Gruesome Courtroom Bombshells Rock D4vd Murder Case | David Anthony Burke, Celeste Rivas Hernandez

Summary

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Podcast Summary: “Gruesome Courtroom Bombshells Rock D4vd Murder Case”

Drop Dead Serious with Ashleigh Banfield
Release Date: July 22, 2026

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Episode Overview

This episode dives deep into the shocking details revealed during the preliminary hearing in the murder case against D4vd (real name David Anthony Burke). Ashleigh Banfield, a veteran true crime reporter, provides firsthand courtroom insight with LA Magazine’s Lauren Conlon, who witnessed the parade of disturbing evidence and emotional scenes. The case centers on the horrific murder and dismemberment of 14-year-old Celeste Rivas Hernandez, who was found in the trunk of Burke’s Tesla, and the prosecution’s efforts to lay out a damning portrait of the accused musician.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. The Courtroom Scene: Setting the Stage

• Defendant’s Appearance:
  • David Anthony Burke entered in an orange jumpsuit, shackled at the waist and to his chair, with black-rimmed glasses, projecting an unbothered demeanor.
  • Repeated defense attempts were made to remove his restraints, arguing it made him look “like an animal.” The judge only agreed to remove the handcuffs but left him attached to the chair.

    “They always say that. The judge actually refused to take the shackles off completely, but did say in the end the handcuffs can come instead.” (Banfield, 04:15)

2. Graphic Evidence: A Horror Unveiled

• Crime Scene Photos:
  • Prosecutors stunned the courtroom by displaying graphic images of Celeste’s remains.
  • Dismembered limbs, head, and torso were discovered in trash bags in the front trunk (“frunk”) of D4vd’s Tesla.
  • Notable detail: Blue plastic shards embedded in her remains, connected to a blue pool allegedly used during the dismemberment.
  • Family members broke down, prompting the judge to call a recess.

    “Her face was no longer recognizable because of what investigators basically described as her face had fallen off.” (Banfield, 07:44) “David just kept staring, fixated on the images, didn’t look away... gave some of the reporters in the room, you know, the heebie jeebies, his behavior.” (Banfield, 08:55)

• Forensic Evidence:
  • The blue plastic matched a pool ordered by David and found in his home—supporting the mutilation charge.
  • A tattooed finger reading “sh” confirmed Celeste’s identity, along with dental records.

    “We saw her arms and her legs... her hands, we saw fingers that were removed.” (Lauren Conlon, 17:39)

3. D4vd’s Behavior and Interactions with Police

• Strange Demeanor:
  • When first contacted by sheriff’s deputies, David was calm, wearing a bonnet, eating, and even offered police officers a beer.
  • He insisted he’d only seen Celeste once and she told him she was 18, despite evidence showing ongoing contact and relationship.

    “He just kept eating... offered them a beer... He insisted that Celeste isn’t here... only seen her once…” (Banfield, 06:03)

• Incriminating Statements and Photos:
  • He had a childhood school photo of Celeste on his phone, showing her at around age 10, despite claiming Celeste told him she was 18.

    “This little girl was in sixth grade in this photo… and you're just like, what, like why is this acceptable?” (Lauren Conlon, 22:27)

4. Relationship Evidence & Motive

• Airline Tickets and International Travel:
  • United Airlines tickets were found for trips together (LA–Texas, LA–London), substantiating a serious relationship.
  • Discussion about how a minor (Celeste) could travel internationally with an adult, raising questions about possible sex trafficking (although not charged).
• Financial Motive:
  • Testimony revealed David earned over $10 million between 2023-2025.
  • Prosecution suggests fear of being exposed for relationship with a minor could have prompted the murder to preserve his career.
  • The defense countered this by emphasizing that Burke’s mother managed his finances, perhaps to negate a motive.

    “They are trying to find David a new entertainment attorney. Like now, like right now, Ashley.” (Lauren Conlon, 31:00)

5. Family Impact and Courtroom Dynamics

• Celeste's Family:
  • Celeste’s family, including her father (who does not speak much English), endured harrowing testimony and imagery, requiring a translator.
  • They were present in the courtroom under Marcy’s Law, which allows victims’ families to attend despite being potential witnesses.

6. Missing Evidence & Defense Strategies

• Unfound Items:
  • Investigators never located the iPhone 16 Pro Max (nickname "Tranquilizer"), burn mat, shovel, or some other tools thought to have been used/disposed of.
  • The police found a new, unopened burn cage, alleged as a “mini crematorium,” but the item was not logged into evidence.
• Defense’s Focus:
  • Blair Burke (defense attorney) focused on police investigative shortcomings, such as not logging the burn cage or testing the exterior of cadaver bags, and lack of blood on chainsaws.
  • Raises the specter of reasonable doubt and attempts to question the chain of evidence.

7. Potential for the Death Penalty

-Death Penalty Eligibility: Case is death-eligible but DA will decide whether to seek it after the preliminary hearing. > “I think this could be bad enough to warrant the death penalty because again, we're talking about a child, a 14 year old girl.” (Lauren Conlon, 53:08)

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Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On David’s Reaction to Crime Photos:

  “David… was just staring, staring at the screen like he was watching a movie. Did not flinch. Did not flinch. Made me sick to my stomach how he just didn’t look away.”
  — Lauren Conlon (17:08)

• On the Relationship Evidence:

  “You're traveling with her internationally… you have to have your parents’ permission. …it just screams of sex trafficking.”
  — Ashleigh Banfield (27:12)

• On the Family's Pain:

  “I couldn't help, but I kept looking at her father… and it was just so heartbreaking.”
  — Lauren Conlon (17:05) “Jesus Rivas, her father… called the LAPD and said, I think this might be my daughter.”
  — Lauren Conlon (46:18)

• On the State of the Remains:

  “Her skin was slipping off her face… they couldn’t even identify her based on her own face.”
  — Lauren Conlon (46:18)

• On Defense Tactics:

  “She, there was some issues with the chainsaws as well. They had tested the chainsaws for blood, they didn’t find any blood. So they just didn’t test them for DNA or anything else either.”
  — Lauren Conlon (52:31)

• On the Burn Cage:

