Platinum-selling singer D4vd pleaded not guilty Monday at his rearraignment on charges he sexually abused 14-year-old Celeste Rivas Hernandez before killing and dismembering her and concealing her remains in the front trunk of his Tesla. He also switched out his defense team, replacing high-profile lawyers Blair Berk and Marilyn Bednarski with two public defenders.
After the hearing, Bednarski said “there is no conflict,” and that D4vd, born David Anthony Burke, made the decision. She declined to say how he might qualify for a publicly funded defense considering his financial success as a recording artist.
“This morning, the court granted our request to withdraw as counsel and appoint the Los Angeles County Public Defender’s Office, after it was determined David qualified for appointed counsel,” Berk, Bednarski, and third lawyer Regina Peter said in a written statement handed out in the hallway outside the courtroom. “We continue to support David and his defense against these serious charges. We are grateful that the Los Angeles County Public Defender’s Office had taken over the representation and that David has a highly capable and committed team of attorneys and investigators behind him.”
