Latest / Crime Alert Hourly Update / D4vd Fires High-Profile Defense Team in Tesla Trunk Murder Case | Crime Alert 09.01.26

Transcript

D4vd Fires High-Profile Defense Team in Tesla Trunk Murder Case | Crime Alert 09.01.26 · Crime Alert Hourly Update

• 0:00
  Speaker 1: Crime Alert, hourly update, breaking crime news now. I'm Sydney Silvani.
• 0:05
  Speaker 1: A stunning turn of events in a Los Angeles courtroom
• 0:08
  Speaker 1: Monday as 21-year-old singer David Anthony Burke, known as David,
• 0:13
  Speaker 1: returned for his arraignment. Burke unexpectedly fired his high-profile legal team,
• 0:18
  Speaker 1: led by attorney Blair Burke, telling Judge Charlene Olmedo he
• 0:22
  Speaker 1: wished to be represented by public defender Waleed Kandil instead.
• 0:27
  Speaker 1: Judge Olmedo granted the request after determining Burke qualified for
• 0:31
  Speaker 1: appointed counsel. In a statement, Attorney Burke expressed ongoing support,
• 0:36
  Speaker 1: noting they are grateful the Public Defender's Office has taken
• 0:38
  Speaker 1: over his representation with a capable team. This dramatic shift
• 0:43
  Speaker 1: comes during what was expected to be a routine hearing
• 0:45
  Speaker 1: in a murder case that has sent shockwaves through the
• 0:48
  Speaker 1: music industry. Burke entered a plea of not guilty to
• 0:51
  Speaker 1: charges of murder, lewd and lascivious acts with a child
• 0:54
  Speaker 1: under 14, and unlawful mutilation of human remains, alongside special
• 0:59
  Speaker 1: circumstance allegations that he murdered a witness, killed for financial gain,
• 1:03
  Speaker 1: and lay in wait. The case centers on the gruesome
• 1:06
  Speaker 1: death of 14-year-old Celeste Rivas Hernandez. Electronic records show Celeste
• 1:11
  Speaker 1: was 11 when she began communicating online with Burke, who
• 1:14
  Speaker 1: was living in Houston, making Fortnite videos. Prosecutors allege their
• 1:19
  Speaker 1: relationship turned physical in late 2023 after Burke moved to
• 1:23
  Speaker 1: Los Angeles, becoming sexual in 2024 when Celeste was 13.
• 1:28
  Speaker 1: By spring 2025, the relationship grew fraught as Celeste threatened
• 1:32
  Speaker 1: to expose Burke after discovering he was seeing other women.
• 1:36
  Speaker 1: Fearing the disclosure would destroy his music career, Burke allegedly
• 1:40
  Speaker 1: lured Celeste on April 23, 2025, to a rented home
• 1:42
  Speaker 1: in the Hollywood Hills. where he stabbed her to death
• 1:46
  Speaker 1: and dismembered her body in the garage. On September 8, 2025,
• 1:51
  Speaker 1: her decomposing remains were discovered inside the front trunk of
• 1:54
  Speaker 1: a Tesla registered to Burke at a Hollywood tow lot.
• 1:58
  Speaker 1: Burke was arrested April 26, 2026, and remains jailed without bail.
• 2:03
  Speaker 1: District Attorney Nathan Hotchman spoke outside the downtown courthouse regarding
• 2:07
  Speaker 1: the defense transition.
• 2:09
  Speaker 2: As soon as the defense announces ready to proceed, the
• 2:12
  Speaker 2: DA's office is ready to proceed. But very often in
• 2:16
  Speaker 2: these cases, a new lawyer will take additional time to
• 2:20
  Speaker 2: review all the evidence in the case in order to
• 2:22
  Speaker 2: make sure that that new lawyer is ready to proceed.
• 2:25
  Speaker 2: That may or may not happen in this case. What
• 2:28
  Speaker 2: also may or may not happen is that that new
• 2:31
  Speaker 2: attorney will evaluate the evidence presented during the preliminary hearing.
• 2:35
  Speaker 2: and they can file a motion to dismiss one or
• 2:39
  Speaker 2: all three of the charges based on legal grounds. We
• 2:42
  Speaker 2: don't know at this time if that will happen as well.
• 2:45
  Speaker 1: Hotchman went on to detail the pending decision regarding potential
• 2:49
  Speaker 1: capital punishment in the case.
• 2:51
  Speaker 2: The last thing that will have to be decided, and
• 2:53
