York Post quotes his description of insect activity and fluids. buyer said there were maggots and flies around and on the body and that he did not know how to describe the other liquid matter present pointing to extensive decomposition. Colin similarly notes insect activity in the photos and both accounts use those words.
I sent some screenshots from Colin um what she posted on her ex or Facebook.
Uh she also added critical details about how how evidence was handled which we can now fold in because she was in the court. In her cross-examination of detective buyer's thread, she reports that Burke questioned buyers about why the black cadaavver bag was not preserved in full as evidence. Buyers testified that after consulting with a supervisor and a criminalist, detectives aside the advanced decomposition in body fluids made it impractical to preserve the entire bag. Instead, they removed and kept only certain parts of it, including the zipper and handles for forensic testing. He acknowledged that the rest of the bag was not fingerprinted, swabbed, or otherwise tested, which gives the defense an opening to argue that potential DNA or trace evidence on the bag was not explored. Collins crossexamine thread also covers a burn cage box that earlier media had associated with efforts to destroy evidence. She reports that buyers testified he saw an unopened burn cage box near a piano on the second floor of David's home during the September 17th, 2025 search and that it was photographed. However, he acknowledged the box was neither tested for biological evidence nor collected as evidence in that search. People in BBC had described the burn box cage as part of the prosecution's theory. Collins reporting clarifies that at least as of that search, the physical box was documented but not seized or forensically tested, which Burke is now emphasizing.
Colin also described buyer's reaction to the photograph. She notes that she and other reporters found the images extremely hard to view because of their graphic nature. Decapitated, dismembered, decayed body parts, insect activity, wet and bloody bags. But David himself never looked away, keeping his eyes fixed on the courtroom monitors.
All these details, towyard, date, warrant, frunk, partially unzip bag, torso, head, limbs, blue plastic fragments, skin slippage, amputated fingers, flies and maggots, partial preservation of the cadaavver bag, untested burn cage box, and David's fixed gaze are confirmed by AP, CBS, New York Post, BBC, People, Rolling Stone, and Collins threads. ABC7 autopsy coverage and CBS's courtroom story both say the medical examiner concluded Celeste died from multiple penetrating injuries described as consistent with stabbing. ABC7's investigation timeline explains that on April 23rd, 2025, Celeste was taken by an Uber from her family home in Lake Elsenor to David's Hollywood Hills home after which she was not seen alive again. CBS and AP report that prosecutors alleged Burke stabbed her multiple times at that Hollywood Hills residence and then used chainsaw ordered under aliases to dismember her body and place her place the parts into the Tesla front trunk. Her remains were discovered in a state of advanced decomposition in September of 2025, months after the alleged killing. This timeline, Uber arrival on April 23rd, stabbing and dismembered soon after, months of decomposition in his car, discovery on September 8th, is a consistent is consistent across ABC7, CBS, New York Post, BBC, CNN, and Rolling Stones. None other source sources indicate a different date or cause of death, and Collins day one reporting stays focused on discovery and dismemberment rather than revisiting autopsy details which had already been public.
Then there's the welfare check. So on February 17, 2024, there's a welfare check and one of the main day uh sorry the the February 17, 2024 welfare check is one of the main day one topics and Lauren Colin screenshot gives us granular detail that we've now integrated.
[snorts] Uh this is when she has gone missing and they have tracked um they believe they have tracked her down to David's uh residence where he was renting in the Hollywood Hills. She reports that the prosecutor's first state witness was uh senior deputy Juan Gonzalez from the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department. He testified on February 17, 2024 he went to David's home to conduct a welfare check after Riverside County investigators reported 13-year-old Celestri Hernandez missing. Gonzalez testified that David told him he met Celeste through social media and Discord in 2020 or 2021 and that he only met her once in person by then. He said David told him the last time he spoke with Celeste was February 13, 2024 and the last time he saw her in person was November 12th, 2023. He also noted that David showed deputies a sixth grade yearbook photo of Celeste and a missing person flyer during the welfare check.
Colin writes that Celeste looked about 11 years old in the yearbook images wearing a Batman sweatshirt making her true youth visually obvious. Gonzalez testified that deputy searched David David Dunning he drive home with his consent while looking for Celeste. He noticed Hello Kitty items and similar decor. David explained that the home was an artist's house where different people frequently stayed, downplaying any suggestion that those items were Celeste. Colin screenshot of body cam footage presented in court shows David telling deputies, "She told me she is 18, but everyone is saying she's 13."
While he provided her phone number and discussed how they met. This line makes clear that David was aware that everyone, parents, other investigators were saying she was 13, but he claimed to believe her when she said she was 18.
During cross-examination, defense attorney Regina Peter emphasized that David was cooperative. Conlin writes that Peter highlighted how David voluntarily provided Celeste information, consented to the search, and repeatedly stated he believed she was 18 years old, using this to build a narrative of openness rather than concealment. On redirect, Conlin reports that prosecutors asked whether Burke ever told deputies he had been in a sexual relationship with Celeste or helped her leave her home, arguing that the defense portrayal of full cooperation needed to be tested. Defense attorneys objected before Gonzalez could answer and Judge Ome sustained the objection, instructing council to move on. That exchange, cooperation versus admitted admission, is one of the key day one tension points. Several preview pieces from NBC and CBS had said body cam footage from prior welfare checks will be part of the prelim. Collins threads confirmed that this February 17th footage and Gonzalez's testimony were indeed presented on day one. Every detail, the date of the welfare check, missing person origin, Discord, social media meeting, last contact dates, yearbook photo, and Batman sweatshirt, Hello Kitty items, body cam quote, cross-examine emphasis on cooperation, redirect questions about sexual relationship, helping her leave, and the sustained objection is directly from Collins post and consistent with ABC7 and CBS's general description of the body cam issue. Um, now you have the Tesla movement. Actually, you know what? I want to show you something from Matt Tibido.
Hold on, guys. Bear with me because he gave two breakdowns today.
Uh, and I want to show you one of them at this point.
I want to show you part one.
So bear with me a lot. So I see this may be part part one right here.
All right. So let me share this with you guys.
Can you guys see it?
Okay. This is part one what we just discussed.
>> Preliminary hearing began today. For those who don't know what a preliminary hearing is, it's basically when prosecutors present all of the evidence that they have to a judge in order for that judge to determine if there is sufficient evidence for a case to move forward against a defendant. In this case, it's David. Celeste's parents were in attendance today. And while they have not spoken publicly from their own mouths, only through their attorney once or twice, they have been at every single major hearing that David has had. Court was just adjourned for a brief break.
But what happened so far is that photos of Celeste were shown after she was discovered in David's frunk. Severed arms and severed legs were shown along with a severed kneecap. A left hand was discovered in a black trash bag with two severed fingers. The judge got to see images of that as well. They noted that Celeste had a David tattoo on one of her fingers, as we saw in several photos posted to social media, and that finger was actually missing when her remains were found. One of the detectives who took the stand today were asked by prosecutors if they could see a face when the remains were found in David's frunk. And that detective said no. There was skin slippage and severe decomposition that made a face unrecognizable. Celeste family was reportedly extremely emotional as these things were being shown and shared.
Before today's preliminary hearing, David's legal team did ask the judge for him to appear in court without handcuffs or other restraints. As far as what I'm hearing, that request was denied. He appeared in the courtroom today in his orange jumpsuit and shackled. So, yeah, court is going to be back in a little bit after they take their break for lunch. I'm going to continue to keep you guys updated as things come out. So, make sure you're following me for full coverage on this case moving forward.
This preliminary hearing is scheduled to last about 4 days, but it could go up to 7 days. So, we'll have to see how this ends up going. Hey guys, so David's preliminary hearing.
