ChatGPT invented witness testimony in a New Mexico murder appeal

A New Mexico lawyer defending against a murder conviction case used ChatGPT. He then submitted a brief to the New Mexico Supreme Court that contained made-up police statements and witness accounts. The New Mexico Supreme Court found that attorney Stephen Aarons failed to verify the AI-generated material. The judges said the document “contained false testimony from wholly fabricated witnesses.” The court held Stephen in contempt Wednesday and ordered him to pay $5,000. His conduct will also go before an attorney disciplinary board. The judges said Stephen had “demonstrated a lack of remorse and a lack of concern for his client.” Stephen said he used ChatGPT last year to condense the trial record after taking the appeal. He said he did not realize how far AI “hallucinations” could go or how confidently software could produce facts that never happened. New Mexico judges punish Stephen after ChatGPT invents testimony inside Oscar’s murder appeal Stephen, a private attorney based in Santa Fe, represented Oscar Renee Sandoval. Oscar pleaded not guilty to killing the mother of his children. He was later convicted and received life in prison last year. His appeal remains pending. Stephen allegedly told reporters the error was an honest one. “I am remorseful but hopeful that the disciplinary board takes into account it was an honest mistake,” he said. “It is a lesson learned for all professionals who rely upon this powerful but sometimes unstable technology.” A number of lawyers have already faced punishments for uncontrolled AI assistance. Cases have been brought against lawyers in both state and federal courts due to briefs that include fake cases, references, and misquoted legal provisions. Stephen’s application stands out in this category as it includes false testimonies of witnesses in an appeal process. Oscar’s case moved to Kim Chavez Cook, a New Mexico public defender, on September 2. Kim is now handling the appeal while the case remains open. Tiru’s family sues OpenAI as Florida officials examine 16,000 ChatGPT chats tied to the FSU shooting The other court battle involves ChatGPT following the shooting at Florida State University. An attorney representing the family of the deceased, Tiru Chabba, has sued OpenAI, ChatGPT, and Phoenix Ikner in a Federal court. The case was filed in the United States District Court of the Northern District of Florida on Sunday. It is claimed that OpenAI should have taken action in this situation. The law enforcement officials in Florida have released the ChatGPT transcripts of Phoenix. This contains queries on how to operate a gun, media coverage, the busiest time on FSU, the Columbine shooting, and making oneself infamous.