A Los Angeles court judge has ruled that indie-pop singer D4vd must stand trial on a murder charge involving a 14-year-old girl, and has ordered him held without bail after prosecutors presented multiple pieces of relevant evidence. A full trial is scheduled for 31 August 2026, with a verdict expected within 60 days thereafter.
The Associated Press reported that on Monday (27 July 2026), Judge Charlene Olmedo of the Los Angeles court ruled in the case of David Anthony Burke — known by his stage name D4vd — a 21-year-old American indie-pop singer and songwriter, finding sufficient evidence to proceed with prosecution in connection with the death of the 14-year-old girl. During the preliminary hearing, the evidence presented established probable cause to believe that crimes had been committed, including murder, continuous sexual abuse of a child under the age of 14, and unlawful mutilation of a human corpse.
The case stems from the discovery of the 14-year-old girl's dismembered and decomposed body in the trunk of a Tesla registered in David's name, found in the Hollywood Hills neighborhood in September 2025, while David was on a concert tour. The investigation and prosecution of David took more than 10 months. Over the course of the five-day preliminary hearing, prosecutors presented evidence including autopsy photographs, descriptions and images related to sexual abuse, and screenshots of the last text messages sent by the victim — messages sent just minutes before her death. In one of those messages, the girl threatened to expose their relationship and destroy his rising indie-pop career, just days before his debut album was set to be released.
David showed no emotion as the judge delivered her ruling. He sat calmly and attentively throughout, dressed in an orange prison jumpsuit and wearing glasses, as he had been throughout the proceedings, and has denied all charges. His attorney argued that the evidence on the murder charge was insufficient, while not contesting the other two charges, and declined to comment outside the courtroom. Prosecutors, however, countered that the evidence is extensive and that what was presented was only a portion of it, and that they are still considering whether to seek the death penalty. David is eligible for the death penalty after the judge found credible evidence of special circumstances — specifically lying in wait, killing for financial gain, and killing a witness — circumstances that permit capital punishment under the law.
Prosecutors detailed the events of the girl's final night, stating that she was traveling to his home in Hollywood in an Uber that David had arranged to pick her up, at around 10:00 p.m. on 23 April 2025. She sent a final text message reading: "Baby, I'm almost there. Open the door if you're home." Prosecutors allege that David stabbed her to death as she was walking into the house. The night before, the two had argued over text messages about his relationship with another woman. She sent him a series of angry, profanity-laden messages, telling him she would lie to her father about him and would destroy David's life and career. David had sent similar messages to her during the same period.
David and the girl had met when she was 11 years old. He began sexually abusing her when she was 13 and he was 18. In the year before the girl's death, the two had also exchanged messages about a pregnancy, in which she told him the child was his and that she had had an abortion. During the preliminary hearing, prosecutors presented photographs of the two kissing and lying in bed together. The photographs showed that the girl had a tattoo of the word "David" in red ink on one of her fingers — one of the two fingers that had been severed from her body when it was discovered.
Prosecutors also stated that there is evidence showing David ordered a power saw and a small inflatable pool, which were used to dismember the girl's body in his garage, and that the girl's DNA was found in bloodstains in that area. David then drove around for weeks or months with the body in the trunk of his car before the Tesla, which appeared to have been abandoned, was towed from the Hollywood Hills.
The defense, however, argued that the evidence does not demonstrate the criminal intent required for a murder conviction, that communications between David and the girl contained no threats, that there is no evidence of a history of violence, and that David's intentions were the opposite of any plan to kill her. The defense also challenged the medical examiner's conclusion that the girl's death was a homicide caused by two stab wounds, arguing it was too ambiguous and inconclusive to constitute evidence of murder. The defense did not offer an alternative theory as to the cause of her death directly, nor was it required to do so.
The defense also argued that in the period before her death, the girl had asked to meet David seven times, and that David only reluctantly agreed to see her when she insisted persistently. They also noted that she had threatened to kill and physically harm David. Prosecutors, however, told the judge that the defense had repeatedly attempted throughout these proceedings to smear the victim — despite the victim being a child. A prosecution detective also said, during cross-examination by the defense, that both David's and the girl's parents were aware of the relationship, that David had attended church with members of her family, and that the girl's parents had consented to her traveling with him to London, United Kingdom, for one week. The attorney representing the girl's family expressed shock that the defense had introduced evidence to cast blame on the 14-year-old victim.
The judge ordered David to be held without bail. A full trial is preliminarily scheduled for 31 August 2026, with a verdict potentially coming as early as 60 days after that.
Additional reporting notes that David, or D4vd, is an American musician who rose to fame in 2022 with viral hit songs "Romantic Homicide" and "Here with Me." He was born in Queens, New York, and grew up in Houston, Texas. He began writing and recording music in 2021 using an iPhone while editing Fortnite gameplay clips, and achieved considerable commercial success on streaming platforms with his indie-pop and lo-fi R&B style. He later released two major EPs in 2023 — Petals to Thorns and The Lost Petals — followed by his debut studio album Withered in April 2025.
Among Thai listeners of international music, D4vd's most well-known song is "Here with Me," released on 19 July 2022. The song is a romantic ballad expressing a love that is deeply bonded and a longing to grow old together, weathering both good times and bad, side by side with the person one loves for the rest of one's life. It was inspired by Disney animated films, and currently has 151 million views on YouTube.
Following the news breaking, one YouTube listener commented: "Been listening to this all this time without knowing the murderer made this." Another wrote: "This is his original song? Omg. I've been listening to this. It sounds creepy now." And yet another wrote: "Shits not romantic just disappointed and sad" — swearing as they said it was not romantic at all, only disappointing and sad.