>> All right.
Okay. So, now we have the Tesla movements. You got Bluetooth data, alias purchases, and chainsaw testing. So, once we move past the welfare checks, the story follows the Tesla and the evidence trail around it. News outlets like ABC7, AP, LA Mag, The Tab, BBC, and Rolling Stones all describe the same core arc. Burk's Tesla is used, moved, and eventually abandoned, then impounded, and only later does it smell lead to discovery of Celeste's remains.
Surveillance video, vehicle logs, and account data are the backbone of that part of the case. Investigators say the Tesla was abandoned and towed, ended up at Hollywood area towyard. Workers complained about a strong odor from the front trunk, which led detective Joshua Buyers and others to obtain a search warrant and open the frunk, finding the cadaabver bag and dismembered remains.
That's the moment we've already described in detail. The head and torso in unzipped cadaabver bag, limbs in a second black garbage bag with blue handles, insect activity, and fluid. And it's exactly what Julia Deng told Jesse Weber she saw in court. And I I'm going to show a clip of that video real quick.
It's from Law Sidebar.
Um, a head and torso on the frunk and arms and legs chopped up in a second bag, a black garbage bag with blue handles. And that detail about the second bag's appearance fits what Conlin and New York Post reported about multiple bags and blue plastic fragments. From there, prosecutors turn to what they say they can prove about who drove the Tesla and when. Prior reporting from the tab BBC Rotten Mango summary uh LA Mag and that's that's Lauren Conland and local TV segments described surveillance footage showing David driving the Tesla alone to places like Ross Dress for Less and Culver City on July 29th, 2025 and then returning toward the Hollywood Hills before the car was left and ultimately towed. Vehicle logs and account data show that over the relevant period, the Tesla Bluetooth and incar accounts were paired only to Burke's Gmail and a phone nickname Tranquilizer with no other device pairing. Uh that digital isolation supports the prosecution's claim that he alone was operating the car while Celeste remains were stored in it. On top of that, prosecutors say they have more than 40 terabytes of discovery in the case, including 6 to8 terabytes of phone and cloud data tied directly to Burk's devices and accounts. BBC and podcast summaries highlight the scale of data, texts, emails, cloud backup, account access logs as part of what they call a mountain of evidence. It's meant to send a message that this is not a thin circumstantial case but an extensively documented digital and physical trail. Within the larger evidentary picture are the alias purchases. BBC, New York Post, People, Rolling Stone, and others all report that Burke used a fake name, often say as Victoria Menddees, to purchase items that line up with the alleged timeline of killing and dismemberment. Chainsaw, a blue inflatable pool, a body bag, heavy duty trash or laundry bag, and a shovel. New York Post lays out a sequence where Celeste arrives in Uber on April 23rd. A shovel is ordered from Home Depot, VIA, Postmates. Amazon orders for chainsource follow. than a May shopping spree under the alias springs in the bluepool body bag and bags. People in Rolling Stone add in a burn box or burn cage described as a device used to incinerate items to ash.
Something cybar Jesse Weber paraphrases as kind of like a mini crematorium meant to burn items down to nothing. And we covered this in prior shows. I I try to give a a detailed timeline of the gaps, but now it's coming out. So now I'm just giving you guys the facts because at this point the story is going to be told. There's no longer any need for us to make assumptions. Let the story be playing out. Let the story play out. I updated Colin screenshots. I took some screenshots um and was able to push it through my notes and it shows how strong or weak um these tools are for forensic evidence. So during cross-examination, Burke asked buyers about three chainsaws recovered from the home, two in the garage and one upstairs. Buyers testified that all three saws were tested for blood and that every blood test came back negative. When pressed further, he said he did not recall any DNA testing on the chainsaw and acknowledged that investigators did not pursue additional forensic comparison once those blood tests were negative.
That means the chainsaw bolstered the narrative in combination with purchase records and blue plastic fragments in the cut service of Celeles's limbs, but they are not backed by direct blood or DNA tying them to dismemberment. It gives the defense a clear talking point.
They talk about chainsaws, but their own test found no blood. So, so they stopped there. So, that's important. Uh, just to read that again. When pressed further, he said he did not recall any DNA testing on the chainsaws and acknowledged that investigators did not pursue additional forensic comparison once those blood tests were negative.
That means the chainsaw bolsters the narrative in combination with purchase records and blue plastic fragments in the cut surface of Celeste's limbs, but they're not backed by direct blood or DNA tying them to dismemberment. That's interesting. The burn box or burn cage has a similar evidentary profile. Buyers testified about seeing an unopened burn cage box on the second floor near piano, which we talked on before during the September 17, 2025 search of Burk's rental property. The box was photographed, but he confirmed it was neither seized as evidence nor tested for biological material. sidebar, I'll show you a clip of that, leans into the conceptual point that prosecutors will say a mini crematorium inside his home fits a plan to dispose of remains, but based on buyer's testimony, the specific box observed in that search is documentation only, not a fully processed physical exhibit. Again, that's a place where the narrative is strong, but the tested evidence is limited. Again, it was unopened, but um could hold weight for the defense put together. Uh, how the So, you got how the Tesla movements and blue Bluetooth pairing frame David as the sole operator of the car that held Celeste's remains for months. How alias purchases for chainsaws, pool, body bag, shovel, burn box, and related tools support the prosecution's timeline of deliberate dismemberment and planned disposal. And how cross-examination undercuts some of the forensic weight of these tools. The chainsaw tests negative for blood. No DNA comparisons are done, and the burn cage box is photographed, but not collected or tested. Um uh so basically we keep both truths in the same section.
The prosecution has a detailed technology backstory about his movements and purchases and the defense has already shown where the physical testing doesn't fully match the rhetoric. Uh let me show you this from Matt. This is um Matt's second part of the day.
I think you'll find kind of touched on this, but kind of going a little out of order here, but um let me show you this of my recap of David's day one preliminary hearing. We're finding out that body cam footage was played today from February 17th, 2024 when Celeste Rivas was first reported missing where an officer named Juan went to David's residence and asked him where Celeste was. David apparently was not really answering his questions when it comes to where select >> So basically we're backing this up to when police officers did that welfare check on February 17th when they had uh 20 24 when they had reason to believe that Celeste was at his house. I think they checked her phone records.
Let me give you the date on that again.
I think it's February 17, 2024. I should have played this earlier. I forgot. I'm trying to wing this as we go, but the date on that specifically is yeah, February 17th. There you go.
>> Was he kind of was saying some incriminating things about how he has alcohol in his fridge, definitely probably oversharing because of nerves.
But then he ends up showing the officer photos from Celeste's yearbook where he's saying, "Look, she went to school.
She graduated." And the officer at one point says, "Yeah, this looks like someone who is still in school. These look like current photos." At that point, David ends up telling Officer Juan that Celeste told him that she was 18 years old and he believed her, which I think is 100% a lie given everything that we know now. And especially given the fact that he was telling his friends that Celeste was 19. Is she 18? Is she 19? Where is she getting these fake IDs?
It had to have been through him somehow.
And let's play devil's advocate.
>> And guys, I also did a video on the plane fright flight to London. I I think there should be a more secured process.
A lot of people automatically put in the family that they must have known, but that process really isn't that secured.
And he also used the name, looks like he used the name Victoria Mendes in that process as well. And basically that's filling out that's filling out the paperwork >> and then with that paperwork going to the airport and then um sending Celeste Revas on her way as an honor company minor. That process needs to be looked at. Had Celeste told David that she was actually 18. At this point, February 17th, 2024, David knew for a fact that Celeste was only 13. And still, he continued to pursue a relationship with her. A detective by the name of Josh ended up taking the stand and testifying after. He shared basically things that we already knew.