  “Burn cages aren’t crematoriums. …But the… detective called it a miniature crematorium.”
  — Ashleigh Banfield (49:54) “Ain’t no one know how using a burn cage in the Hollywood Hills, period.”
  — Ashleigh Banfield (50:57)

• On Evidence Overload:

  “It was a lot. And all they needed to establish was probable cause in this hearing. But… I’m almost wondering if they’re trying to scare the hell out of him into taking a plea deal.”
  — Ashleigh Banfield (30:16)

• On the Emotional Toll:

  “You think you’re just there to, you know, do your job clinical, like a doctor with blood. You know, they just get used to it. You don’t. You just don’t. Because there’s a family sitting right here crying because that’s their baby. …A teenage girl rotting in a trunk with her face melting off. I mean, this is… is hard to process.”
  — Ashleigh Banfield (56:15)

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Timestamps for Key Segments

• [03:26] – Setting the stage: Case summary, defendant’s demeanor, and charges introduced
• [06:20] – Testimony by police and detective; description of graphic evidence
• [08:45] – Family/family reaction to crime scene photos; judicial recess
• [17:01] – [Lauren Conlon Interview]: Courtroom experience and emotional impact
• [20:23] – Prosecutors walk through crime scene images; David’s unflinching reaction
• [22:27] – Still photo on David’s phone of Celeste as a child; implications for lewd acts charge
• [24:11] – David’s statements to police; timeline inconsistencies and misdirection
• [26:02] – Airline itineraries and proof of deeper relationship
• [30:16] – Strategy behind prosecutor’s evidence dump
• [31:00] – Family’s ongoing support for David (discussion of finances and lawyer search)
• [34:33] – Significance of blue plastic evidence (the pool)
• [36:35] – Timeline of David’s orders points to disorganized concealment attempts
• [40:29] – Missing burn mat, phone, and potential further evidence in Santa Barbara
• [46:00] – Use of dental records and decomposition details in identification
• [49:54] – Discussion of “burn cage” and defense critique of evidence collection
• [53:08] – Death penalty discussion
• [54:13] – Shackling of defendant and defense arguments

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Additional Insights

• Courtroom Atmosphere: The emotional energy was extremely heavy, especially with the family present. The grotesque nature of the photographic evidence shocked even seasoned reporters.
• Prosecution Tactics: By front-loading so much gruesome and circumstantial evidence in the preliminary phase, prosecution may be pressuring Burke toward a plea.
• Defense Focus: Attempts to poke holes in investigative procedure, chain of evidence, and attribute certain incriminating materials to the victim rather than the accused.
• Public and Media Scrutiny: The case has ignited debates about family responsibility, the ethics of displaying graphic evidence, and the criminal justice response to celebrity defendants.

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Closing Thoughts

Banfield and Conlon close acknowledging the immense toll on all parties, especially Celeste’s family, and foreshadow that even worse revelations may come in subsequent hearings. The episode encapsulates both the procedural drama and the human tragedy at the heart of a case “as grisly as any horror movie, but all too real.”

“Truth is just serious. It is drop dead serious.”
— Ashleigh Banfield (final sign-off)

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For deeper context, listen to the full episode or follow Ashleigh Banfield’s ongoing coverage.

Transcript

[A]

Hey, he's here again. Oh.

[B]

Who hun? Sammy?

[A]

The puppy I had when I was a kid.

[B]

This is the second time he's seen Sammy. Could this be related to his Parkinson's? I don't see him, hon, but I know you do. About 50% of people with Parkinson's may experience hallucinations and or delusions over the course of the disease. Seeing things that aren't real and believing things that aren't true. Symptoms generally worsen but are treatable. Learn more@mortaparkinson's.com and take the screener to see if it's time to start a conversation with your doctor. Hey, he's back. Who hun Sammy. The puppy I had when I was a kid. He's right there by the couch.

[A]

Could this be related to his Parkinson's?

[B]

What's Sammy doing?

[A]

Wagging his tail.

[B]

He wants to play.

[A]

Stay calm.

[B]

I, I, I don't see him. You really don't? No. But I know you do. This is the second time this has happened.

[A]

Or is it the third?

[B]

