WASHINGTON (AP) — The Justice Department filed a complaint Monday in federal court against the city of Washington, D.C., and its water and sewer authority, seeking financial penalties for their role in a leak that led to millions of gallons of raw sewage spilling into the Potomac River.
The complaint stems from a massive leak in a 72-inch (183-centimeter) pipeline, called the Potomac Interceptor. The pipe collapsed Jan. 19, shooting sewage out of the ground and into the river just north of Washington in Montgomery County, Maryland. The leak spilled 244 million gallons (924 million liters) of raw sewage into the Potomac River and shined a fresh light on the country's aging infrastructure.
The local water authority, DC Water, said it knew the pipe, first installed in the 1960s, was deteriorating, and rehabilitation work on a section about a quarter-mile (400 meters) from the break began in September and was recently completed.
The complaint alleges that DC Water failed to properly operate and maintain its sewer system in a manner that keeps untreated sewage out of the Potomac River and tributaries, and other areas with risk of human contact.
“After decades of use and years of neglect, including at least eight years of DC Water knowing about severe corrosion requiring immediate repair, a section of the Potomac Interceptor known by DC Water to be severely corroded catastrophically failed,” the filing said.
"DC Water's failure to maintain the Potomac Interceptor resulted in raw sewage flowing into the Potomac River and the surrounding environment, posing a direct risk to public health," said Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Adam Gustafson in a statement. “As cities grow and infrastructure ages, cities must invest in their wastewater system to prevent such catastrophes.”
The complaint was one of two filed against DC Water Monday. Maryland Attorney General Anthony Brown filed a separate action in Montgomery County Circuit Court seeking civil penalties and damages for costs from the contamination of the river.
“The utility must take full responsibility for the damage caused and take immediate and lasting action to prevent future spills," said Maryland Department of the Environment Secretary Serena McIlwain in a statement.
DC Water said in a statement that it was “fully committed to the long-term rehabilitation” of the Potomac Interceptor. The agency added that its highest priority was to contain the overflow and repair the damaged section of the pipe, which it did in fully stopping “all discharges to the Potomac River within 21 days. The repairs of the affected segment were completed in 55 days. DC Water is working now to accelerate the rehabilitation of more than 2,700 linear feet of pipeline in this area that was previously scheduled for improvement.”
The statement declared that both lawsuits were “under review.”
The leak sparked political recriminations from President Donald Trump — who blamed local Democratic leaders, focusing especially on Maryland's Democratic Gov. Wes Moore. Washington Mayor Muriel Bowser declared an emergency in February and asked Trump for help. He issued an emergency declaration days later that provided a rush of federal assistance.
The pipe was returned to operation last month after emergency repairs were completed.
The leak is largely under control, but it could take months to fully repair the pipe. DC Water, along with the EPA, has been working to repair the leak and monitor the impact on the river.
FILE - Workers prepare to take soil samples where raw sewage flowed near the Potomac River in Cabin John, Md., March 14, 2026. (AP Photo/Cliff Owen, File)
LOS ANGELES (AP) — Singer D4vd pleaded not guilty Monday to a murder charge in the death of a 14-year-old girl who was last known to be alive nearly a year ago and whose dismembered and decomposed body was found in the entertainer's apparently abandoned Tesla.
The charges revealed key details and were among the first concrete public moves made in a grisly and horrific case that had been under a largely secret investigation in the seven months since Celeste Rivas Hernandez was found dead.
The 21-year-old D4vd, whose legal name is David Burke, was charged with first-degree murder, lewd and lascivious acts with a person under 14 and mutilating a body, the Los Angeles County District Attorney's Office said. A defense lawyer entered not guilty pleas to all counts on behalf of Burke, who made his first court appearance Monday. He appeared behind glass in a custody area, dressed in black. A judge said he would continue to be held without bail.
The girl's parents appeared at the hearing. They looked down as they entered the courtroom and sat in the audience. They did not speak to reporters outside court.
Authorities alleged the Houston-born alt-pop singer killed Rivas Hernandez to protect a career on the rise after she threatened to report their sexual relationship. His debut album, “Withered,” was released just two days after authorities said she was last known to be alive. She was reported missing by her family in 2024, when she was 13. That was her age when, according to allegations in a criminal complaint, the singer engaged in continuous sexual abuse of her for at least a year from September 2023 to September 2024. California law penalizes abuse of a child under 14 especially harshly.
Authorities, who described her Monday as a “runaway,” said Rivas Hernandez was 14 when she was killed with a sharp object on or around April 23, 2025, a day she was at Burke's house in the Hollywood Hills.
Prosecutors allege Burke mutilated her body about two weeks later.
The murder charges include special circumstances — lying in wait, committing crime for financial gain and murdering the witness in an investigation — that could carry the death penalty. Prosecutors haven’t announced whether they will seek it.
The witness Burke is alleged to have killed is Rivas Hernandez herself, who could have given testimony about the sex crime allegations.
“We believe the actual evidence will show David Burke did not murder Celeste Rivas Hernandez,” lead defense attorney Blair Berk said in court. “We would like to have the evidence come into the light of day.”
Berk told the judge that after media reports of months of secret grand jury proceedings, she would like a public preliminary hearing to take place as soon as possible so a judge can decide whether there is enough evidence for trial.