September 3rd, 2025, the car was towed and brought to an impound lot. When the body was found inside of the Tesla, there were maggots, bugs, and plastic pieces from the trash bag. On the body, the head was detached face down in one bag. The arms and the legs were separated in another bag. The limbs seem to have been cut around the knees. And on the knees, you could actually see bits of plastic pieces from the chainsaw that David used to dismember her. And keep in mind, Celeste's family is in the courtroom seeing these photos and hearing this information. Detective Josh went on to say that on September 10th, 2025, so a couple of days after it came out, that a deceased female, who was unknown at the time, was found in David's frunk. Celeste's father actually called into authorities saying that he had a feeling that the body in David's frunk was his daughter, Celeste. And from there, that's how they were able to identify the remains through dental records. It's possible that if Celeste's father did not call authorities when he did, we would not have had Celeste's identity discovered as quickly as we did. And even back in September of 2025, it didn't really seem that quick. It was a few days, maybe a week, a little over.
But it was definitely much quicker than it would have been had her family not contacted authorities to say, "Hey, this may be Celeste." Now, after finding out that the remains were Celeste, that the remains were in David's Tesla, they wanted to figure out when the Tesla was actually left where it was ultimately left, and by whom. Through neighborhood surveillance footage, they were able to figure out that the Tesla was left where it was ultimately towed away from with Celeste's body in it on July 29th, 2025.
So, from there, authorities were trying to figure out who was driving that vehicle on that particular day and the vehicle's path of travel on that particular day. It seems like they were able to figure out that the vehicle traveled to a rush dressed for less and that's where surveillance footage was obtained which shows David driving this vehicle by himself alone. He then ended up driving to Culver City before driving back to the area of his Hollywood Hills rental property and that's where he parked the vehicle where it was ultimately abandoned. And authorities were able to figure out that David was the sole driver of this vehicle as the vehicle was connected to not only his Gmail, but to his phone that he named Tranquilizer. Authorities say that they collected 6 to 8 terabytes of data from that email and from his phone, which were all connected to the Tesla by way of Bluetooth. Nobody else's phone or email connected to this car, meaning he was the only one who drove it. And guys, this is starting to connect to the my theories that I I placed earlier. So, if you guys check out my videos, you'll see that I'm starting to believe that he may have acted alone, and that's why it's really, really, really sloppy.
Were also able to figure out through that email that David was using fake aliases to order things on Amazon. He was using names like Victoria Mendez as well as Trayvon Davis. Like, is this guy stupid? Not only did you leave a body inside your own vehicle, but you also thought that purchasing things to dispose of and dismember this body was not going to be tied back to you because you're using a fake ship to name. And before we were under the impression that David only left Celeste in the vehicle because he was rushing to get ready for tour, but that's not really the case. if he was going to Ross Dress for Less and driving all around and still had her body in there. It just seems like he wanted to come back to her body still in the vehicle like he wanted to keep her for some reason. I'll continue to keep you guys updated as more information comes out and make sure you're following me on.
All right. So uh bear with me for one second.
All right. Now let's go to [snorts] uh the technical part. So who owns All right. So this is about a light blue iPhone, Celeste's iCloud, and then a child sexual abuse material. So section 8, we're going to dig into uh the technical but crucial fight. Who owns which phone and which account and where alleged child sexual abuse material CSAM lives in the evidence. So publicity CBS and ABC7 have reported that prosecutors say Burke's device contained a significant amount of child sexual abuse material. That allegation has hovered around the case for months and it's part of what makes the charges feel even more serious to the public. In the courtroom though, Lauren Collins cross-examined screenshot shows that the defense is not accepting every attribution at face value, especially around a light blue iPhone 15 Pro Max recovered from Burke's home. On direct examination, detective buyers testified that this light blue iPhone belonged to David. He said it contained selfies and personal items and that based on its content, investigators treated as his phone. CBS and ABC7's early reporting about child sexual abuse material on his phone aligns with that portrayal. It's easy to picture prosecutors later tying that device directly to him when they talk about illegal images, but Burke's cross-examination pulls in a different piece of the record. A search warrant affidavit related to Celeste's iCloud and email account, including an address like Abigail Blue 977loud.com.
Burke suggests that in prior language, investigators may have been tying this same light blue phone to Celeste rather than David. According to Conlin, when Burke first asked buyers about the affidavated affidavit wording, he said he didn't recall that the specifics.
After reviewing it in court, he testified that the document referred to the email account belonging to Celeste, not explicitly and unequivocally to the ownership of the physical phone itself.
Assistant DA Beth Silverman stepped in here, objecting that Burke was being argumentative. Burke shot back that she believed the people would eventually attribute the phone and its content to Burke, making clear to the judge that she sees a future battle over over who legally owns and is responsible for everything on that device. Judge Ome told council to move on, ending that particular line for the day. Conlin watching this unfold, tweeted her own speculation that this is where the alleged child sexual abuse material might be, underscoring how central this device is to the digital evidence narrative. That's why Burke's fighting it.
So, in uh section 8, uh we got two things happening at once. We have accurately at this point reflect the prosecutor have publicly said they found a significant amount of child sexual abuse material and that they tie that to Burke's phone and accounts. And we also made clear the defense is already challenging device attribution using the warrant language focused on Celeste's cloud iCloud email to argue that it's not as simple as this blue phone was David. This key is to treat this as open contest. The state says this is his phone with illegal material. The defense says the affidavit points towards Celeste's account and that ownership is murky. That tension belongs uh pretty much in this narrative right now because it will matter later when the case reaches trial or plea talk. So they're challenging that. So we saw a couple things.
Um let me go to this quick little video that Cybar put up. I got some more stuff to cover, but let's see they have anything interesting. I just saw they posted a video Day one of accused child murderer David's preliminary hearing. Body cam footage, crime scene photos, the singer looking bored in court. We are breaking down everything that happened in that morning session with a reporter who was in that courtroom and saw it all.
Welcome to Sidebar presented by Law and Crime. I'm Jesse Weber.
[music] You know how we talk about on Sidebar all the dangers in the world? I mean, we really focus on that. This is something you might not be thinking about being a part of a data breach. Yeah. You, your loved ones, all that private information constantly at risk of being leaked, which >> which is why I want all of you to keep your data safe online. Privacy experts will person allegedly will personally investigate and remove. They can't harm you if they 14year-old Celeste Rivas Hernandez was found in the front trunk of a Tesla allegedly registered to David out in LA. The 21-year-old singer is now at his preliminary hearing, day one of a multi-day hearing where the court, the judge will determine if there is sufficient evidence for his criminal case to move to trial. We're going to cover each day what happens, condense it all for you so you don't miss anything.
We have a reporter who's in the courtroom who's going to lay out everything for us because here's the issue. We can't see it. There's no cameras allowed. There's no audio equipment, but she is our eyes and our ears. So, let's not forget David is currently charged with first-degree murder, continuous sexual abuse of a child under 14, unlawful mutilation of human remains, all in connection with the death of Celeste. Prosecutors alleged that he was in a sexual relationship with her and that he killed her to keep her quiet and then he tried to cover it all up and dismembered her body. He has entered a not-uilty plea and he is innocent unless proven guilty.
Let's go right into it. Okay, so a lot to get into. Let me bring in our eyes and ears. She was in the courtroom this morning. NBC LA reporter. Hey, by the way, Fox is also reporting no emotion on David Burke throughout the uh the hearings today. California singer accused of grooming a 14-year-old girl only to murder her when she threatened to expose him and then dismember her remains with a chainsaw appeared in front of Los Angeles Los Angeles judge Tuesday for the first time of a preliminary hearing expected to clear the way for the case to go to trial.
