Autopsy doctor details condition of Celeste Rivas Hernandez’s body in D4vd hearing
On Friday, the doctor who performed the autopsy on 14-year-old Celeste Rivas Hernandez testified that her body was severely decomposed, making it extremely difficult to determine the exact time of death during the hearing to decide if musician D4vd will stand trial for her murder.
A hearing continued on Friday to determine whether musician D4vd, whose legal name is David Anthony Burke, will stand trial for murder charges in connection with the death of 14-year-old Celeste Rivas Hernandez.
Prosecutors allege that Burke fatally stabbed Hernandez last April to silence her from revealing the sexual nature of their relationship as his career rose. The sexual abuse began when Burke was 18 and Hernandez was 13, according to prosecutors.
Burke has pleaded not guilty to charges including capital murder, continuous sexual abuse of a child under 14, and unlawful mutilation of human remains.
In September last year, Los Angeles police discovered Hernandez’s remains in the front trunk of a Tesla registered to Burke, five months after prosecutors allege the murder occurred.
Graphic photographs of Hernandez’s dismembered and decomposing body were shown in court this week.
Dr. Grant Ho, who performed the postmortem examination, testified on Friday that the degraded condition of her remains posed challenges to the autopsy. He noted it was “extremely difficult to tell” when exactly she died, but she had been dead for weeks when her body was found.
In April, Hernandez’s autopsy report was unsealed amid mounting scrutiny. According to the Los Angeles County medical examiner’s office, she died from multiple penetrating injuries.
On Friday, Ho said he identified two stab wounds – one on her abdomen that struck her liver and another on her left chest that damaged her ribs.