He came back to see me. That's the part that really breaks me. About 50% of people with Parkinson's may experience hallucinations and or delusions over the course of the disease. That can mean seeing things that aren't real and believing things that aren't true. Symptoms can worsen over time but but are treatable. Learn more at more to Parkinson's.com and take the screener to see if it's time to start a conversation with your doctor. Hey everyone, I'm Ashley Banfield and this is Drop Dead Serious. And if you have been waiting for an update in The David case, D4VD, the singer, you know who had a Tesla with a dead body in it? A girlfriend. Allegedly underage girlfriend. Well, boy, do we have one for you. Because there was a preliminary hearing in California today. I didn't expect all these details to come out, but damn, there was just so much gross. Like it was like a horror movie in a courtroom with real family members present. And a real defendant in an orange jumpsuit chuckled. So not a good day for David. Yeah, not gonna lie. I don't know if he's feeling confident, but you're about to hear something that indicates he's very confident. Don't ask, but wait for it. Lauren Conlon is a reporter for LA Magazine and she's going to join me in a hot minute because she was in the courtroom all day and she saw everything. This was basically the day that prosecutors finally started laying out the murder Case against. I called him David D4VD, but his real name is David Anthony Burke. And if day one is any indication, this is going to be one of the most disturbing court cases that I have covered in a long time. I mean, like I said, it's the stuff of the movie Saw. It is just unbelievable what some people can do to others. Allegedly David to his former underage girlfriend. And by the way, if this just happens to be the first time you're hearing about this case or you'd been following the case, but it's been a bit. Yeah, it's been a minute. And you need to kind of be reminded of what the heck went on. I have an entire playlist. You're welcome. And it is in the link in the description below. So hit that, you'll be all up to speed. And then today's episode's going to make a lot more sense. And so basically the prosecutors are saying this is a first degree murder, that David murdered a 14 year old girl named Celeste Rivas Hernandez. He came into court wearing an orange jump jumpsuit, you know, the jail jumpsuits. He had black rimmed glasses and he had that favorite jewelry of prisoners, shackles. He smiled and he nodded to his attorneys before taking his seat the front of the courtroom. His lawyers got to work right away asking the judge, let's get these restraints off him. You know, this makes him look like an animal. They always say that. The judge actually refused to take the shackles off completely, but did say in the end the handcuffs can come instead. David remained chained to the chair. Like the shackles at the belly got shackled to the chair. So ain't no dignity in that. And then the testimony got underway and brace yourself if you got a weak stomach, if you're triggered, this is not the episode for you. It's so sad. It's just, it's unimaginably gross, but it's also really sad. The prosecutor actually, you know, through witnesses outlined what happened in that trunk to that girl. And the first witness was Los Angeles County Sheriff's deputy who knocked on David's door back in February of 2024 while Celeste was still just a missing young teen girl. His testimony painted a picture that was like surreal. David answers the door and he's wearing a bonnet. Don't ask. That's what he said, a bonnet. Okay. And he was really casual while he answered the door to the police. He was eating and he did not stop eating. Reportedly the whole time they were there, he just kept on eating weird disrespectful Also weird, right? Also weird. He offered them a beer. He offered working police officers a beer. Maybe it's. Maybe it was him being nervous because he's underage and he's trying to say, I've got. I've got beer. I've got alcohol in the fridge. But, dude, oh, read the room. And also not your problem. Alcohol in the fridge. Really not your problem. The bigger problem is why they were there. And he told the police, he insisted that Celeste doesn't hear. Not here. Said he'd only ever seen her once, claiming that she told him she was 18 and said that, I sure hope you find her. So, yeah, so much about that, right? I only. I've only seen her once. Well, the evidence that you're about to hear suggests otherwise. Like, a lot otherwise. And also some of the other evidence that we've heard about in this case suggests that there was a lot of visiting going on. Not just visiting, like intimate visiting. So you didn't just see her once. You allegedly had an. A relationship with an underage girl and you're being charged with, like, lewd and lascivious acts on a minor. So the courtroom ended up taking a super duper dark turn, though, when the homicide detective, Joshua Byers, got up on the stand and one by one, the prosecutors began displaying the photos. Not everybody expected that this was going to happen today, and there wasn't a ton of warning. So all these reporters, all these folks in the gallery, David and his attorneys, and then the prosecutors who've seen them before, and the judge and all the press and the family of Celeste, all suddenly have massive monitors of some of the most despicable crime scene imagery that one can have in a case. All these pictures were recovered after Celeste's remains were found inside the frunk, that front trunk of David's black Tesla. So while the photos are up there on the big monitors, the detective is sort of the scribe, right? He is being asked by the prosecutor to walk everybody through what the hell is up there on the screen. And he described garbage bags that contained dismembered body parts. And when I say body parts, I'll be specific. Severed arms, severed legs. That was in one bag. A head and a torso were in another. The animal activity was awful. Maggots clearly visible. Decomposition so advanced that he testified, Celeste's face was no longer recognizable because of what investigators basically described as her face had fallen off. At one point, the prosecutors displayed Celeste's severed finger. Remember the one? It's well known now. It said sh on it. That was a tattoo. Another photograph showed blue plastic fragments that were embedded into her remains. And that's important because the. The evidence shows that prosecutors believe that there's a. A blue inflatable pool that David allegedly used to dismember Celeste with chainsaws. And that the chainsaws, you know, scarred the blue pool. You know, the chainsaw went down and would hit the plastic, maybe going through the body and getting right into the plastic, and then that plastic would get churned up into the body as well. These are all from court filings. You may have seen some of it before, but today, the images, the first time people actually saw what they were referring to with those blue plastic shards. So as the images continued, one by one, Celeste's family just lost it, broke down in tears. It was so bad that the judge ultimately had to call a recess for them, understandably. But David. David just kept staring, fixated on the images, didn't look away, didn't look down, didn't feel grossed out or uncomfortable or sad. Right. Allegedly, your former girlfriend's up there stared at these images, didn't break from them. And it gave some of the reporters in the room, you know, the heebie jeebies, his behavior. But when the testimony resumed after that break, Detective Byers walked the courtroom through what the investigators say happened after Celeste's death. He testified that David's Tesla was parked just a couple of blocks away from David's Hollywood hills home on July 29th. That's the same day that records show the vehicle was actually disconnected from an iPhone that David had nicknamed tranquilizer. That phone, by the way, has never been found. So that's interesting. Why? Well, you know, most of us know where our iPhones are when we have them, and then we don't have them, but, nope, nobody could find that one. And the investigators also found navigation searches to Santa Barbara and the Santa Ines Valley. They also found a Ross Dress for Less receipt that was dated the very same day. And they later executed a search warrant at David's home, where they found computers and phones and airline reservations allegedly purchased for both David and Celeste. Oops. That's not good. And also an unopened Amazon package that was sent under an alias that investigators say belonged to David. Inside that package, detectives testified they. They had a description for what was effectively a burn cage. And they called it a miniature cremation device. Right. Some people call it a burn box, some people call it a burn cage, but this detective called it a miniature crematorium. Effectively, prosecution wrapped up the day with Testimony from David's manager, former business manager and maybe not so former. You'll hear in a minute. And that fella estimated that David generated more than $10 million in gross earnings between 2023 and 2025. Not bad. Also, some would say motive, right? Could be motive because there's been evidence that's been discussed up until now suggesting that Celeste was going to blow the whistle and tell police David's been dating me, an underage girl. And Celeste was mad because David was apparently dating others. And Celeste had thought that maybe they would be exclusive and she wasn't exclusive. I don't know if anybody was exclusive with David. He had so many girls. But you might consider the fact that he had an upcoming tour and if he's making that kind of money and then you have this little problem on the side, somebody who is about to go to the police and you're about to be charged potentially with a crime and there goes your tour and there maybe goes your career. Because look, crime's great for people in the music business if they're rappers. He's not a rapper. He's sort of R B. But crimes against children, no. Ask our Kelly. Not good. So yeah, you could, you could say that this could be something that a jury might consider motive. You're making a lot of money and this girl is threatening to end it all unless you end it all or end her all. So outside court, Los Angeles county district attorney Nathan Hockman, who was in the courtroom, the D A was in there. You said that prosecutors expect this, this prelim, this preliminary hearing should be about three to five days. And called today's testimony had just the beginning. I like to say tip of the iceberg. But yeah, I guess like hold on to your chair because today was bad. And if this was just the beginning, I can't imagine how much worse it could get. But by the time they're finished, Nathan Hockman, the DA says that they're going to ask the judge to hold David to answer on charges including first degree murder with special circumst lewd acts with a 13 year old and mutilation of human remains. None of those charges particularly street credible. Right? Not really, really bad. And also there seems to be a lot of evidence for the, the lewd acts part because there were photos that the police allegedly obtained showing David and Celeste in some very sexy positions, shall we say? So that's, that's bad for your case if you're charged with that charge, that's bad for your case. And that whole Blue plastic shards in the body parts, you know, from the kiddie pool, that would definitely back up a mutilation of a corpse. The first degree murder part, that's where they really got to be clever and they've got to get to his intent and then proof beyond reasonable doubt that it was him who did it. So there was so much more inside that courtroom that we could than we could fit into a recap. So I was so lucky to get a yes when I reached out to somebody who watched every single minute of today's testimony unfold firsthand in that courtroom. Lauren Conlon is a Los Angeles magazine reporter. She's also really good at true crime. And she was kind enough to join me a little earlier to talk about the day in court.