David Burke, who performed in the name blah blah blah. Um Burke faces charges prior to the hearing which is expected to take about 3 to 5 days. Celeste parents Jesus re Jesus Rivas and Mercedes Martinez were spotted entering the court. There were no cameras allowed and the court would know that Los Angeles homicide detective took the stand to discuss the grizzly scene with Celeste's parents opting to remain in the gallery when given a chance to leave before his testimony.
Uh there were maggots. So he explains that we talked about that Martinez looked like she might faint. So, mom looked like she might faint as supporters leaned in over to help her.
According to the Fox LA report, Burke shackled to a chair reportedly showed no visible reaction.
Prosecutors alleged that Burke first met Celestia. Got that.
um talk about they expect 10 witnesses and then uh the title of the article pretty much says uh singer David shows no emotion as detective recounts gruesome discovery of teens dismembered remains. Okay, let's see what this reporter has to say.
>> Julia Dang. Julia, thank you so much for coming on. And I know you have limited time because you have to jump back into the courtroom. Uh can you just set the scene? I mean, who was there? Um I understand Celeste family was there and then we'll talk about David's uh appearance, but set the scene if you can for what was it like in that courtroom and who was there.
>> Why Gen X were fitter in the 1970s than we are now.
>> Okay.
>> Sorry, guys. Commercial.
Bear with me. Bear with me.
It has been hectic this morning. It's kind of a media circus outside the courthouse here as I'm sure you can imagine. Everybody is covering this.
This is the biggest development um in this Margo case against David Anthony Burke. So far, the 21-year-old known as Deep Ovd David. And yes, that is correct. on the victim's parents, Celeste Reedes Fernandez. Her parents were actually in the courthouse this morning. They were sitting in a courtroom during the very start of this preliminary hearing uh just three rows directly in front of so I couldn't see their facial expressions. Um, but I I I think the way they were moving um and and kind of huddling with each other as evidence photos were shown to the courts. Um, I think that says it all. We saw some really grizzly evidence this morning, Jesse, as part of um the prosecution's summary of the evidence that they plan to present if this case ultimately goes to trial. And just backing up here, that's what this preliminary hearing is doing. It's an opportunity for the courts and the judge to decide whether the prosecution actually has a strong enough case against David for this to go to. So, we've heard it called, you know, kind of like a mini trial. It's not really that. If anything, it's like a mini bench trial because there's no jury this time. There's no impartial juries.
It is just the judge deciding whether or not there is probable cause here uh for this to go to trial. And that is legally a much lower threshold uh than having a beyond reasonable doubt that David did in fact commit these crimes. And as we've been reporting, you know, it's not just firstdegree murder. There are two additional felonies he's being charged with here. um including the continuous sexual abuse on that child teenager Celeste and a mutilation in O.
>> Let me ask you about David real quick.
He's brought into the courtroom. I understand there was a whole back and forth about whether or not he should be shackled. There's no jury there. So, it's not like seeing him in handcuff.
>> All right. So, we kind of discussed all this and I don't want to show the whole video because I don't want to get a copyright strike. So, if you guys get a chance, please check out that video. Uh but we have a few more things still to go through. So let's move away from the technical and uh talk about the human cost. We already have the core facts.
After the remains were found in Burks Tesla, Celeste's father, Jesus Reebos, became concerned that the unidentified body might be his daughter. Associated Press, ABC7, and others report that on September 10th, 2025, he called.
Authorities and investigators then used dental records to confirm that the victim was Celestri Busern Hernandez. I know TMZ said they played a role in that. they notified the mother.
I wonder how true that is or if the father was just watching the news and made the call themselves. So, [clears throat] I'm curious to see what TMZ has to say about that. I don't think they um posted anything on that because they were the ones that put themselves in the middle of it by saying that they spoke to the mother.
Um there's also something else TMZ just reported. David still had Celeste Reebas's name tattooed on his left ring finger when he was booked into jail. A chill in detail revealed as day one of his preliminary hearing came to a close.
An investigator testified Tuesday, officer spotted Celeste on the singer's finger during booking along with on his right index finger and a religious reference on his right palm. As prosecutors displayed photos showing the faded tattoo in court, D4D D4VD appeared relaxed as the images were shown, stroking his chin and studying the evidence with his thumb and index finger resting on his face. Uh, the tattoos are particularly significant because prosecutors claim Celeste had D4V's name tattooed on her left ring finger as well as a matching tattoo, which had previously been identified by Celeste's mother mother and the medical examiner.
They alleged he removed that finger bearing his name and her pinky after killing and dismembering the 14-year-old. The hearing also raised a lingering question about one of D4D's alleged purchases. As TMZ previously reported, prosecutors claimed D4VD purchased two chainsaws on Amazon after Celeste's death. However, an investigator testified Tuesday.
authorities never recovered one of the chainsaws. A separate witness testified about D4B's finances, estimating the singer generated roughly 12 million in gross earnings between 2023 and 2025.
The witness also said D4BD received a believe $600,000 advance after signing with Intercope in 2022, followed by a larger payment later. Celeste's family was in the courtroom for Tuesday's graphic testimony and as we reported did not look away when gruesome evidence photos were displayed. D4D who remained shackled around his waist but was not handcuffed has pled not pleaded not guilty and all right so what we now add is from the notes from sidebar uh Jesse Weber's interview uh D noted that on the day of the identification there were media helicopters following investigators she says she herself was in one of those helicopters watching the scene from above as buyers and others went to the rental property uh that detail fits the intense media interest and underscores how public this became even its earliest hours. So I think that's September 17th.
She also reported that Buyers spoke with Jesus through Jesus's son as an interpreter and that Buyers requested contact information for Celeste's dentist so that the medical examiner could obtain dental records. that shows a father doing whatever he can to help identify his child and an investigator carefully building a positive ID through the most reliable means left, teeth, because decomposition and skin slippage had erased facial features. Cuz I think they they went into the house September 17th, correct? Let me see.
[snorts] Uh, okay. So these touches reinforce how heartbreaking the identification moment was. It wasn't just we matched dental records in an abstract sense. It was a father making a call, a son translating, a detective taking down the dentist information, helicopters hovering overhead because the whole city was watching. Uh then we bring it back to the courtroom. Uh NBC Newsweek, LA Times, TMZ, Fox, and and and um a lot of reporters here all confirmed that Celeste's parents were in the front row on day one. Julia Deng sitting three rows behind them described seeing them bow their heads, move closer together, and be physically comforted by a woman from the DA's office who put her arms around Celeste's mother as those gruesome photos appeared on the screen.
She tells Jesse uh in the interview here that when the photo showing the head and torso in the cadaabver bag and the chopped limbs in the garbage bag went up, there was an audible intake of breath in the courtroom. The clacking of keyboards and shuffling of notes stopped and for a moment the room went quiet.
It's the same moment Conlin had described as almost impossible to look at. Now you can now uh from Julia's vantage point. Uh Julia says she ran into Celeste's mother during a short court break and saw her eyes welling with tears. And she emphasized that for all the focus on David and his celebrity, it's all about Celeste and justice for the victim, which is why the proceedings are so careful and thorough despite the presumption of innocence.
So, we have the father's September 10th call and the dental records match with the added detail of the son interpreting and buyers requesting dentist contact information. The parents in the front row presence, the parents front row presence during the most graphic evidence, including the prosecutor's side by side, hand photos that showed the missing ring and pinky fingers and the index finger tattoo, Julia's description of the DA staffer's arm around the mother, the bowing of heads, the room silence, and the intake of breath. uh you kind of that's just an emotional spine that's just it's powerful.
