When forensic technicians sprayed blue-light chemicals across the garage floor of David Burke's Hollywood Hills home, they didn't just find faint traces of blood. They illuminated an entire scene that prosecution experts say points directly to a calculated, violent cover-up. Burke, the 21-year-old indie-pop artist known professionally as D4vd, is facing first-degree murder with special circumstances, child sexual abuse, and mutilation of human remains.
The preliminary hearing in Los Angeles, designed to determine whether the state has sufficient probable cause to push this case to a full criminal trial, has laid out horrifying forensic details that go far beyond surface-level court summaries.
What the Forensic Experts Actually Found in the Garage
For months, the public knew only that 14-year-old Celeste Rivas Hernandez was found dismembered in the front trunk of a Tesla registered to Burke. But day two of the preliminary hearing shifted focus straight to the home where prosecutors allege the violence occurred.
LAPD criminalist Lauren Wallace took the stand to break down the physical physical evidence collected from the garage:
- Invisible Bloodstains: Chemical testing revealed vast areas on black rubber floor mats that glowed bright blue under specialized light, indicating blood that had been washed away or wiped down.
- Linear Cuts: The rubber mats showed straight, distinct slice marks matching the action of a heavy, sharp blade.
- Inflatable Pool Residue: A damaged, blue plastic inflatable pool found in the home had cut marks along its edges and smelled heavily of fresh laundry detergent. Microscopic blue plastic fragments matching the pool were later recovered from the victim's dismembered remains inside the body bag.
- Cleaning Supplies: Traces of potential blood were swabbed off crumpled garbage bags, disinfectant wipes, and a nearby rowing machine.
The theory presented by District Attorney Nathan Hochman and his team is straightforward: Burke allegedly used the cheap inflatable pool as a makeshift basin inside his garage to catch fluid while dismembering the teenager, attempting to keep blood off the concrete.
Why the Chainsaws Tested Negative
One of the defense's strongest talking points during cross-examination revolved around two chainsaws recovered from Burke's residence. High-profile defense attorney Blair Berk pressed forensic witnesses on why these power tools, which Amazon receipts showed Burke bought shortly after Hernandez went missing in April 2025, showed zero blood evidence during initial luminescence testing.
Wallace acknowledged that the two seized chainsaws came back negative for blood. However, digital records confirm Burke actually ordered three chainsaws. The third tool remains missing.
In forensic science, a negative test on a tool doesn't automatically equal innocence. If a device was never used, thoroughly bleached, or swapped out entirely, trace evidence can be wiped completely clean. What matters far more to the prosecution is the digital paper trail connecting Burke's credit card directly to Amazon orders for body bags, heavy-duty trash bags, a shovel, a burn cage, and those power tools right when the victim vanished.
The Tesla and the Months of Deceit
The timeline of how Hernandez ended up in the Tesla's front trunk ("frunk") shows staggering premeditation.
According to medical examiners, Hernandez died around April 23, 2025, from multiple penetrating wounds. LAPD Detective Joshua Beyers testified that digital forensics placed Burke's iPhone, saved on his devices as "Tranquilizer," connected to the Tesla's system on July 29, 2025. Surveillance footage shows Burke parking the vehicle near an alley near his home before leaving LA for a tour.
The car sat undisturbed for over a month until September 8, 2025, when it was impounded and towed. When officers opened the front trunk at the Hollywood tow yard, the decomposition was so severe that insects had invaded the container, and multiple air fresheners shoved inside had failed to hide the odor.
The body was wrapped in a commercial body bag—matching Burke's Amazon order—containing the head and torso. Below it, heavy black trash bags contained her severed limbs.
The Motive and Defense Tactics
Why would an artist on the brink of mainstream stardom risk everything?
Interscope executives testified about Burke's lucrative, multimillion-dollar recording contract tied to his debut album release. Prosecutors argue that 14-year-old Hernandez, who had known Burke since she was 13 and he was 18, grew jealous of his relationships with other women. When she threatened to go public about their illegal sexual relationship right as his career was exploding, prosecutors say he killed her to keep her quiet.
Defense counsel Blair Berk is attacking the forensic process from every angle. She highlighted potential chain-of-custody gaps, including:
- LAPD officers failing to maintain a formal sign-in log at the house during early searches.
- Failure to swab the dust-covered exterior of the Tesla for stranger DNA.
- Presumptive chemical testing in the garage that indicates blood but requires secondary DNA confirmation to definitively prove it belongs to the victim.
While Berk argues Burke was not the cause of death, the sheer volume of digital, physical, and forensic circumstantial evidence presents a massive hurdle for the defense.
Next Steps in the Courtroom
This preliminary hearing isn't a full trial where guilt must be proven beyond a reasonable doubt; District Attorney Nathan Hochman only needs to establish probable cause to hold Burke over for trial. Given the physical DNA matches, the matched digital receipts, matching tattoos on both Burke and the victim, and the horrifying discovery in the Tesla, legal experts overwhelmingly expect the judge to bound Burke over for a full criminal trial where he faces life without parole or the death penalty.