[A]

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[B]

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[A]

Sure.

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[B]

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[A]

Scary?

[B]

Honey, it was as unscary as car buying could be. Did the car have a sunroof?

[A]

It did, actually.

[B]

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[B]

Delivery fees may apply. Lauren, thank you so much for being on Drop Dead Serious. You've had a day.

[A]

It's been a day. It's been pretty tough. I wasn't expecting to see the graphic images that we saw, Ashley. And I gotta say, this was within the first hour of being in court. So it was right off the bat, I just. I wasn't expecting it. And for me, I mean, it was hard. I kept looking over at Celeste's family. I couldn't help, but I kept looking at her father for whatever reason. And it was just so heartbreaking. So incredibly heartbreaking.

[B]

Well, listen, we read the details, but you're actually sitting there, so best you can tell me what you saw.

[A]

Yeah, I mean, so when the images were on the screen, I'll just respectfully sort of detail them point blank. But we saw a garbage bag first closed, and then next to it, they had opened the garbage bag. And we saw her arms and her legs. And they described just sort of a liquid wetness around them from the decomposition process inside. Sex. I mean, blood. And Ashley, one of the most chilling things about this is I can't really stomach this, but I'm trying to, and I'm trying to take notes and I'm looking away. Same with some of the other reporters. But David, I mean, I was a little confused because he was just staring, staring at the screen like he was watching a movie. Did not flinch. Did not flinch. Made me sick to my stomach how he just didn't look away. Not once. I mean, you see defendants in court, you see them react. Sometimes you see them, you know, you just. Sometimes you even see them shake their head like, I didn't do. I mean, none of that, nothing. Just staring. And I. That was one of the worst moments for me in court. Not for me. It's not about me, but just in general. And then we saw other photos of the torso and her head, which were very tough to make out. I did not realize that I was looking at a torso and a head at first. Her hands, we saw fingers that were removed. I mean, it was. Ashley, it was so awful. It was so awful. And I just, again, I cannot believe her family endured that. I think as a parent, I may. Would have had to leave. But then again, I, you know, I don't know. But that's kind of how the morning started.

[B]

Weren't they given a heads up by the judge to look down that they were. At least the family had some warning that these terrible images were coming.

[A]

So I've heard other people say they got a warning. I did not hear any warning from the judge. What I did hear was that the prosecutor told them and told their lawyer about this ahead of time and said, we're going to be showing these images. So, you know, if you want to leave, leave now. One of the other reporters caught Beth Silverman. Again. I didn't see this firsthand, but they caught Beth Silverman kind of turn around and give them a glance like we're about to do this. But it's funny, I was just like, I'm shocked that there was no warning issued, even just to the gallery, like, if anyone is, because generally, you know, not everybody can handle that. So. But. But nothing was there.

[B]

This moment that I've read about. Give me your perspective on this. That one of the prosecutors actually had to ask the detective on the stand when one of these graphic photos was on the monitor, what are we looking at? And the detective, will you take it from there?

[A]

Yeah, no, that's what I, I, I believe that was about the torso and the head because it was, it was very confusing. I think I saw a mass of black hair. That's what I took from it. But it was so, so severely decomposed and it was half wrapped up. And again, for many of us it was just very difficult to stomach this. And for David it just felt very natural for him to be staring and not even making any type of reaction.

[B]

I'm trying to think through that. I always try to give the benefit of the doubt. Imagine, okay, so what if he's innocent? What would an innocent person do? And I keep thinking this isn't just some stranger who's dismembered and rotting in these images, it's his former girlfriend. Well, I'll have to say allegedly because these are charges now that he had losing lascivious conduct with a minor. But he's appeared on video with her. There's all sorts of messaging that this was an actual relationship. So this isn't a stranger. This is someone he presumably liked quite a bit. One of the more disturbing aspects of what came out in court today, it came in an unusual way and it was body cam video from the police when they were looking for Celeste. You know, she was just a missing person by that point. And they are asking David all sorts of questions about do you know her? And of course he's misdirecting like crazy and I'll get to that in a second. But he had a picture of her on his phone. Describe that.

[A]

Yes, we saw a still of the photo that he showed the police and I was so disturbed, Ashley, because this little girl was in sixth grade in this photo and she looked like a young sixth grader to me. She looked about 10 years old. She had this cute little Batman zip up hoodie on. And this, this picture is, is on the phone of an 18 year old, 19 year old man at the time. And you're just like what, like why is this acceptable? Why is this? It was very disturbing, very disturbing.

[B]

It really speaks to the, I mean the really gross part of the case but, but still like a lesser of the horrifying murder is just that there was a child that you know, was apparently having a sexual relationship allegedly with, with this young man. And there is a charge, you know, lewd and lascivious acts with A minor. So that seems like pretty good evidence there for that particular.