I couldn't imagine being in that courtroom especially if I was the parents.
Then you got the tattoos, the arrest location, the target amputation. So um their tattoos and missing fingers and now we have enough from Conland sidebar to make this a very clear story. So, we've already know that buyers testified to Celeste's left ring finger, left pinky, and right index finger being missing from her remains, and that this seemed deliberate given media references to tattoos and symbolism. And then I got some more from Collins afternoon break threads uh that add more explicit description of David's own tattoos documented at booking on April 16, 2025, which we we just discussed along with the arrest location. Buyers testified that during booking, they noted Celeste's written in red ink on David's ring finger and tattooed on his right index finger. Funny, cut her finger off and do the same for himself.
Colin points out that she did not believe law enforcement had previously confirmed the Celeste tattooed detail publicly. She also notes that David was arrested at 1615 Marman A in the Hollywood Hills, a specific address that anchors him to that property uh that we've already discussed as his rental house tied to the Tesla and various searches. These are hidden tattoos on the inside of your finger. You always thought people spread their hands.
Combine that with uh Julia's description of the courtroom photos. The prosecution pulled up sideby-side images of Celeste's two hands. The left hand missing the ring and pinky. The right hand with the right index finger visible and pulled out slightly so the tattoo reading sh or sh could be seen.
Julia told Jesse that when those photos came up, David leaned in, staring at the screen with minimal visible emotion otherwise. Uh, that moment visually links Celeste's mutilated hands to tattoos that match his own fingers. So, we got David's booking tattoos. So, Celeste on the ring finger and on his right index finger. Then you got Celeste's missing left ring, left pinky, and right index finger. And the prosecution's implication that those amputations were targeted connected to tattoos and symbolic identity, not random cutting. and the courtroom's display of sidebyside hand photos and the observation that David leans in and stares at the tattoo image reinforcing how central those hands are to identification and to the mutilation theory. So, one of clearest places where mutilation of human remains is not just a legal phrase, but a specific horrifying act that appears aimed at the very fingers that mirror his own tattoos. That was his connection to her.
So, let's pull together the prosecution story, and I'm going to use everything I got so far. So this is coming from CNN, ABC7, BBC, CBS, Rolling Stone, LA Mag, which is Lauren Colin, Rotten Mango, Jesse Weber, Sidebar, Courtroom Reporting. So David met Celeste online, social media, Discord when she was very young, and groom turned into a sexual relationship while she was around 13 and he was 18. That relationship involved travel together, including United Airlines flights from Los Angeles to Texas and to London that he allegedly purchased for himself and Celeste, as Julia notes specify. And those travel records reinforce the ideas of a continuous committed relationship over time. And I talked about that again as I mentioned before. Check out that video. Could have been a short, but just check it out. By early 2025, Celeste had allegedly threatened to expose their relationship and ruin his uh Bergen music career. Burgon music career. On April 23rd, 2025, he called an Uber to bring her from Lake Elsenor to his Hollywood Hills rental where prosecutors say he stabbed her multiple times. of the autopsy shows multiple penetrating injuries consistent with stabbing then dismembered her body using tools and supplies purchased under aliases like Victoria Mendes. He then placed her remains, head, and torso in a cadaabver bag, limbs and hands in a second bag with blue handles into the Tesla front trunk where they stayed for months while he continued using and controlling the vehicle, including driving alone to retail and city destinations documented on surveillance video. And at some point, he abandoned a Tesla. It was eventually towed and only after the towyard workers complained of the smell that did investigators opened the trunk or the frunk and discovered celested remains. From there, prosecutors layered in blue plastic fragments embedded in the cut surface of limbs consistent with a chainsaw and blue pool used to manage blood. Missing fingers corresponding to tattoos supporting the mutilation charge as targeted, not incidental.
Alias purchases for chainsaws, pool, body bags, shovels, burn box, and related items. Digital data, Bluetooth pairing only to David's phone and Gmail.
Terabytes of devices. Terabytes of device and account logs. Child sexual abuse material allegedly tied to his device. And the February 17, 2024 welfare check body camera. David is disarmingly charming, letting deputies in, joking, eating chips, offering them alcohol, and saying, "She told me she's 18," while the deputies tell him she's 13, and asks if she looks 13. And that footage shows them confronting him about her age long before she was killed. Day One's graphic photos and detailed testimony not strictly necessary to hit the probable cause standard. Hotchman himself pointed out that at this stage you only have to show enough evidence for a reasonable person to suspect David of the charge of the charge crimes, not prove guilt beyond reasonable doubt. But the prosecution clearly chose to show as much as possible within the prelim rules to demonstrate to the court, the public, and eventually potential jurors that they have a deeply documented coherent theory backed by physical, digital, and testimonial evidence. I think that his tattoos that's interesting. Forgot about that. in this section. Okay. So, H Hotchman's press conference outside the courthouse where he explains the prelim as an intermediate step, more like a mini bench trial than the TV movie immediate arrest to jury process and emphasize that hearsay is allowed, that they'll call more than 10 witnesses and that they are not obligated to present every piece of trial evidence at this stage. I can't imagine what's to come.
See what happens tomorrow. He state his statement that David is facing life without parole or is death penalty eligible. Though the decision to seek death will come later after they see how the prelim unfolds and the prosecution narrative in section uh above section I mentioned is about how they intentionally structured day one. Start in Riverside with the welfare check and age warnings move into LA with the homicide and dismemberment. Then show the physical and digital evidence that ties everything together. Great overall I think. Now for the defense narrative and evidence handling the day one clash.
So this is for the defense. So Blair Burke's public line is that the actual evidence will show David did not murder Celeste and was not the cause of her death. Uh that's the main headline here.
The defense is not trying to win the whole case at the preliminary hearing, but day one shows clearly where they think the weak points are from Lauren Collins cross-exam threads and Julia Deng's notes. We have a few um things that we can outline from Burke and Regina Park strategy, Regina Peter strategy. So you got cooperation and age. Peter Cross of Peter Cross of Gonzalez stresses that David was cooperative during the welfare check and deputies in sharing Celeste's phone number given them the yearbook photo of missing person's flyer consenting to the search and that he said he he he believed she was 18. They want the judge and later jury to remember that he seemed open and helpful, not evasive when deputies came asking about a missing girl. Then you have the evidence healing handling. Burke's home Burks Burke hones in on how investigators handled key physical items. She gets buyers to admit that the cadaabver bag was only partially preserved, zipper and handles, and that the rest was neither fingerprinted nor swabbed. And again, it's because the bag couldn't be preserved, they said. She highlights that the burn cage box was photographed but never seized or tested. She pins down the fact that three chainsaws all tested negative for blood and were not subjected to further DNA or comparison testing. Each of these points underlines the phrase defense lawyers like to use.
They cut corners in their investigations. And guys, this is why I'm saying when you're doing an investigation, and same thing we're seeing with the U Jackson County for Nolan Wells case, ownership of that investigation, the evidence, all that stuff should really be with law enforcement.
You really shouldn't have other things happening at the same time like a civil investigation happen at the same time because ultimately who's going to be held responsible are these lead investigators. And then you have the device attribution. So Burke challenges the state claims about the light blue iPhone 15 Pro Max using warrant language focused on Celeste's iCloud email to argue that the link between that device and David is not as straightforward as prosecutors suggest with the judge telling them to move on. It becomes a preview of a longer fight rather than a fully resolved question, but it's already part of the record. So, that's going to be a battle who owns that phone, but we kind of knew that because there's a lot on that phone. So, they're definitely going to fight that. At the same time, the defense knows they're up against deeply upsetting evidence.
