Prosecutors have unveiled a stunning new piece of evidence against former NFL linebacker Darron Lee: his own conversations with ChatGPT. During a preliminary hearing Monday in Hamilton County Court, District Attorney Coty Wamp revealed that Lee allegedly used the AI chatbot as a “legal advisor” in the hours after killing his girlfriend, Gabriella Perpetuo, inside their Tennessee home.
Lee, 31, now faces first-degree murder charges and the possibility of the death penalty if convicted.
According to prosecutors, Lee sent multiple messages to ChatGPT the day before Perpetuo’s body was found on February 5. One alleged message read: “Don’t know what to do right now, Fiancée did her crazy thing again, and now she’s messed up, I wake up and she has two swollen eyes (i didn’t do anything, self-inflicted). She stabbed herself, slit her eye?”.
Another asked: “Idk, but she isn’t waking up or responding, what do I do?”.
Prosecutors say ChatGPT’s response included the chilling line: “Here’s what to say without framing it as ‘police trouble'”.
Wamp told the court that Lee had “dozens of conversations, back and forth with ChatGPT over a two-day period about what he did to Gabriella Perpetuo in detail. He asks how to cover it up. He asks what to say to 911”.
The reality inside the Ooltewah home told a far different story than Lee’s initial explanation. When deputies arrived, they found Perpetuo, 29, lying on her back in the living room. Blood was everywhere, on the stairs, the handrails, the walls, the hallway floor. “There was blood in just about every room except one,” Detective Brian Lockhart testified .
The autopsy revealed horrific injuries: blunt force trauma to the head, a broken neck, black eyes, stab wounds to her legs, and a large bite mark on her shoulder and thigh. Her pants showed no cuts, suggesting they were put on after the attack.
Lee initially told investigators Perpetuo may have slipped and fallen in the shower. But the evidence painted a different picture, a shattered microwave, scattered glass and alcohol bottles, and cleaning supplies upstairs including bleach wipes.
Lee himself had injuries: a facial wound, lacerations on his hands, and blood inside his phone case.
Legal experts say the ChatGPT messages could prove devastating for Lee’s defense. Dr. Rick Dierenfeldt of the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga noted that conversations with public AI platforms are not protected by attorney-client privilege. “That’s not privileged information, it’s a third-party platform, so you’ve, in effect, waived your confidentiality,” he said.
Prosecutors also allege Lee asked ChatGPT about whether a slip-and-fall accident could cause puncture wounds, a question that directly contradicts his initial explanation.
Lee, a first-round NFL draft pick out of Ohio State in 2016, played five seasons for the Jets, Chiefs, Bills, and Raiders. But his legal troubles predate this case. In 2023, he was arrested in Ohio for assault and domestic violence, accused of pushing a woman against a wall and striking her face and head multiple times. He pleaded guilty as part of a plea deal .
At the time of Perpetuo’s death, Lee was on probation in Florida for aggravated assault with a deadly weapon and battery, and on probation in Ohio for attempted batteries.
Lee remains in custody without bond. His case has been bound over to a grand jury. Perpetuo’s family has filed a $50 million wrongful death lawsuit against him.
A GoFundMe page for the family reads: “The tragic and sudden loss of Gabriella has created emotional and financial hardships. We also hope to raise awareness and find ways to help prevent other lives from being destroyed by domestic violence”.
If convicted, prosecutors have made clear they will seek the death penalty.