[A]

Yes. I mean, David did say over and, oh, she said she was 18, but apparently. Or she told me that apparently people are saying she's 13. And I'm just like, well, yeah, I mean, I. I don't know if you're looking at this photo thinking this was last year, two years ago, if you see recent photos of her, it just didn't really make a lot of sense to me. And again, I thought he was offering up too much information voluntarily.

[B]

I mean, why would you keep. Even if. Even if the photo was her when she looked younger and you started seeing her when she looked older, why would you keep the younger photo on your phone? It's just creepy.

[A]

Yeah, exactly.

[B]

The misdirection part is important because as I understood it today, and it gets a bit complicated as to what he said to the questions he was being asked about. Do you know her? When was the last time you saw her? How well do you know her? And he was really obfuscating. How did he characterize it to the police?

[A]

Well, he. He basically said that he had not physically seen her since November. And this was. This was February of 2024. So he said he hadn't seen her physically since 2023, November. He said he spoke to her maybe a week or so ago or something along those lines, but it was very much like, well, I guess I kind of know her, but. But not that well. But, oh, but I do have this photo of her. He said they met on Instagram, Facebook, disc online, basically, but was absolutely making light of it again, while he's chewing food, while he's saying, oh, there's alcohol or beer in my fridge. I just want to be honest with you. Just trying really hard.

[B]

Seemed like he was behaving in an unusual way and also trying to be just a little too casual about all of it.

[A]

Bingo.

[B]

A lot of evidence to show that he was completely lying about his. The nature of his relationship and when he last saw her and when he communicated with her and when she'd been at his house, like, all of that stuff exists.

[A]

Oh, yeah. And when you. When you kind of play that footage back, I think you realize how diabolical it really is because it comes so naturally to him to just kind of lie like that right off the cuff just to, you know, volunteer this information that nobody asked about yet. But he. He did it very, very easily, which is really alarming.

[B]

And then later, when they executed a warrant, they got his computer. I think it was on his computer. They found airline tickets that show he and Celeste traveling together to couple places. Right. Like it is not a casual relationship there. I think they went to.

[A]

Well, I can tell you they went, they went to, from LA to Texas and LA to London and he's from Texas. So I was thinking, well, did they go to his family's home? Did she meet his family? I mean, what did they know about this, this relationship, this, this grooming that he was doing? I mean, it's so, so bizarre to me that nobody stepped in sooner if they saw this young girl and they knew how old she was. So I think that's what's also going to come out in the next couple of days. Who knew if anyone her age? Did anybody ask her age? You know, I mean, it's, it's, it is really bizarre to think about nobody stepping in here.

[B]

Were there, were there people who were complicit in this? But, but I find more interesting, an absolute proof how well you knew her. You're traveling with her internationally, an international travel. You know, I still don't understand how that happened because if you're a minor, you can't just travel. You have to have your parents permission. And here's this grown man with an underage girl crossing a border. Like it just screams of sex trafficking. That's not a charge here. But how did that happen?

[A]

That's a real. I didn't even think about that. I mean, I feel like there might have been some forging of signatures or if another adult, I mean, who knows, who knows, we might find out. But, man, I did not even think of that.

[B]

It was pretty alarming. And again, it just shows you're lying. You didn't just meet this girl in there and didn't see her recently. You're traveling around the world with her. This episode is brought to you by Wild Grain. If you really love good fresh baked bread, but you don't have time to hunt down the bakery, this is honestly one of the easiest food subscriptions I've tried. Wild Grain sends bake from frozen sourdough breads and pastries and even fresh pasta right to your door. Everything is made with simple ingredients that you can actually pronounce. So it tastes incredible and it's easier on your tummy. And the best part is that you just pop it in the oven. No thawing, no prep, and in about 25 minutes, your entire kitchen smells like a bakery. And don't just take my word for it. They have over 40,000 five star reviews and they've been voted the Best food subscription box by USA Today for three years in a row. For a limited time, Wild Grain is offering my listeners $30 off your first box, plus free croissants for life when you go to wildgrain.com banfield to start your subscription today. That's $30 off your first box and free croissants for [e-mail] banfield or use the promo code Banfield at Checkout links in the description. And they also found airline tickets in David's home during the search warrant. And the airline tickets mattered because they had Celeste's name on them, significantly proving that they were traveling together.

[A]

Yes, they, they found these on a tower computer, is what the detective referred to it as. And they were United airline tickets. There were two separate trips, one California to Texas, his hometown, so, or home state. So, you know, one could speculate or assume that she knew his parents. And then second was to London. So, you know, we, we read about these trips in the pretrial briefing. But again, it was another thing to see this in court in addition to just the, the prosecution just laying out all of this evidence at, at the same time. And, and it was, it was, it was a lot. You know, it was a lot.

[B]

It was a lot. And all they needed to establish was probable cause in this hearing. But it's a couple days long and so, so detailed. I'm almost wondering if they're trying to scare the hell out of him into taking a plea deal. Like, this is just a preliminary. And look what we've got on you.

[A]

Well, can I tell you that one of the more shocking things that we heard today. And, and when I say shocking, it's a different kind of shocking. I guess the finance director or the former finance director of Mogul Vision discussed that he still had a relationship with David's mother, Colleen, who was David's money manager. Now, I don't know if, if the prosecutor. I'm sorry, if the defense was trying to say, like, you know, David didn't really know how much money he had, it was his mother who dealt with the finances. If they're trying to say, you know, the motive about the money doesn't exist because he didn't know. Well, they tell us that the former finance director, Benjamin Greger, I believe his name was, he still works with Colleen Burke to this day. And the prosecutor, Beth Silverman, you know, says, why? What are you guys working on? And he says, we are trying to find David a new entertainment attorney. Like now, like right now, Ashley. And so I, I'm Sitting there, like, taking notes. I'm like, did I just hear that right? Like, this guy's in shackles. Has shackles around his waist. He's in jail. He could be facing the death penalty, but his family is like, oh, when this is over, like we're. I mean, I. It was bananas. Bananas.

[B]

Yeah. That does sort of reek of. Read the room.

[A]

Yeah, well, that's what I'm saying. Like, do they not think that this is. I guess I'm kind of wondering, is there going to be some big defense bombshell here? Because they think that this is going to all go away somehow? I think that was very, very. Just perplexing, I guess.

