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Former Jets linebacker Darron Lee was indicted this week on a murder charge in the February death of his partner, Gabriella Perpetuo.
A grand jury in Hamilton County (Tennessee) returned the first-degree murder indictment on Tuesday, which carries a life sentence.
The 2016 first-round pick’s case is eligible for the death penalty, but a final decision about seeking that punishment will be made at a later date, Hamilton County District Attorney Coty Wamp said.
Darron Lee’s mugshot booking photo. Franklin County Sheriff's OfficeLee, 31, was initially facing a tampering-with-evidence charge along with the murder charge, but the state dropped the former to “focus solely on the murder of Gabriella,” Wamp said.
Lee allegedly consulted ChatGPT about getting medical help before calling the police, asking the AI service if a fall could bruise two eyes or cause “two stabby looking wounds.”
Perpetuo was found dead in her home near Ooltewah Elementary School in Hamilton County. She was 29.
The medical examiner listed the cause of death as blunt force injuries, which the autopsy supported, listing 12 different injuries, including bone fractures, stab wounds and multiple hematomas.
New York Jets inside linebacker Darron Lee (58) during practice. Bill Kostroun/New York PostThe initial report from investigators also noted a bite mark on her shoulder, which was collected for DNA testing.
Hamilton County Sheriff’s Office Detective Brian Lockhart was one of the first investigators on the scene and said there was blood on the staircase, handrails, walls, floors and in nearly every room of the house.
Lee was on probation in Franklin County, Ohio, and Alachua County, Fla., at the time of the arrest after he was charged in three different alleged assault cases involving another man, Lee’s mother, and the mother of his child.
The ex-NFLer spent three seasons with the Jets from 2016-18.
His career ended two years later with 273 tackles, four sacks and two forced fumbles.
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