Julia's uh lookboard note about David resting his face in his hands, combined with Collins observation that he never looked away from the graphic photos and leaned in at the tattooed hand images present a demeanor that jurors could interpret as cold or detached.
Burke can argue that demeanor is improved, but she can't change those images or reporter's impressions. So, we have the prosecution has a detailed emotionally devastating narrative with strong documentary support. And the defense is already painting holes in the forensic handling and trying to frame his prior cooperation age belief as mitigating his culpability. So, day one just doesn't settle these disputes. It just shows you where the battle lines are being drawn. And the last section I got here is status of day one and what comes next. So finally um we're at day one ends and what's coming up. So Lauren Collins thread distinguish morning and afternoon testimony cap by court going into recess. Julia Deng tells Jesse she has limited time because she needs to jump back into the courtroom implying another session after lunch. ABC7 NBC CBS patch LA magn crime all describe Tuesday as day one of a multi-day prelim with more witnesses on deck. Hman's press conference says they expect three to five days, possibly more, and that there will over there will be over 10 witnesses, including officers, coroner, testimony, and individual lay witnesses. Cyborg ends by speculating about future strategic decisions, whether the DA might consider taking death penalty off the table in exchange for a plea to life in prison.
That's what I'm thinking. Given California's moratorium on execution, that's conjecture, not evidence. So, you treat it as we we just treat that as commentary rather than fact. But we should acknowledge it because I think that's a possibility and legal analysts are already thinking about plea dynamics and the death penalty lever even as the prelim is still in day one. So what we've accomplished so far is the court saw body cam footage from the February 17th welfare check heard Gonzalez and buyers testify and saw the first set of crime scenes and cadaabver bag photos plus the parents reaction tattoos and key cross exam points. What remains is more witness and more evidence to be pre presented over the next several days after which Judge OM will decide whether there's probable cause to hold David to answer on the three felony counts and how the state felt media helicopters in the sky. Reporters describing a media circus. A judge who stopped proceedings to let the room breathe. A DA explaining the process outside and a front row family watching their daughter's mutilation displayed on screens because they want justice and they want the process done properly.
So that's a lot for day one. I try to give you as details. It may have been a little scrambled guys because as I was given this, there was more details coming out. So I wanted to make sure I can cover everything so I can safely move forward to day two, which will be tomorrow. Um hopefully you guys get a lot from this coverage. I went through so many different sources to get it.
I'll do the same for day two and the upcoming days. I got a little bit of a system here. Uh what I would also do is just keep it up keep up with articles throughout the night. There may be some little things that may come up that just um showcase other reporters perspectives. I don't think it'll be nothing that will be a total leap. I think we covered mostly everything here, but um we obviously I can't cover everyone's perspective or how they feel about things. Um yeah, because as you look at most of this stuff, I think I've covered everything from all the different articles that were out there uh and some of the videos that were posted. Again, if you get a chance, check out that Cyborg episode. It is a good interview.
Um, TMZ's got an interesting video real quick, guys.
They just posted it. Let's I just want to take a look at this real quick. Maybe you guys want to watch it with me. Let's just see what they have to say here.
Get ready, guys, because this they usually show a lot of commercials.
So, bear with So, let me uh play this real quick. I just want to see what they have to say.
Let's see. This is probably going to be their wrap-up.
>> In the David preliminary hearing, uh was dramatic, uh and bone chilling. Um there were photos shown of Celeste's decomposed body found in the trunk of David's car and her family was there to watch. They were warned uh that they may want to look away. They did not.
Although uh Celeste's mother actually grabbed her hand and put it over her face at one point. It was gruesome. They showed uh her body cut up. Uh there was a head and a torso intact. The limbs were cut off. Uh the finger that had the shh um had been removed and they still haven't found it, but it correlates to the same uh tattoo that's on David's finger. Um, and that was a key part of the evidence here, but the body was so badly decomposed that they could not identify it. As a matter of fact, just so you know, um, we got a tip while the police were trying to figure out who was in that car, who was the victim.
>> Okay, so this is the part I was wondering cuz he said that they're the ones that told the mom, uh, and that's what led to them being identified. But it looks like maybe the father made the initial call. like to see how he words this, but I'll be honest. I I when Harvey Webin talks about Celeste, it irks me because I don't like how TMZ treated her during this investigation.
That's just my feelings, but I want to see what he says here. Um, we got a tip uh that it might have been Celeste and we contacted Celeste's mother and Celeste's mother told us about the color of that tattoo as well as the shh. We called the police and told them uh and they seem to have connected docks at that point. Uh and that >> that's not the story that's being expressed, guys. Story is that the father contacted the police.
That's what I read. So I'm curious to see whatever you guys believe, but I have a feeling, you know, you got a father who wants to know where his daughter is and he just saw that and wanted to know if that was his daughter.
>> That's when they made the identification. the next day. That's how badly the body was decomposed. Now, this is very important. Uh the police >> I want wait, I want to just double check on something here. Hold on. So, it says TMZ has repeatedly reported that they helped connect the unidentified body to Celeste by contacting her mother and then passed on information LAPD. So, they wrote in September 2025 piece.
Well, what's said is in September 2025 piece and later social post. TMZ says they got a tip that the victim in D4BD Tesla was a missing was missing girl from Lake Elsenor. They contacted Celeste's mother who said she suspected the body was her daughter, pointed to the red tattoo on her right index finger and said her daughter had been dating a man named David. TMZ then said they forwarded the mom's contact image LAPD robbery homicide division which helped authorities connect the tattoo and boyfriend named David to Celeste. TMZ's coverage and reposted explanations emphasized that the media tip plus mom suspicion was a key way LAPD first heard Celeste's name in connection with the Tesla body before formal identification because they I think they knew there was a connection here the family but again I I think they I'm not saying that they allowed it because they did make efforts to stop it but they also knew that you know if at any point uh they try to separate them, then you would lose Celeste forever. I have a feeling there were threats that Celeste made that if you do anything to ruin this for me, I'll never talk to you. I you'll never see me again. I have a feeling uh she was utilizing the relationship as leverage and the family intervened. Uh they had concerns that they would lose her forever. That's my thoughts. So, when TMZ says the mother notified them and that they notified police, that's consistent with their own documentation.
They're talking about a TMZ initiated tip line into robbery homicide based on mom's information, not the official LAPD intake process for the missing person case. Um, separately, mainstream news and courtroom notes describe an official law enforcement contact from Celeste's father, LAPD. Associated Press ABC7 timeline says that after the Tesla body was discovered, Celeste's father called LAPD on September 10th, 2025 because he believed the unidentified remains might be his daughter. That call was forwarded to Detective Joshua Buyers. So, it's funny. I think TMZ has an interpretation that they started this process when that's not the case. I think the father already made the call. They somehow got a leak and that's my maybe where the mother said, "Yeah, we're already aware.
We think it's my daughter that's already been in the process." So I I think the father initially made the call without any prompts from TMZ. Julia Deng notes and also on sidebar, Julia Deng describes buyer speaking to Jesus Revas with Jesus's son acting as an interpreter and asking for contact information for Celeste's dentist. So the medical examiner could obtain dental records to confirm the identification that the official evidentary path father thinks it's her. Buyers gets the dentist info. Medical examiner matches the dental records and they formally identify Celeste.
So could both be true at the same time. TMZ says they got a tip called Celeste's mother and forward her tattoo and boyfriend information. LAPD robbery homicide at the same time. AP and ABC7 report that her father called LAPD days later, spoke to detective buyers through his son as interpreter and gave the contact for Celeste's dentist which led to a dental record match and formal identification of the body as Celeste.
