(Arizona v. Gabriel Horcasita, No. S-0700-CR-2021142720, Ariz. Super., Maricopa Co.)
The sentencing order was issued May 2. A notice of appeal of the verdict was filed May 1.
Chris Pelkey was killed in a road rage incident in November 2021. Police eventually arrested Gabriel Horcasita for the crime. The case eventually went to trial against Horcasita on endangerment and manslaughter-quarrel charges.
At trial, Maricopa County Superior Court Judge Todd Lang allowed the jury to hear a victim impact statement from an AI clone created of Pelkey.
Video Details
In the three-minute video posted to YouTube by Pelkey’s sister and confirmed to be authentic by Horcasita’s attorney, the AI clone appears dressed in a dark green hoodie with a long beard and nondescript gray baseball hat. According to the posting, Pelkey’s sister, her husband and their friend created the AI clone of Pelkey. Pelkey’s sister crafted a script, and the AI was generated through images and audio files of Pelkey. The images of Pelkey were aged up to make him appear as he would have if he could attend trial.
The AI clone opened by acknowledging that he is a version of Pelkey re-created through AI and then the video cuts to recorded video of Pelkey discussing his military service and religious beliefs.
The AI clone then thanked Pelkey’s family, the trial attendees and others involved in the case. The message included a special thanks to Judge Lang for his efforts when the trial date conflicted with his daughter’s spring break.
The AI clone continued: “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. . . . I always have and I still do.”
Sentence And Appeal
The AI clone urged listeners to live life to the fullest, saying that you never know when your life will be cut short and that getting old is a gift not everyone receives. The video includes the AI clone saying he is going fishing interspersed with recorded video of Pelkey fishing and concludes with the AI clone expressing love and saying, “See you on the other side.”
The jury convicted Horcasita after his March 2025 trial, and Judge Lang sentenced Horcasita to 10-1/2 years in prison.
Horcasita’s attorney said he would not be representing Horcasita on appeal but that it was fair to believe that the AI Pelkey clone’s witness statement would feature in the appeal.
Counsel
Jason Lamm of Jason D. Lamm in Phoenix represents Horcasita.
Pelkey’s family is represented by Arizona Voice for Crime Victims Assistant Chief Counsel Jessica Gattuso in Scottsdale, Ariz.