AI Brings Back the Voice of a Murder Victim to Confront His Killer

In a poignant courtroom scene, a man shot dead four years ago reappeared in the form of an eerie AI recreation to deliver a message to his killer. Christopher Pelkey, gunned down in a 2021 road rage incident, was brought back to life virtually by his family using artificial intelligence.

A Virtual Resurrection for Justice

Pelkey’s killer, Gabriel Horcasitas, was convicted of manslaughter and sentenced to 10.5 years. But before the sentence was passed, Pelkey’s digital doppelganger spoke to the court, a chillingly realistic video created using AI technology. In the video, Pelkey addressed Horcasitas directly, saying, “To Gabriel Horcasitas, the man who shot me: it is a shame we encountered each other that day in those circumstances. In another life, we probably could have been friends.. I believe in forgiveness and God who forgives. I always have, and still do.”

The AI Pelkey also shared a touching message about growing old, saying, “Remember, getting old is a gift that not everybody has, so embrace it and stop worrying about those wrinkles.” The video included a real photograph of Pelkey, aged using an AI filter, a poignant reminder of the life cut short.

A Sister’s Tribute and a Judge’s Response

Pelkey’s sister, Stacey Wales, wrote the script for the AI video, driven by a desire to give her brother a voice in his own manslaughter case. “I said, ‘I have to let him speak,’ and I wrote what he would have said, and I said, ‘That’s pretty good, I’d like to hear that if I was the judge,'” she said. “I want the world to know Chris existed. If one person hears his name or sees this footage and goes to his Facebook page or looks him up on YouTube, they will hear Chris’s love,” she added.

Judge Todd Lang was deeply moved by the virtual appearance, saying, “I love that AI.” He then handed down the 10-and-a-half-year sentence to Horcasitas.