So I mean if I mean only thing is that maybe if TMZ called they didn't take it seriously and they ignored it or father called and TMZ called after. I don't know. But but either way, I know Teams likes to put themselves in the middle of a lot of things, but I'm going what the official reports say. They're saying they got it from the father. So, I'm going to go with that official report. Police are saying that David, there is surveillance video on July 29th, 2025 of David driving that Tesla and parking it where the car was ultimately found with the body inside. And remember, they were always saying there was a partner and I think they were doing whatever they can to push David away from this, push him away from full accountability because it shifted when that that when that lawyer got involved for David, his narrative shifted to the point where he was even blaming Celeste, the family.
Uh, and then at this point, um, now he's saying, I guess now they know that he was in the car alone, but he was trying to, they were also trying to push a narrative that there could have been somebody else in the car, which I think would have minimized accountability because ain't that what they do? Uh, you know, I'll try to say we didn't do it, but now if I'm trapped, then I'll try to minimize my accountability. So, he they had put somebody in the vehicle from their sources or however they know or their facts are just always off. And according to the police, that car was never moved after that for a month.
>> Watch. He's saying according to police.
And I think when he says it, it's trying to attack credibility because look at the way he says police.
What it should be is according to official documentation.
But he'll say according from the police, but watch how he says police as if to add add doubt. As if they're they're the ones you can trust. TMZ.
>> According to the police, that car was never moved after that for a month. was never moved after that. So the body uh at least based on the evidence seems to be decomposing in that car for at least a month and maybe longer. Now there is other surveillance video. There is a body cam video from February of 2024 when Celeste's parents had reported her missing. Uh and they pointed to David as the person who might know her whereabouts. the police.
>> I love how it's true though. The family reported her missing. The family tried to keep her at the home and everybody blames the family. I think the family did what they could do and then eventually they just I don't know. It's not that they given up, but they just kind of settled because their greater concern would be they would lose her forever, but it turned out to be they lost her anyway.
It's just horrible. It it really is absolutely horrible.
>> Police came to David's house and they questioned him. They showed him a picture of Celeste. David's reaction was, "I thought she was 18 at that point." And again, February 2024. The police said, "No, she is 13." And and in fact, I think they said younger than 13.
So the idea here was that they were putting him on notice that she was a minor and they are alleging that they had a sexual relationship. Prosecutors say they had a sexual relationship. They also showed texts where Celeste and David were talking about plan B. So they are trying to reinforce that David was having sex with a minor, namely Celeste.
Now, um, when David, uh, when the body was found in September, >> a month later, David transferred ownership of his Texas home to his mother. And now, that goes to the argument that David was worried that he was going to lose all of his money uh, as a result of this investigation that could turn into a civil lawsuit. At least that seems to be where prosecutors are heading. Um, and they mentioned uh they mentioned today that David made $11 million between 2023 in 2025.
That's important because the police uh and prosecutors are saying that the motive here uh in murdering Celeste and this is according to prosecutors. They say the motive is that Celeste was furious at David for cutting her off and had threatened to go to authorities. Had she gone to authorities, David's music career would have gone down the drain.
So they are saying there was a financial motive to kill her and they are reinforcing the financial motive by saying that he had a lucrative career in the runup to the time Celeste was murdered. Now um there are special circumstances alleged here. Uh the prosecutors are saying that David was lying in wait the night that Celeste showed up at his home uh at the behest of David who ordered an Uber for her uh and then was never to be seen again.
They are saying he was lying in wait and when she drove up there in that Uber his plan was for her to come inside and for him to kill her. That's what uh the prosecutors are alleging. They are also alleging the special circumstance of murdering a witness, which is a special circumstance uh that correlates to murder. Now, what the judge in this case is going to do is not just uh determine is there probable cause to believe that David is the murderer, but also to determine if the prosecution is allowed to try and prove to the jury that there were these special circumstances. So, uh my intel is there is going to be a dog fight over this. Guys, you you this is really I know he keeps on saying my intel and I think that's because he knows his credibility is shot. I I think everybody can make an assumption that there's going to be a war over this.
There's going to be a war over the phone. Anything that can dam over the special circumstances, its motive. It's a lot of wiggle room for a war. You're not going to sit there as a defense and allow that to come in. You don't need intel to tell you that that there's going to be a war. that's that's that's the center of the case and it's motive.
It's it's it's it's going to be very hard for the prosecutor to prove. Uh it's a fight, but you know, I think it's provable though. You just got to take things in context. But you don't need intel. I think he says that because you know, he knows his credibility is not where it should be. But that's common sense, guys. Of course, there's going to be a war over this >> uh over the special circumstances in particular. Um, and we will see that play out uh as the week goes on because this hearing is probably going to last four days. Um, at that point the judge has to decide probable cause. Probable cause in this case, I cannot see the judge saying there is not probable cause to hold him over for trial. Um, I would be stunned if that happens. As for special circumstances, uh, we don't know. Uh but that is I think going to be the big battleground in this case. I cannot imagine that this judge is going to say with this evidence that uh there is no probable cause. It just means it's more likely than not. Uh that's a much lower standard than beyond a reasonable doubt. Um, and that doesn't mean that a jury is automatically going to convict David because, um, in every case, you know, where there is a charge, um, there's a preliminary hearing, the person is held over, but there are cases where, um, people are found not guilty of murder. So, we don't know what is going to happen in the trial, but I think there will be a trial. But the next four days of this preliminary hearing are going to involve the stakes.
and the stakes for David go up if the prosecution is allowed to prevent to present these special circumstances to the jury. So stay tuned.
Hey guys, there's um see one more video from Fox News.
Uh let let me get one more. Um let me get one more. Um >> hold on. Let me go to my history here. I want to do uh I want to do see what they have to say real quick. Is it Fox News? Fox LA.
I want I want to see what they have to say.
>> Let's see. Hold on, guys.
Uh can you guys see it? Let me see.
Yep. Let's see what they have to say.
>> More breaking news. Graphic evidence revealed on day one of the preliminary hearing to determine whether the murder case against singer David will go to trial. The hearing could last days. The family of Celeste Rivas Hernandez were there to hear it. Fox 11's Christina Gonzalez live outside the criminal courthouse in downtown LA with the update. Christina.
>> Yeah, you know, David was here dressed in his orange body suit, very attentive.
her family, Celeste's family, her dad and her step stepmom here. And I'm still shaking from watching them watch these images. And I've seen a lot of images, you know, but the images of her dismembered body in the back of the Tesla is something that had the entire courtroom gasping. And it is part of the evidence that they're saying will prove that he allegedly did this. Take a look.
This preliminary hearing will last approximately 3 to five days.
>> The preliminary hearing for singer David Burke, aka David, the 21-year-old wearing the Orange LA County Jail jumpsuit in court watching as prosecutors started presenting the case they say proves that Burke killed 14-year-old Celeste Rivas. The evidence included graphic images of her dismembered remains found in black body bags in the back of a Tesla abandoned near his Hollywood Hills home. Celesta's father and stepmom were in court.
>> Her mom was crying. Her dad looked really upset. David >> Mason Monroe is one of a handful of people who won a lottery for the few public seats available for the hearing.
>> It was just so heartbreaking when they showed photos and how the mom was crying. Eric Assange hosts a tea time true crime podcast. Did you notice any reaction from Mr. Burke while they were showing those photos?
>> No, he actually seemed really calm with his hand on his face majority of the time.
>> David didn't care. He was just sitting there like >> and it was just like I just all that whole thing it took a lot on me. It's like we're everyone that was there, we were all sitting there like damn they're about to cry. You know what I mean? And he was this like this is your mess and you're sitting here unbothered. Burke listening on as prosecutors presented evidence alleging he was in the same black Tesla the same day it was supposedly abandoned near his home with Celeste's body in the back. Also that he purchased items related to her death supposedly having them delivered to his home using a different name. How is it looking in your opinion?