[B]

Well, that and also the conversation they had about. And correct me if I'm wrong here, Lauren, but they asked about why David's home was put into his mother's name. And the answer was so stark. It was like they said the quiet part out loud.

[A]

Right. Well, so he said that he had admitted to recommending somebody who could do that for Colleen, move the homes or move the titles into her name. And the prosecutor said, well, isn't it true that you suggested this so that David could. Could avoid any type of, you know, penalties with a potential wrongful civil. Civil suit where they come after your home and your assets? And he kind of was like, no, no, no. And they were reading a lot of grand jury testimony that would support that. This is why. This is why.

[B]

That they were concerned about a civil case brought by Celeste Rivas Hernandez's family and wanted to protect their assets.

[A]

Yes. And I asked the attorney, Patrick Steinfeld, the family attorney, about this after, and he said it was just disgusting. They were just shocked. They were shocked to hear this. I mean, obviously, in addition to everything else. But yeah. And her family, by the way, had a translator there as well, which I. I thought was, you know, important, because I was thinking to myself, like, are they understanding a lot of this? Because it was alleged that her. Her dad didn't see. Speak much. Much English at all. And that is true.

[B]

Wow. Well, God, I mean, just to add another insult to the injury, trying to get it secondhand in the courtroom from a translator. There were. There was one detail today that I thought was very stark but super compelling and very damning, and that was that in these terrible photos that everybody was subjected to in the courtroom, there was a detail that was critical to basically making it look very, very much like David had something to do with this. And that was. Blue bits of plastic in her remains remind us why that was really important.

[A]

Yes. So they showed us these blue fragments in her decomposing remains because David had ordered a blue inflatable pool that was found in his garage, or, I'm sorry, the pool. The, the order was found on Amazon and it was alleged that he dismembered her using this pool also because they found linear cuts in, in the inflatable pool as well. So they showed us a close up of this and again, you read it in the pretrial brief, you read it in the autopsy report, but it's just not the same as when you are forced to look at it.

[B]

Yeah, I mean, you get the fragments, blue fragments that they say they have forensically matched to this scarred up, cut up pool that they found at the home. And one of the charges is, you know, regarding mutilating a dead body. So that would speak to proving that charge. I mean, this whole, these, you know, fragments all match. And she's in a Tesla in a tow yard.

[A]

Yeah. Yes. And, and look, it's, it was crazy to see. I actually took the time to put everything he had ordered in chronological order after her death. And it seemed to me, and I'm, I'm speculating here, but it kind of looked like he started to change his mind about what he allegedly was going to do with her body. Because at first we see a shovel was ordered, then, you know, it's, it's chainsaws and the pool, and then we see a burn cage, and then we see fire resistant mats. So I'm like, we, oh, cadaver bags and heavy duty laundry bags. I mean, it just seemed to me that he did not know what he was doing. He didn't have a plan. He was figuring it out frantically as he kind of went along. And, and again, just seeing all of this on paper, so to speak, was,

[B]

was pretty damning and, and very compelling as you, as you say that, because everybody had the question, who would, even if you were going to kill someone, why would you put them in your own trunk and then park it just a stone's throw away? Like, don't you think that that's going to come back to you? And it does sound like what you're saying makes sense. That wasn't the intention. He just, perhaps if he's guilty of this, couldn't figure out what to do next.

[A]

Yeah. And, and investigators had also stated that the last known image or surveillance image of David driving The Tesla was July 29, 2025. They had images of that, they had footage of that. But what they also had, Ashley, was the fact that his icloud account was disconnected from the Tesla on that day, July 29, 2025. They identified the account and the phone. It was called Tranquilizer. But they never actually found this iPhone, the physical iPhone. It's an iPhone 16 Pro Max. They never found it. But a lot of the. The data that was scraped came from. From this phone.

[B]

They didn't find the phone. They didn't find the spade that was ordered, presumably for burying. That would be the guess. They didn't find that burn mat, which I had heard of only today. I heard about the burn cage before, but not the burn mat that wasn't found. But they did find a receipt for Ross Dress for Less. Not sure why a big, you know, music mogul needs to go to Ross Dress for Less, but it was a receipt for the significant date of the detachment of his phone from the. From the Tesla.

[A]

Yep. And they. They went to that actual address that they found on the receipt. They got that surveillance. They saw him buying something in the store. And they're like, yeah, he was driving it.

[B]

This.

[A]

This is the guy. This is him. Something also that I found significant, or I think that is going to be significant, is during the. The search on September 17, which was the day after her body was identified as. As being Celeste. They got the search warrant to the Doheny Place home, and they found a light blue iPhone. It's a 15 Pro Max. And detective Byers, who's the lead detective, said, you know, this is David's phone because we opened it, we found some selfies, we found some credit cards of his, maybe a license or an image of a license, and that was that for direct. But during cross, Blair Burke showed a search warrant that detailed this phone. You know, them wanting to get the. The forensics and the icloud account and everything. But it was. It was cited with an Abigail Blue email, which is an email or an icloud that belonged to Celeste. And Detective Byers was like, yeah, we want this info for the icloud, but we don't. We're not matching it to the light blue phone. That's. That's, you know, you're. He basically was like, blair Burke, you're kind of. You're kind of making this up here. This is on the same warrant, but they're not connected. Well, there's a heated exchange, and the judge is kind of just like, why are we talking about this here? And Burke alluded to the fact that she believes the contents on this phone that they are going to attribute to David is. Is incorrect. I take that as that phone has the CSAM material. I take it as the defense is going to say, no, no, that was Celeste's phone. She took those pic. You know, I, I have a feeling, and again, I could be wrong, but there was so much time spent on this light blue phone and we didn't really get to the bottom of it, that I was like, okay, there's something more there.

[B]

Well, we'll table that because clearly this is just a preliminary hearing. We have a couple more days. Maybe they'll return to it or maybe it'll come up at trial. But they also said something and I feel like this is a cliffhanger. I feel like they just left it and it's unresolved. But you tell me the detective said that evidence about Santa Barbara and Santa Inez Valley. I hope I'm pronouncing that right. Santa Inez Valley.

[A]

Yeah, that's. They. I mean, I'm not from California, but yes, they.

