Biographical note on a high-profile figure linked to a 2022 assault
Los Angeles prosecutors have presented photographic and forensic evidence at a preliminary hearing accusing 21‑year‑old musician David Anthony Burke (stage name D4vd) of murdering and sexually abusing 14‑year‑old Celeste Rivas Hernandez. Authorities have said they found her decomposed remains in a Tesla registered to Burke and have linked blood in his garage and purchases of tools to the alleged killing.
A Buffalo jury has found Hadi Matar guilty on all counts in a federal terrorism case stemming from the 2022 stabbing of Salman Rushdie during a talk on writers’ safety. Matar already faces a 25-year state sentence for the August 2022 attack; the federal verdict could carry a life term. Prosecutors say the act was motivated by Iran’s fatwa against Rushdie and Hezbollah ties, while the defense questions Matar’s state of mind.
Salman Rushdie has been named the 39th recipient of the National Book Foundation’s Distinguished Contribution to American Letters award. The ceremony in Manhattan on Nov. 18 will also honor Perri Klass with the Literarian Award. Rushdie, who has built a career across South Asia, London and New York, has published more than 20 works and survived the 2022 stabbing attack.