  Speaker 2: that's a decision by myself as the district attorney, is
• 2:56
  Speaker 2: whether or not we'll be seeking the death penalty in
• 2:58
  Speaker 2: this case. We had invited David Anthony Burke's prior counsel
• 3:03
  Speaker 2: to submit what's called a mitigation packet to the district
• 3:06
  Speaker 2: attorney's office for consideration. A mitigation packet are factors that
• 3:12
  Speaker 2: we are to consider why we should not bring the
• 3:15
  Speaker 2: death penalty in this case. We had not received that
• 3:18
  Speaker 2: mitigation packet as of today.
• 3:21
  Speaker 1: Burke's next status hearing is set for October 19th with
• 3:25
  Speaker 1: a trial expected within 90 days of that hearing. More
• 3:29
  Speaker 1: crime and justice news after this. In Oklahoma, 35-year-old Ryan
• 3:35
  Speaker 1: Basham of Tulsa turned himself in on Sunday, August 30th,
• 3:39
  Speaker 1: after being charged with two counts of first-degree murder. According
• 3:42
  Speaker 1: to court records, Basham, the owner of Solos Extracts LLC,
• 3:47
  Speaker 1: was released after posting a $ 2 million bond. The charges
• 3:51
  Speaker 1: follow a massive explosion just after 1 a.m. on Thursday
• 3:55
  Speaker 1: at the Morrow Gill Business Complex in Sand Springs that
• 3:58
  Speaker 1: was felt 30 to 40 miles away and damaged over
• 4:02
  Speaker 1: 20 neighboring businesses. Emergency crews found worker Stephen Scott dead
• 4:07
  Speaker 1: at the scene, while Michael Newman was critically injured and
• 4:10
  Speaker 1: later died. An affidavit reveals Newman told an EMT that
• 4:14
  Speaker 1: the facility lacked adequate ventilation and exploded when he unplugged equipment.
• 4:20
  Speaker 1: Investigative findings from the Oklahoma LP Gas Administration indicate the
• 4:24
  Speaker 1: explosion resulted from an active illegal marijuana manufacturing operation using
• 4:29
  Speaker 1: liquid propane brought in after a January inspection. Officials confirmed
• 4:33
  Speaker 1: Basham lacked valid state medical marijuana licensing, resulting in charges
• 4:38
  Speaker 1: for illegally manufacturing controlled dangerous substances. In Los Angeles, an
• 4:43
  Speaker 1: 81-year-old mother had both legs amputated following a horrifying crash
• 4:48
  Speaker 1: outside a Boyle Heights restaurant. On July 7th at around
• 4:52
  Speaker 1: 3.30 p.m., Christina Vargas was enjoying lunch outside Los Cinco
• 4:56
  Speaker 1: Puntos with her daughter Gabriela and a friend when an
• 4:59
  Speaker 1: SUV plowed into them. Surveillance footage showed the vehicle veering
• 5:03
  Speaker 1: onto the sidewalk into the outdoor dining area. Gabriela Vargas
• 5:07
  Speaker 1: described the terrifying moment to KTLA.
• 5:10
  Speaker 3: I remember I just heard screeching, like just screeching noises,
• 5:14
  Speaker 3: and I was slowly lifting up my head. And as
• 5:16
  Speaker 3: I was focusing, I just saw headlights and a bumper,
• 5:19
  Speaker 3: and then I just heard a big boom. And then
• 5:21
  Speaker 3: the next thing I knew, I know that I got airborne. Like,
• 5:25
  Speaker 3: I felt it.
• 5:26
  Speaker 1: The crash pinned Christina beneath the vehicle while Gabriella suffered
• 5:30
  Speaker 1: a head injury and severe knee laceration. Though Gabriela and
• 5:33
  Speaker 1: their friend recovered, Christina underwent three surgeries, resulting in double amputation.
• 5:39
  Speaker 1: Despite her severe injuries, Christina remains positive in rehabilitation. Police
• 5:44
  Speaker 1: confirmed the driver, who has not been named, was impaired
• 5:47
  Speaker 1: and faces multiple felony charges, while a GoFundMe has raised
• 5:50
  Speaker 1: over $ 30, 000 for Christina's ongoing care. For more crime and
• 5:55
  Speaker 1: justice news, be sure to join us for Crime Stories
• 5:58
  Speaker 1: with Nancy Grace on Fox One, YouTube, Sirius XM, and
• 6:02
  Speaker 1: now streaming on Tubi. With this crime alert, I'm Sydney Silvani.