The murder case against former NFL first-round pick Darron Lee has taken a turn that extends well beyond the courtroom. Evidence presented by prosecutors shows Lee consulted ChatGPT for advice on how to handle an “unresponsive” person before he called 911, and the family of the victim now plans to pursue accountability from the AI platform itself.
“The defendant in this case engaged ChatGPT to cover up a crime,” attorney C. Mark Warren reportedly told Local3News.com’s Madison Sims. “We feel like that it’s important that ChatGPT and all AI platforms have guardrails in place where they can engage, but not engage without consequences.”
New York Jets linebacker Darron Lee was traded to Chiefs in the first move under interim GM Adam Gase
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What the ChatGPT messages actually showed and what Lee is charged with
Court evidence revealed that Lee’s conversations with ChatGPT began the day before first responders arrived at his Ooltewah, Tennessee home and found Gabriella Perpetuo dead.
According to a transcript shown in court, Lee wrote:
“Don’t know what to do right now. Fiancee did her crazy thing again and now she’s messed up, I wake up and she has two swollen eyes, she stabbed herself, slit her eye? Idk but she isn’t waking up or responding, what do I do?”
The murder case against Darron Lee includes evidence that he asked ChatGPT for advice on how to deal with an “unresponsive” person. The victim’s family is now pursuing a potential claim against ChatGPT for helping Lee try to cover up the crime. https://t.co/vHtAZvFY9Y
— ProFootballTalk (@ProFootballTalk) June 20, 2026
Hamilton County District Attorney Coty Wamp said Lee used the chatbot as a “legal advisor,” asking it to essentially help him cover up a crime scene. One ChatGPT response, displayed in court, read in part: “Here’s exactly what to tell your friend. This is the safest way to handle it without framing it as ‘police trouble.'”
The injuries authorities documented were extensive and inconsistent with Lee’s account that Perpetuo had fallen in the shower. The arrest affidavit cited a stab wound to her abdomen, a bite mark on her shoulder, black eyes, and blood found throughout nearly every room of the home.
Lee faces a charge of first-degree murder after prosecutors dismissed the tampering with evidence charge to focus solely on the homicide allegation. He is being held without bond.
The family has separately filed a $50 million wrongful-death lawsuit against him, and is now weighing whether OpenAI itself bears any legal responsibility for the chatbot’s responses.
The question of how AI companies should be held accountable for harmful real-world guidance remains legally untested, and this case may become one of the first to test it directly.