How AI Allowed Road Rage Shooting Victim to Address His Killer from Beyond the Grave

• The family of Christopher Pelkey, a 2021 road rage victim, used artificial intelligence to recreate his image and voice for a victim impact statement during the sentencing of his killer
• The AI-generated video featured Pelkey saying he forgave the man who shot him
• Pelkey’s family described the experience as healing, saying the AI representation captured his true spirit and provided them with emotional closure by allowing them to see him one last time

Christopher Pelkey was shot and killed in a road rage incident in Arizona in 2021 — but last month, his family members saw him again thanks to artificial intelligence.

This was the first time in Arizona judicial history that AI has been used to create a victim impact statement for someone who has already died, the Guardian and ABC15 reported. 

Pelkey’s sister, Stacey Wales, and his brother-in-law, used AI technology to recreate his image and voice to talk about his life and the day he met the man who shot and killed him during a confrontation in Chandler. 

“To Gabriel Horcasitas, the man who shot me, it is a shame we encountered each other that day in those circumstances,” the AI video recording of Pelkey said. “In another life, we probably could have been friends.”

“I believe in forgiveness, and a God who forgives. I always have, and I still do,” Pelkey’s AI recording added. 

The AI video included real video clips of Pelkey, showcasing his personality and humor. It showed a real photo he once took with an “old age” filter. “Remember, getting old is a gift that not everybody has, so embrace it and stop worrying about those wrinkles,” the AI version of Pelkey said. 

Authorities say that Pelkey was 37 years old when he was killed in November of 2021 while stopped at a red light, along with Horcasitas.

When both vehicles were stopped at a red light, Horcasitas repeatedly honked at Pelkey, who got out of his truck, waved his arms and approached Horcasitas’ car, according to an Arizona court memorandum.

Horcasitas shot twice, killing Pelkey with one bullet — leading the state to hit Horcasitas with murder charges, the court memorandum said. Ultimately, Horcasitas was sentenced to 10-and-a-half years for manslaughter.

The judge overseeing the case, Todd Lang, appeared to become emotional after the AI presentation.

“As justifiably angry as the family is, I heard the forgiveness, and I know Mr. Horcasitas appreciated it, but so did I,” Lang said. “I feel that that was genuine, that his obvious forgiveness of Mr. Horcasitas reflects the character I heard about today.”

Pelkey was a veteran of the United States Army and devoutly religious, according to his obituary. He was involved in many church missions across the world. 

He was survived by various family members and friends and his “beloved” cat Sausage. “The list of names of people that were affected by his life will never fully be known on this side of heaven,” his obituary read. 

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Wales, Pelkey’s sister, said everyone who knew him agreed that the AI video “was a true representation of the spirit and soul of how Chris would have thought about his own sentencing as a murder victim,” Wales said to ABC 15.

Pelkey’s family told the outlet that they found peace in the process because they got to see him one last time. Pelkey’s brother, John, said he felt “waves of healing” from seeing his brother’s face and believes Pelkey would have forgiven his killer. 

“That was the man I knew,” John said.