Burke is entitled under California law to have the evidentiary hearing within 10 court days of his arraignment. Nearly all defendants waive their right to have it happen that fast, but he didn’t. A hearing to work out what will happen next was scheduled for Thursday.
“We’ll be very happy to put on the evidence that we’ve collected," said Deputy District Attorney Beth Silverman, the lead prosecutor.
The case is a “a parent’s nightmare,” Los Angeles County District Attorney Nathan Hochman said at a news conference Monday announcing the charges.
The long-dead body of Rivas Hernandez was found inside a Tesla that was towed from the Hollywood Hills on Sept. 8, when Burke was on tour in support of his album. It was a day after she would have turned 15.
Her family had reported her missing from her hometown of Lake Elsinore, about 70 miles (112 kilometers) southeast of Los Angeles.
The singer had been under investigation by an LA County grand jury looking into the death. The probe was officially secret, but its existence — and Burke's designation as its target — was revealed in February when his mother, father and brother objected in a Texas court to subpoenas demanding they testify. The 2023 Tesla Model Y was registered in the singer’s name at their address, according to court filings. Authorities did not publicly acknowledge him as a suspect until his arrest Thursday.
Police investigators searching the Tesla in a tow yard found a cadaver bag “covered with insects and a strong odor of decay,” court documents said. Detectives partially unzipped the bag and found a head and torso.
Investigators from the Los Angeles County Medical Examiner’s Office removed the bag and “discovered the arms and legs had been severed from the body,” according to court documents. A second black bag was found under the first, and dismembered body parts were inside it. No cause of death has been publicly revealed, and police got a judge to block the release details of the autopsy. The court order was expected to be lifted after the charges.
“I had the chance to meet with some of the family members of Celeste and their grief is incalculable as to what happened to their daughter,” Hochman said.
D4vd, pronounced “David,” gained popularity among Gen Z for his blend of indie rock, R&B and lo-fi pop. He went viral on TikTok in 2022 with the hit “Romantic Homicide,” which peaked at No. 4 on Billboard’s Hot Rock & Alternative Songs chart. He then signed with Darkroom and Interscope Records and released his debut EP “Petals to Thorns” and a follow-up, “The Lost Petals,” in 2023.
The Associated Press confirmed that D4vd was dropped by Interscope last year.
When the body was discovered, the singer continued his North American tour, but when reports of his possible involvement spread widely, he canceled the final two shows and a European tour that was to follow.
On April 11, about two weeks before the killing, he made his debut appearance at the Coachella music festival, where he talked to the AP.
“I was such an internet kid. The internet is really what I claim as my home,” he said. “My neighborhood was Instagram and the society was the internet.”
AP Music Writer Maria Sherman in New York contributed to this report.
David Anthony Burke, whose stage name is D4vd, is arraigned Monday, April 20, 2026, in Los Angeles on charges of killing a 14-year-old girl whose dismembered body was found in his car. (Ted Soqui/Pool Photo via AP)
Judge Theresa R McGonigle presides over the arraignment of David Anthony Burke, whose stage name is D4vd, Monday, April 20, 2026, in Los Angeles on charges of killing a 14-year-old girl whose dismembered body was found in his car. (Ted Soqui/Pool Photo via AP)
David Anthony Burke, whose stage name is D4vd, is arraigned Monday, April 20, 2026, in Los Angeles on charges of killing a 14-year-old girl whose dismembered body was found in his car. (Ted Soqui/Pool Photo via AP)
Los Angeles district attorney Nathan Hochman answers questions Monday, April 20, 2026, in Los Angeles regarding the case of singer D4vd, who was charged on suspicion of killing a 14-year-old girl whose dismembered body was found in his car. (AP Photo/Damian Dovarganes)
Los Angeles district attorney Nathan Hochman answers questions Monday, April 20, 2026, in Los Angeles regarding the case of singer D4vd, who was charged on suspicion of killing a 14-year-old girl whose dismembered body was found in his car. (AP Photo/Damian Dovarganes)
LAPD Chief Jim McDonnell walks past an image of Celeste Rivas Hernandez Monday, April 20, 2026, in Los Angeles after a press conference regarding the case of singer D4vd, who was charged on suspicion of killing the 14-year-old girl whose dismembered body was found in his car. (AP Photo/Damian Dovarganes)
LAPD Chief Jim McDonnell speaks Monday, April 20, 2026, in Los Angeles regarding the case of singer D4vd, who was charged on suspicion of killing a 14-year-old girl whose dismembered body was found in his car. (AP Photo/Damian Dovarganes)
Los Angeles district attorney Nathan Hochman answers questions next to police chief Jim McDonnell Monday, April 20, 2026, in Los Angeles regarding the case of singer D4vd, who was charged on suspicion of killing a 14-year-old girl whose dismembered body was found in his car. (AP Photo/Damian Dovarganes)
FILE - American singer-songwriter, David Anthony Burke, aka D4vd, performs on the Casino stage during the 58th Montreux Jazz Festival (MJF), in Montreux, Switzerland, July 19, 2024. (Cyril Zingaro/Keystone via AP, File)
Singer-songwriter, David Burke aka D4vd sits in artist space at Coachella music festival on April 18, 2025 in Indio, Calif. (AP Photo)
