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An AI video created by the family of a U.S. Army veteran who was killed during a road incident went viral on social media this week.
The family of Christopher Pelkey created an AI video of him that was used to address his killer in the Maricopa County Superior Court during the shooter’s sentencing.
The shooter was Gabriel Paul Horcasitas, who killed Pelkey during a 2021 road-rage incident.
In the AI-generated video, Pelkey stated, “It is a shame we encountered each other that day in those circumstances.”
“In another life, we probably could have been friends,” added Pelkey in the AI Video.
Gabriel Horcasitas was sentenced to 10.5 years for the murder.
Take a look:
An AI version of US Army veteran Christopher Pelkey, who was killed in a road rage incident in 2021, was used in a victim impact statement at a court sentencing https://t.co/jljmBs2x0a pic.twitter.com/SFSUAeSs1c
— Reuters Tech News (@ReutersTech) May 10, 2025
Check out what ABC 15 News reported:
This week, Chandler road rage victim Chris Pelkey made international headlines when an Artificial Intelligence version of him appeared as the last victim statement in the shooter’s sentencing.
The judge in the case gave defendant Gabriel Horcasitas 10.5 years. Immediately after the sentencing, defense attorney Jason Lamm appealed the decision.
”While victims have a right to address the court, reincarnating Chris Pelkey through AI, and frankly putting words in his mouth because nobody would know what he was actually going to say, it just felt wrong on many levels,” said Lamm.
He added that the appellate courts now have a seemingly unprecedented decision to make in the coming months on whether the AI video added to the penalty for Horcasitas.
The Pelkey family attorney, Jessica Gattuso, told ABC15 by phone that she feels the sentencing will be upheld because the written law supports what they did in court.
Gary Marchant is an ASU professor who’s part of the Arizona Supreme Court committee on AI. When asked if there could be a resentencing, Marchant said:
”If they determine it wasn’t an innocuous error, and it didn’t change the outcome, and he would have received the penalty, something like this anyhow, they may allow it to continue on. But say you can’t use these AI-created victim statements in the future.”
He says that, because the state Supreme Court told ABC15 prior that the use of AI has “great potential,” but it can “hinder or upend justice if used inappropriately.”
“Those who use it, including the courts, are responsible for its accuracy,” Marchant added.
The family of a man that died in 2021 created an AI video of him to address his killer in court
pic.twitter.com/qWMBcmVFQp— Dexerto (@Dexerto) May 9, 2025
Check out what Reuters reported:
A simulation of a dead man created by artificial intelligence addressed his killer in an Arizona court this month, in what appears to be one of the first such instances in a U.S. courtroom.
Made by his family, an AI-generated avatar of Christopher Pelkey spoke in Maricopa County Superior Court on May 1, as a judge prepared to sentence Gabriel Paul Horcasitas for shooting and killing Pelkey in a 2021 road-rage incident.
“It is a shame we encountered each other that day in those circumstances,” the Pelkey avatar says in the video. “In another life, we probably could have been friends.”
The Pelkey avatar appears in the video sporting a long beard and green sweatshirt against a white backdrop. He cautions at the start that he is an AI-version of Pelkey, which is apparent through the gaps in audio and slightly mismatched movement of his mouth.
Pelkey, a U.S. Army veteran, was 37 at the time of the shooting.
The video marked a novel use of AI in the legal system, which has viewed the rapidly growing technology with a mix of fascination and trepidation.
What’s your view on?
This is a Guest Post from our friends over at WLTReport.