[B]

The detective said it's of particular interest and that it feels like they just kind of left us hanging, that we all know that these trips were made to Santa Barbara. But I was just sort of curious about why the detective said Santa Barbara and Santa Inez Valley are of particular interest when they were talking about the mat not being found, the phone not being found, and some of the other evidence. Any idea?

[A]

Well, I think they had noted there were some Tesla charging stations right by those specific areas, and that was on the way to where David was. Was driving to in Santa Barbara and subsequently where Celeste's passport was found by that Caltrans worker. So I, I feel like, sure, there could be more evidence found in Santa Barbara maybe, but why wouldn't they put that in the pre trial brief if they put the passport. I don't know. Again, I could be wrong. I feel like I'm, I'm wrong on so much sometimes actually that I, I don't know. I mean, you could be right, but. Yeah. Who? I don't know.

[B]

It's such a guessing game right now because I can't for the life of me figure out why this guy, if he's guilty of these crimes, would have killed her and immediately driven out Santa Barbara county and then not disposed of her. He had the ability. I don't think it's too hard to dig. I mean, I think I could do it. I'm a girl. But why was she still in that Tesla trunk when he had made these trips out there? And what was the reason for the trips? Have we ever kind of figured that out?

[A]

No, I mean, I, I always. I've sort of compared this in my mind and probably out loud a few times to Scott Peterson going back and forth to the marina. I mean, did he. I think maybe, you know, he was disposing of her belongings possibly. Maybe he was burning her belongings there because it was so far away he forgot about the passport. Probably. But yeah, or there was some kind of plan, alleged plan that he was concocting in his head. But you're right. Why make all these trips just to keep her in your. Your own car registered to you before you go on tour.

[B]

Parked around the corner, I mean, parked within sniffing distance.

[A]

Right. And then toad. Because you obviously don't have anyone move it for you. You don't move it into your driveway. You obviously. Like, did he just think it was going to go away, that it just gets towed and then. And then that's that? I cannot figure that out.

[B]

I'll be honest with you. If he did this, I do feel like he might have started to put his head in the scent and just hope as a big celebrity, things will just get cleaned up.

[A]

Yeah. And there's been a lot of talk about his manager, Robert Morgan Roth. And I was in. I thought it was really interesting. So they identified a red Tesla in the garage that was registered to him. And the detective said, that belongs to David's assistant, slash, like day to day person did not really refer to him as a manager. And I was like, assistant? Okay, that's interesting. I haven't heard that before. But if someone's your assistant, generally they're very involved with your life. I'm, I'm not pointing fingers. I'm wondering if we're just gonna learn a little bit more here.

[B]

Well, I'm curious too, because they did say that in the next couple days. And by the way, Nathan Hockman was in the courtroom today. I mean, the DA himself, obviously he's taking a keen interest in this case. And he said it's going to take a couple days and they'll be more witnesses. Do we know what witnesses are coming up? And might it be this manager slash cleaner, slash fixer, slash who knows what was done for David. We.

[A]

We don't get any. Like, it's so tough. California is so difficult. We actually went. A reporter and I went to the clerk's office to see if we could get some of the exhibits or when they'd be posted. They told us by Wednesday we'd see some of the exhibits, but there's, there's no witness list. We have no idea. So it's. It's kind of just like we're all just waiting there on the edge of our seats, trying to figure out what. What's coming next. So, you know, and. And I also. I didn't think that Celeste's family would be in the courtroom because they're potential witnesses, but the judge made an announcement that because of Marcy's law, this allows them to be in the courtroom, as it does David's family. If they chose to be there, they were not there. So. But. But yeah, I'm. I'm just wondering who. Who's gonna be next, just like everybody else.

[B]

Honestly, that happens. More and more family members who are on the witness list still are given the. The grace to. To be able to be in the. In the proceedings. Obviously, this is everything to them. Question about the. The. The dental records.

[A]

They.

[B]

They were only able identify Celeste through the dental records, even though they had her head and her torso and her limbs. But there was something that they said about her face that was very disturbing.

[A]

Yes. I actually don't even need to look at my notes for that, Ashley, because it stuck out in my brain so much. The detective said he could not make out any facial features because of the skin slippage. That's what he said. The decomposition was so bad that her. Her skin was. Was slipping off her face. I. Forgive me for speaking so bluntly, but what's even more just disheartening about everything is that Jesus Rivas, her father, when the news broke that there was a body found in a Tesla, he called the LAPD and said, I think this might be my daughter. I mean, what, like I. And his son. Yeah, his son apparently translated for him and everything. And they just said, okay, can you point us to her dentist? We will take it from here.

[B]

And, yeah, I can't imagine what that would have been like for the family to hear. Skin slippage. It may be a stark, you know, term, but it means she was decomposing and her face was falling off, and they couldn't even identify her based on her own face. It's just so unimaginable for these parents. And I know people have taken potshots at them for being crappy parents, and maybe they were, but nobody deserves a death sentence, you know, among their family for just being asleep at the switch.

[A]

Well, and, you know, when you say that, it.

[B]

It.

[A]

I kind of forgot for a minute about that, and that just makes me so angry. Like, this world that we live in now, where it's, like, these parents, you you know, as parents, we do the best we can. I, I have never spoken to her parents. I, I don't know much about her home life other than what I've read, but firsthand, no, I, I don't know. And I think that we, as parents, when we make decisions, we're not expecting our child to come. Come back in a body bag dismembered. So of course, if they could go back and do a couple things differently, they would. Because who expects an outcome like this? Do you know what I mean? Like who I mean? And I've also heard, like, her mom used to sleep in the bed with her to try to get her to stay home. And, and you know, it's, it's. It's tough there, there's so much that we don't know that, that went on at, you know, at home or whatever. And I just feel like it's so inappropriate for people to point forward fingers at her family, who is obviously grieving. And, and I remember seeing all of that, and I'm like, God, you guys, shut up. Like, shut. It's not the time. Like, it's not helping. You know, pretty judgy.

