Celeste Rivas Hernandez, girl who singer D4vd is charged with killing, died from penetrating wounds

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Celeste Rivas Hernandez, the 14-year-old miss vocalist D4vd is charged with killing, died from penetrating wounds to her precocious body, according to an autopsy study released Wednesday.

Her decease was ruled a homicide successful the study from the Los Angeles County Medical Examiner's Office that had been blocked from merchandise for months.

The autopsy was constricted by “extensive postmortem changes” to the assemblage that was dismembered and decomposing erstwhile it was recovered successful 2 bags successful the trunk of a Tesla parked successful the Hollywood Hills successful September.

The introspection revealed “two penetrating wounds of the torso with creaseless edges that whitethorn correspond crisp unit injuries.” One coiled connected the precocious abdomen penetrated the liver. Another, connected the near chest, damaged her ribs. A conduit apical she was wearing appeared to beryllium chopped successful 3 places.

A justice had ordered the study sealed precocious past twelvemonth astatine the petition of instrumentality enforcement, but prosecutors agreed this week to let its release.

The 21-year-old alt-pop vocalist D4vd, whose ineligible sanction is David Burke, was charged successful the sidesplitting Monday. He pleaded not blameworthy to first-degree murder, lewd and lascivious acts with a idiosyncratic nether 14 and mutilating a dormant body. Burke’s attorneys said helium did not origin Rivas Hernandez’s decease and they volition vigorously support his innocence.

The girl's parents made their archetypal nationalist comments connected Tuesday night, thanking investigators for their enactment and the radical of their hometown of Lake Elsinore, California, for their support. Lake Elsinore is astir 70 miles (112 kilometers) southeast of Los Angeles.

“Celeste was a beautiful, beardown miss who loved to sing and dance. Every Friday nighttime was movie nighttime and we spent fantastic times together,” Jesus Rivas and Mercedes Martinez said. "We emotion her precise overmuch and she ever told america that she loved us. We miss her deeply. All we privation is justness for Celeste.”

Prosecutors allege Burke killed Rivas Hernandez due to the fact that she threatened to study they had a intersexual narration that began erstwhile she was 13 years aged and helium feared it would ruin his rising career.

A transgression ailment alleges helium killed her with a crisp entity and dismembered the assemblage astir 2 weeks later.

Medical Examiner's investigators called to the country wherever the assemblage was recovered discovered her torso and caput successful a black, zippered assemblage container successful the Tesla's trunk, with arms and legs successful a abstracted trash bag.

Her assemblage had truthful degraded that examiners couldn't adjacent find her oculus color. She had braces astatine the clip of her death, and a tattoo that work “Shhh....” connected the wrong of a finger, according to the report. Two different fingers were missing — arsenic were parts of her arms and legs.

Toxicology tests connected the liver showed a debased level of alcohol, but it whitethorn person been owed to postmortem chemic changes and didn't look to beryllium a factor, the study said.

LA County's Chief Medical Examiner Dr. Odey C. Ukpo has sought to stress his agency's independency from instrumentality enforcement and to marque its enactment arsenic nationalist arsenic imaginable since helium took implicit the occupation 3 years ago. He has said helium does not judge sealing reports of his office's enactment helps investigations and has said helium would lone enactment holds connected releasing the reports if compelled by a tribunal order.

“After respective months, I americium grateful this accusation tin present beryllium released, not lone to the public, but besides to the grieving household enduring loss,” Ukpo said successful a connection Wednesday. “It is unfathomable they person had to hold this agelong to larn what happened to their daughter.”

D4vd, pronounced “David,” gained popularity among young fans for his blend of indie rock, R&B and lo-fi pop. He went viral connected TikTok successful 2022 with the deed “Romantic Homicide,” which peaked astatine No. 4 connected Billboard’s Hot Rock & Alternative Songs chart. He released his debut EP “Petals to Thorns” and a follow-up, “The Lost Petals,” successful 2023.

His debut full-length album, “Withered,” was released 1 twelvemonth ago, 2 days aft the day prosecutors estimation that Rivas Hernandez was killed.

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