>> It's not looking good for him if you ask me in my opinion. I mean, with the evidence that we've seen just today, >> I want to mention something.
So, it looks like I'm hoping, remember, they don't have to present everything now. They're presenting the probable cause. Obviously, if it does go to trial, I think that's when they'll present the stuff that's more definitive. They just don't want, I guess, to put it up now because, you know, you you want to you want to get the defense by surprise a little bit.
So, I think right now the biggest thing is, and I'm sure they'll present it in trial, is we know he's the last person that drove the car, but we still got to prove that he put the body in the car and then or Celeste, and we still got to go ahead and prove he committed to that act, that he killed Celeste. And I'm hoping there's definitive statements there. I'm hoping there's something there that he told somebody or he or or or there's something there that he slipped up on. Um because this is an act that only two people will know. One of them's gone.
So, but I'm sure uh they have enough evidence to prove that because that's where I think a big argument is going to be. Uh right now, he may be the last person driving the car, but if I was defense, okay, does that mean he knows what was in the trunk? Who else had access to that car? It opens up a lot of doors. But I think they're presenting that because that does open up probable cause, but I I think they're holding off on those specifics. Uh and they're going to wait for trial if it goes to trial.
And that may be the thing they use even plea. Listen, if you want to go this far, this is what we got. And uh, you know, and then we'll push death. We'll push for the death penalty. Uh, if you do a plea, we'll take death off the table. So, I think they're leaving a lot of stuff open here. So, again, they're only going for probable cause. So, it's a very smart move. That's in my opinion.
>> And now, the family does have an attorney here, a civil attorney or somebody who's looking at the possibility of a civil case. The family didn't speak after today after the proceedings, but he did. Here's what he had to say.
>> They doing listening to this. I mean, we're looking at them looking at these images.
>> They're not doing well at all. It's heartbreaking. It's absolutely horrible for them to to sit through this, but they wanted to sit through this process and they wanted to observe it because they want to show their support and their love for sex. Celeste.
Well, now we have at least 10 witnesses.
This is going to go on for the next three days, but very quickly, the point that the prosecution is making, they they can they can prove that he was actually connected to the Tesla the last day. Like I said, they have receipts that he has been seen using and buying things at a store that day while that Tesla was being driven supposedly by him. Things like that. They're really trying to track it down. So at this point it does look like they have a somewhat of a strong case. We're going to be here the next two days and we'll keep you updated.
>> So in some research here civil wise once the criminal case in prelim are further along. Celeste's family and their civil attorney have several potential lawsuit targets they could pursue in California.
None of these have been filed yet in her case as far as current reporting shows, but we can see the likely lanes from what similar families have done. So you got the wrongful death, survival action against David and his entities. Once there's a conviction for conviction, or even before in some cases, the family could bring a wrongful death and or survival action against David personally for killing and dismembering Celeste.
Any business entities tied to him touring LLC's, label, management companies, if there's evidence they benefited from or were negligent about his conduct. For example, if they knowingly enabled travel with a minor or ignored clear warning signs.
travels. Interesting. Um, oneful death suits in California routinely allege inter intentional killing and battery, negligence in failing to protect the victim once the defendant knew she was a minor being exploited.
Um, these suits seek money damages, economic loss, emotional distress, loss of comp companionship, and sometimes punitive damages if the conduct is egregious. Uh similar cases uh you got Noah Quattro, Arabella McCormack have led to multi-million dollar civil outcomes alongside criminal proceedings.
And then you got claims against government agencies like DC DCFS law enforcement for failure to protect because Celeste had a long record of runaway reports, welfare checks, and family contacts with agencies. The family could potentially sue Los Angeles County and/or state agencies under theories like negligent failure to protect a known atrisisk child and civil right violations if they argue police or child welfare workers violated her constitutional rights by ignoring their own procedures. I think when they label her a runaway that that's a concern they didn't I I think I think that's the big fight. You see that with Haley Busby.
What are we doing for the runaways?
Because I think runaways are manufactured by groomers especially in today's day and age. Um, and then for law enforcement, after you were able to track her down to David's house, what were your next steps? I mean, did did you uh survey the house, surveillance the house? I mean, you knew she was going there. I mean, did we just let it be or did we continue to follow up?
Uh, so we have precedent in California shows family doing exactly as an in Noah Quattro's family sued LA Countyy's child protection agency for ignoring orders to remove him from abuse of parents leading to a proposed $20 million settlement.
And the family of Arabella McCormack sued San Diego city and county agencies a school and a church for systemic failures to report and intervene leading to a $31.5 million settlement split among those entities. Families of foster adopted children murdered by caregivers have filed federal lawsuits alleging wrongful death and civil right violations when agencies placed children of dangerous adults or ignored repeated warnings. LA Mag has already hinted that Celeste's family civil attorney considered a lawsuit simply to force LAPD records when there were delays in the criminal case suggesting they're thinking along these lines suing agencies for records and negligence if they believe repeated runaway welfare check contacts didn't trigger proper protection. like what happened after you went to that house on February 17, 2024?
What measures were taken after that?
Claims related to child welfare, social services handling. If records show their child protective services, DCF, DCFS or equivalent have prior contact with Celeste's case, for example, abuse or neglect reports or repeated calls from her family, then the civil attorney could consider negligence or gross negligence for not removing her from dangerous situations or failing to act on clear red flags. Again, you're made aware. What did you do? Now it becomes negligent and that's serious money there. Failure to follow mandatory reporting laws if school officials, counselors or social workers missed or ignored statutory duties. I mean she was enrolled in public schools.
Again, this tracks closely with the suits filed in the Nova Quattro and Arabella McCormack cases where families argued agencies had ample warning but didn't act. Then you got privacy and media related claims. less likely, but still possible. Given the intense media coverage, including TMZ's role in contacting Celeste's mother, publicly tying her tattoo and boyfriend's name to the Tesla body, and discussing her family background, a civil attorney might review whether any outlets cross legal lines. But in practice, most of what TMZ and others have reported appears to be newsworthy, factual information about a high-profile homicide case. I disagree with that with TMZ. I think they should really look in how they handled this case. I do. I don't think I don't think they handled this case fairly with her. defamation claims would require proof that they know only publish false facts that harm the family's reputation, which is a high bar, but then I think they should still pursue it. So, while the civil lawyer may be carefully managing Marcy law rights and public messaging, as you're already doing, full-blown suits against media outlets are less common unless there's a clear documented falsehood or privacy invasion beyond standard crime reporting. I mean, they started blaming the family, started blaming Celeste.
They gave so many excuses for David.
Uh, finally, there's what LA Mag suggest. LA Mag's Lauren Conlin. Uh, I know it's owned by the um the criminal lawyer that's on um what's his name?
>> It's on Harvey Leven's show, TMZ. They had their podcast together, Two Angry Men. Finally, there's what Ellie Mag suggested earlier on. If the family feels stonewalled on information, their civil attorney can file actions aimed primarily at compelling release of investigative records, police reports, DCFS files, school reports through public record acts, claims or targeted civil suits, and using those disclosures to decide whether broader negligence or civil rights suits are warranted.
[clears throat] That's sometimes the first wave of civil litigation, not for damage yet, but to pry open closed doors around how multiple institutions handled Celeste's case before and after she went missing and was found.
So, I know there's a lot there, guys. I just want to give you it all. As always, the show is tear talk. If you like the content, please um I buy me a cup of coffee link that's in the description as well as top of YouTube channel. Stay safe.
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