‘Both of us aren’t able to take care of…’: Texts reveal Celeste Rivas Hernandez was pregnant with D4vd’s child and underwent abortion when she was 13

Celeste Rivas Hernandez Murder Case: In a major development connected to the death of Celeste Rivas Hernandez, courtroom evidence revealed text messages exchanged between D4vd and Hernandez that discussed a pregnancy and abortion when she was only thirteen, according to reports. These records suggest that Hernandez, who turned 14 in September 2024, became pregnant at the age of 13 and underwent an abortion more than a year before her tragic killing.

In one exchange in early January 2024, D4vd, whose legal name is David Burke, apologizes for “putting her through this,” as quoted by news agency AP. “It’s okay,” she said in a text, “neither of us are capable of watching and taking care of the baby. It's for the best, no?” He later apologizes again before asking if it’s his, and she replies, "Of course it’s yours, David.”

“Both of us aren’t able to take care of it,” Rivas wrote in a Jan. 8, 2024, text to the singer, whose real name is David Anthony Burke, PEOPLE reported. “I know but still,” Burke responded. The text messages between the two were shown in a Los Angeles Superior Courtroom on the fourth day of preliminary hearing testimony on Friday, July 24, for Burke, who is accused of killing the teen at his home in the Hollywood Hills on April 23, 2025.


The testimony came during a preliminary hearing where a judge would decide if Burke should go on trial in Rivas Hernandez’s killing. Prosecutors are seeking to prove Burke began sexually abusing Rivas Hernandez when she was 13 and he was 18, then stabbed her to death when she threatened to reveal their long sexual history and create a career that had earned him millions.

On Friday, July 24, during the fourth day of preliminary hearing testimony in Los Angeles Superior Court, text messages between the two were presented that discussed the pregnancy. The hearing was part of proceedings against Burke, who is accused of killing the teen at his Hollywood Hills home on April 23, 2025. The testimony formed a crucial part of the preliminary hearing in which the judge will determine whether Burke should stand trial for the killing of Hernandez.

Prosecutors alleged that Burke began sexually abusing Rivas Hernandez when she was 13 and he was 18 and that he later stabbed her to death after she threatened to expose their years-long sexual relationship, which they argued could have jeopardized the career that had earned him millions.

As they continued laying out their case on Friday afternoon, prosecutors detailed the nature of the relationship between the two, showing jurors photographs of Burke and Rivas Hernandez kissing and lying in bed together, AP reported. The images also showed that she had "David" tattooed in red ink on one of her fingers, one of the two fingers that had been cut off when her body was discovered.

Burke and Rivas Hernandez exchanged multiple text messages

Los Angeles Police Department robbery-homicide detective Corey Farell testified that Burke and Rivas Hernandez exchanged multiple text messages during what prosecutors described as their illegal sexual relationship, discussing abortion, birth control, Plan B, the emergency contraceptive pill, and breaking up, PEOPLE reported.

Farell also told the court that investigators found more than 40 images of child sexual abuse material involving Rivas Hernandez on Burke's iPhone, along with several photographs showing the two engaged in sexual activity.

When were Rivas Hernandez's remains found?

Rivas Hernandez's remains were discovered in two bags in the front trunk of Burke's Tesla on September 8, 2025, three days after the vehicle was impounded near his Hollywood Hills home.

Prosecutors further alleged that Burke dismembered and disposed of her body using items purchased online from Amazon and Home Depot, including a shovel, three chainsaws, two "City Morgue" cadaver bags, two heavy-duty laundry bags, and a "Tornado Spin" mop and bucket combo, as reported by PEOPLE. Burke has pleaded not guilty and remains in custody at a Los Angeles County jail.