Former NFL linebacker Darron Lee appeared in court this week as prosecutors presented disturbing details in a case that has now escalated to first-degree murder charges and a $50 million wrongful-death lawsuit.
Advertisement
Among the more unusual pieces of evidence cited in court, investigators say Lee used the AI tool ChatGPT in an apparent attempt to figure out how to handle the situation after the alleged crime. According to testimony reported by Local 3 News, messages recovered from Lee’s phone show that he asked ChatGPT questions about how to deal with someone who is unresponsive.
Investigators also said Lee searched for information about injuries consistent with someone falling in a shower, a detail prosecutors believe may have been part of an attempt to explain the victim’s death. Body camera footage from responding officers reportedly shows Lee suggesting that the victim may have slipped in the shower, though he said he did not know what had happened.
The victim, 29-year-old Gabriella Carvalho Perpétuo, was discovered dead inside a rented home in Tennessee.
According to testimony from Hamilton County Sheriff’s Office detective Brian Lockhart, the condition of the home told a very different story than an accidental fall.
“There was blood going up the staircase, on the hand railing there was blood, on the walls there was blood, on the floor in the living room there was blood,” Lockhart testified. “There was blood in just about every room except one.”
Authorities said investigators also found broken glass scattered through the home, a shattered microwave, and cleaning supplies upstairs, including bleach wipes and spray bottles. Those items contributed to the tampering with evidence charge prosecutors filed against Lee.
Investigators described severe trauma to Perpétuo’s body. According to testimony in court, she suffered severe brain trauma, a broken neck, multiple stab wounds to the legs, extensive bruising across the body, bite marks on her shoulder and thigh, and significant facial trauma. Officials said the cause of death was blunt force trauma.
Lee was denied bond during a hearing this week. Hamilton County District Attorney Coty Wamp told the court that prosecutors have identified two aggravating factors that could make Lee eligible for the death penalty, though no final decision has been made on whether capital punishment will be pursued.
The judge also heard that Lee allegedly violated probation conditions by moving from Florida to Tennessee. He had previously been on probation for aggravated assault with a deadly weapon and for a 2023 incident in Ohio involving an alleged assault.
Separate from the criminal case, the family of Gabriella Perpétuo has filed a $50 million wrongful-death lawsuit against Lee.
Lee was selected in the first round of the 2016 NFL Draft by the New York Jets. During his five-year NFL career, he also spent time with the Kansas City Chiefs and the Buffalo Bills, last appearing in the league in 2020.
