A Los Angeles family has filed a wrongful death lawsuit against rapper D4vd, his manager, mother, and security guard one year after the 14-year-old girl whose dismembered body was found in his Tesla died.
The parents of Celeste Rivas Hernandez, 14, sued David Anthony Burke—known professionally as D4vd—alongside his management company Mogul Vision, his mother Colleen Burke, and security guard Sheldon Jacques in Los Angeles Superior Court on September 8, 2025, exactly one year after authorities discovered her remains in his Tesla. The lawsuit alleges Burke engaged in a continuous sexual relationship with the teenager starting in November 2023, when she was 13, and later killed her after she threatened to end his career.
Legal Charges and Family Claims
Prosecutors charged Burke with first-degree murder with special circumstances, including lying in wait, murdering a witness, and financial gain, according to a Rolling Stone report. The Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office cited lewd and lascivious sexual acts with a minor and mutilating the remains of a body as additional charges. The family’s lawsuit echoes these claims, alleging Burke used a chainsaw to dismember Rivas’ body in his garage and amputated her fingers to hide matching tattoos.
The suit also accuses Mogul Vision of enabling Burke’s behavior by leasing his home and hiring Jacques, who allegedly helped transport Rivas to his residence. Colleen Burke, who ran the management firm, and finance manager Robert Morganroth are accused of funding his actions. They knew or should have known of Burke’s dangerous propensities toward, and sexual exploitation of Decedent, a minor, and failed to take reasonable steps to protect her, the lawsuit states.
Evidence and Defense
The Los Angeles Police Department recovered a substantial amount of digital and forensic evidence during the investigation, according to Rolling Stone. Authorities found Rivas’ decomposed body in Burke’s Tesla in September 2025, which had Texas license plates. The coroner’s report, released months later, confirmed she had been stabbed twice and bled to death, with the family alleging the process took minutes to an hour.
Burke’s lawyers have denied the allegations, stating The actual evidence in this case will show that David Burke did not murder Celeste Rivas Hernandez, and he was not the cause of her death, according to a Rolling Stone article. Meanwhile, the family has pushed for the death penalty, calling Burke a human being, devoid of feelings and emptiness inside, and without conscience.
Family’s Demand for Justice
Celeste’s parents, Mercedes Martinez and Jesus Rivas, are seeking damages for the loss of Decedent’s love, companionship, comfort, care, assistance, affection, society, moral support, together with funeral and burial expenses. The lawsuit highlights the couple’s emotional trauma, stating they suffered damages from her death.
The family’s statement to the New York Post criticized the legal system’s role in the case, noting that the decision of whether to implement the death penalty will ultimately be made by Los Angeles County District Attorney Nathan Hochman.
Burke, 21, remains in custody as the case progresses.