[B]

And again, the consequence doesn't fit the action, regardless of how you slice it. So there was something else that was said in the courtroom today that just made me sort of shiver. I have heard the. The term before used to describe a piece of evidence as a burn cage. You know, that, that David had allegedly his burn cage to be delivered to his home. It was found in the home. It hadn't really been opened or used. Maybe again, second thought. So it was a plan C or D or E or whatever it was. But the, the request of the to the way they asked the detective on the stand about the burn cage was, what is it? And he basically said a mini crematorium. Yeah, yeah. I mean, first of all, burn cages aren't crematoriums. They're not used to be crematorium. Did anybody object to that? I mean, that's just.

[A]

Oh, well, I mean, he said before he said that. He said, you know, it. You put things like, he said, like gardening, you know, you keep it outside. He, he, he did kind of describe what it was realistically before he said, like a mini crematorium type of thing. And you were like, oh, gosh, okay, that's interesting. But what was also interesting is that Blair Burke, during the cross examination, she grilled him and said, well, you saw this, you took pictures of it, but you didn't think to log it into evidence. And Look, I mean, it was unopened, it was, it was not used in the box. But no, he, he didn't log it into evidence. And I don't know if you remember this, Ashley, but when Steve Fisher, the PI that worked for the homeowner. Yeah. Like he saw this and put it out there and was like, look what we frickin found in the house. And everybody was like, I'm sorry, what? So to see all of this again coming together in a courtroom finally was wild.

[B]

Pretty shocking. I was not aware that they didn't log the burn cage into evidence. Because I'm going to be real here. Ain't no one know how using a burn cage in the Hollywood Hills, period. End of story. Why did that not stand out as the biggest find in that search warrant?

[A]

So I, my take is that because they already knew that she was dismembered. They, and they had her body and it was unopened. That's why I, but now, because Blair Burke, her defense strategy, at least for today, was attacking the investigation. She also mentioned a cadaver bag that wasn't logged into evidence that Celeste's body was in or wasn't tested on the outside. And Byers had an answer. He just said, you know, the criminologist said that it just, it wouldn't have mattered because of the way that her body was decomposing in it, the liquid, whatever. So they removed the, the handles and the zipper and they logged those into evidence. But Blair Burke was like, so you didn't test the outside, you didn't do this, you didn't do that? And he's like, no, the criminologist said we, we didn't have to. So, you know, when you're putting a lot of those things together, I think that that's where she's trying to build her defense, at least so far. She, there was some issues with the chainsaws as well. They had tested the chainsaws for blood, they didn't find any blood. So they just didn't test them for DNA or anything else either. And so she made a big deal about that as well.

[B]

Smart. I mean, look at the case. It was all about the police suck or the police are racist and you know, OJ got off despite it being slam dunk case. So speaking of like the, the level of evidence and the, the slam dunkness of this, I, I shouldn't ever say anything slam dunk after OJ but Nathan Hockman made a point of saying this is a death penalty eligible case. They haven't yet indicated whether they're going to pursue the death penalty. But are there whisper rumors or is there sourcing or any leaks about whether they want to pursue the death penalty here?

[A]

I think I, I think we're going to, we're going to have an idea about that after the preliminary hearing. I, I really do. So there haven't been any leaks. I think they're being very careful about that. But just from, from what I've learned and what I've heard from, I guess I should say local, local attorneys who, who are familiar with the DA's office and their processes. I think that decision will come after the prelims and I think this could be bad enough to, to warrant the death penalty because again, we're talking about a child, a 14 year old girl.

[B]

One other question about David's presentation in court. He came in in an orange jumpsuit, right?

[A]

Yes.

[B]

Shackled, handcuffed, all the rest. But they made a big deal about asking if he could be unshackled or if he could have his handcuffs taken off. And they actually did uncuff him, but then they cuffed his shackle to the, to the chair. Tell me about that moment. And why do you think that played out like that?

[A]

Well, it was, yeah, before the proceedings started and Blair Burke had filed a motion, I believe on Monday about these shackles. And it was brought up at the last hearing. And the judge is like, well, we'll cross that bridge when we come to it, basically. But she basically cited Blair Burke that David has been very mild mannered. He has not done anything inappropriate the last few hearings. He's innocent until proven guilty. She said something about, you know, shackles just being animalistic and, and I'm paraphrasing, but something along those lines. And the judge.

[B]

That's a favorite, that's a favorite line now by defense attorneys like that when they, when they petition the court to unshackle their clients, they often say something about it being, you know, oh, this looks like an animal.

[A]

Yeah, yeah, it was something along those lines. I can't recall. I'll look at the transcript. But it was just like, okay, you know. And the judge cited a lot of case law and I could tell where she was going and I was surprised that she's like, okay, well we're going to keep you shackled at the waist, attached to the chair, the table, but you can have your hands free to take notes and drink water. And look, I, I couldn't see the shackles at his waist. I saw from about here up. I mean, The. The sketch artists, I don't think they, you know, certain angles, they were sketching the whole. The whole body here. But from where we're sitting, you. You really couldn't see his. His bottom half.

[B]

Anyway, listen, I have kept you long enough, and it's been a long, long day for you. Lauren Conlon. Thank you so much for all of this context and color. It's just invaluable.

[A]

Of course. Thank you so much for having me. I would love to come back for a. I don't know, a more uplifting case, if there is one.

[B]

I don't know if there is, my man. It is a tough beat. Not gonna lie. So, so good to have you, though. And please do come back. My great thanks to Lauren Conlon. Man, oh, man, that girl's a good reporter. And, oh, I feel for her. Let me tell you something. It isn't easy sitting in a courtroom when images like that flash up on the screen. You think you're just there to, you know, do your job clinical, like a doctor with blood. You know, they just get used to it. You don't. You just don't. Because there's a family sitting right here crying because that's their baby. And that stuff is hard to process. The shit gets real fast. Yeah. And so I feel for Lauren. I feel for the other media that were there. I feel for the family members. I feel for the. I feel for the officers of the court. They're real people, too. And they've got to. They've got to deal with this. A teenage girl rotting in a trunk with her face melting off. I mean, this is. Is hard to process. So justice for Celeste, you know, justice for Celeste, what that means, whether it means David gets locked away for a long, long time or even gets the death penalty. Watch this space. And if you've been watching this space, thank you for watching this space. Thank you for listening. Thank you for watching, thank you for subscribing. And remember, truth is just serious. It is drop dead serious.